In Malaysia, the Korean fever has swept across every aspect of culture, including a fervent love for Korean fried chicken. Yet, in this crowded market, where fast-food chains and Korean franchises offer similar flavours with minimal distinction, KFC faced a unique challenge. The task wasn't about the product itself; it was about standing out in a saturated market where Korean culture is not just appreciated but passionately followed.

How could Kentucky Fried Chicken carve its own niche in this competitive landscape? The answer lay in tapping into the zeal of K-fans, known for their intense passion and eagerness to showcase their fandom. KFC's strategy was to transform this fandom into a platform for engagement, offering an experience that went beyond mere consumption, making it a matter of pride and a topic of conversation among the K-culture enthusiasts.

To announce the arrival of the best Korean fried chicken in town, we needed the support and attention of K-Lovers to get the ball rolling. The idea was to create a nationwide ‘Daebak K’ movement to get people excited about the new flavour launch and celebrate their love for Korean culture by showing us that they are the most ‘Daebak K’ of all.

We started the ‘Daebak K’ movement by 'Koreanising' Malaysia's local content to grab attention. Imagine famous Malaysian 'Oppas' in local content speaking in Korean.

This helped bridge two passionate fandoms – K-fans and local drama enthusiasts – around KFC, allowing the campaign to spin off a social movement across platforms which heightened the brand's visibility and reinforced KFC's connection with the heart of Malaysian K-culture enthusiasts.

Our insight: K-fans crave an immersive K-culture experience. To capture their attention and kickstart the ‘Daebak K’ movement, we explored Malaysians' love for dramatic content and humour, leading us to 'Projek: High Council', a local series with 1 million unique viewers on the Malaysia’s largest transmedia network, Astro Go and Video On Demand (VOD) and over 1 billion views on TikTok and counting.

Inspired by the ‘dubbed meme video’ trend, we 'Koreanised' this drama, turning our local actors into ‘Korean Oppas’ by redubbing scenes of them speaking entirely in Korean, humorously centred around cravings for KFC's K-Cheese Crunch. This strategic brand integration drew attention and sparked viral moments surrounding KFC.

Capitalising on the attention, we launched a fun, social challenge to find the biggest ‘Daebak K’ fan ever! Fans turned into active participants as they showcase their Korean-ness for the chance to unlock a once-in-a-lifetime K-experience in Korea!

The 'Daebak K' campaign yielded impressive results for KFC, significantly impacting sales, reach and engagement.

Sales Impact

KFC experienced a 13% sales increase during the period (19 June - 10 July 2023), compared to the same period in the previous year, surpassing projections. The K-Cheese Crunch became an instant sensation, a testament to the campaign's effectiveness in driving product demand.

Reach

Recorded 4.4 million views across Astro’s OTT and digital platforms. This wide reach was further evidenced by a total of 6.3 million impressions, indicating a strong presence and visibility across various channels.

On radio, an estimated 6,393,000 listeners have heard the campaign an average of 10.6 times each during the campaign period (19 June – 10 July 2023).

Engagement

The campaign achieved over 57,000 engagements, reflecting high levels of interaction and interest among consumers, actively participating in the K-Cheese Crunch brand campaign.