Kentucky Fried Chicken Rain

Welcome to the Sound In Marketing Podcast. I'm your host, Jeanna Isham, owner and founder of Dreamr Productions and Sound in Marketing Learning. I create, consult and educate on the power of sound in marketing. In this season we’ll explore how sound influences taste. The ultimate recipe for making sound on purpose. Get it right. Your food wins. Make bad sound choices and the next 100 reviews will not be to your taste. When it comes to your food, ignoring sound and sound associations simply isn't an option. Sound does matter. And over the next dozen or so episodes, we'll chew on the possibilities. Let's dig in. Imagine falling asleep to the sound of fried chicken cooking. Your eyes are heavy as you scroll through Hatch's playlists. You pause on sizzling chicken. Or is it raining? Warning, this episode might induce a heavy craving for fried chicken. In 2024, KFC partnered with Sleep Aid Hatch, a restful tech company, to develop a Kentucky Fried Chicken rain content channel for their devices. After reading multiple social media posts about the similarities between the sound of fried chicken cooking and the sound of rain, KFC made a calculated decision to use ASMR to its advantage. The goal was to create a listening channel to fall asleep to by harnessing the sound of cooking chicken. KFC teamed up with Hatch, a subscription based sleep sound device, to create a playlist of fried chicken inspired audio aids. Discount codes for Hatch devices were given to KFC loyalty customers to help eliminate any obstacles to participation. Why did this partnership work? As strange as the story may sound, KFC and Hatch created something truly awe inspiring by using natural sound cues; cooking and rain. The companies demonstrated both of their strengths; Hatch for sleep and wellness through sound and KFC “finger lickin’ good” fried chicken. (CLIP) That’s finger lickin’ good. By using natural sound cues, KFC created a sizzling story that was both accessible and genuine to a larger audience. To create action in a commercial campaign is ultimately every marketer's dream. Soothing frequencies have the ability to take a bullet train route to the amygdala. The I like I don't like part of your brain. Providing a nonstop trip to recall and reaction through ASMR is a smart idea. The partnership cleverly blended sound and flavor nudging listeners toward chicken cravings while giving KFC fans a reason to explore Hatch's devices. Hatch got to wing it with a larger audience while KFC drummed up cravings and found its inner peace a win win. However, there are drawbacks. Not everyone is going to love this idea because people are not built standard. Everyone has different emotions and tastes that vary. For some, this partnership would not resonate. For example, I can't stand strong engineered smells like perfumes and colognes. So when Abercrombie and Fitch came up with the idea to make their stores smelly, they lost me as a potential customer before I even walked in the door. Seriously, I would walk to the other side of the mall to avoid them. The other potential downfall is that not everyone will make the connection between chicken frying and KFC. They may only think of fried chicken in general. Order up, or they may only hear rain. For some, KFC playlists will sound like nothing more than white noise. Because I can't help but put my creative thoughts into this. Here are my $0.75. Hatch and KFC explored visual, auditory, and gustatory identity by focusing on a nontraditional product marketing experience. In my opinion, this innovative marketing campaign calls for a second act, a follow up, and a follow through that solidifies that the sound of sizzling chicken is synonymous with KFC and KFC alone. Attributing a brand to a natural sound seems impossible, but it has been done before, and it's been done exceptionally well. Two words Coca Cola. (CLIP) “Always Coca Cola”. Coca Cola has dedicated decades and who knows how many trillions of dollars to the sound of Coke. In reality, the sound of a soda is the sound of every soda. But Coke cares and invests deeply in its product sounds. Example. The cracking open of the can. The pour. The fizz. the clinking of the ice The “ahh” from a satisfied customer. Yes, sometimes Pepsi comes to mind, but ultimately Coke was their first. Coca Cola owns the sound of carbonated beverages without owning the sound of carbonated beverages. Coca Cola and KFC may have more marketing dollars than the average company, but strategic sound and sensory appeal are relatively inexpensive ways to compete with the fortune 500 marketers of the world. The trick is to care about how you feel. Figure out what makes you feel the strongest, and help others care just as much. Through a sensory story. And as one Hatch team member states and I quote, we wanted to have fun and to create a sense of surprise through an unexpected but somehow perfectly right partner. Well done, Hatch and KFC, you succeeded. KFC took a sizzling first step into Sonic branding. From there, the world is their biscuit. I hope you're enjoying the show. If sound on purpose sounds like something your brand or company needs, send me a message and let's strategize together. Let's make this world of sound more intriguing, more unique, and more and more on brand.