Kentucky Fried Chicken and Comedy Central have teamed up to offer an original web series and contest focused on user-generated content that’s geared toward 18-24 year-olds who are living with their parents. Viewers are encouraged to participate by sharing their experiences of living at home, with the chance to win a year’s worth of free rent and lots o’KFC chicken.
The new five-part web series, “Growing Up and Getting Out,” focuses on a broke college student forced to return home after school. The first three episodes already aired (July 16, July 23 and July 30). The final two episodes are scheduled for August 6 and August 13.
KFC is using the web series to promote its new product – KFC Bites – and also as a way to reach a younger demographic. Each episode begins with a commercial, where a young man is playing video games and eating fast food until his parents come downstairs and give him a hard time. He placates them with a KFC bite.
Each episode ends by reminding viewers to participate in the contest, and share funny stories, photos and experiences of living at home with mom and dad — in the hopes of winning free rent for a year ($12,500, plus $600 in KFC Gift Checks). After the final episode is released, all submissions will be judged and one winner will be named.
The contest website features each episode, and encourages viewers to get involved and share their experiences on social media: “Did you move back in with your parents? Well, that’s exactly why we want to hear your hilarious stories about living back at home — you could win free rent for a year and a moving out party!” The site declares there will be 5 winning entries, with judging based on “humor, creativity, originality, and fan enthusiasm (votes!)” — all the more reason for participants to share their entries on Facebook and Twitter.
The contest site also features “weekly favorites” – a compilation of the best user submissions from that week – so that viewers can easily vote for their favorite submission, or share it on Twitter or Facebook.
Social platforms are figuring heavily into the marketing for this series; links to the video are on the Facebook and Twitter pages for both KFC and Comedy Central, as well as on their YouTube accounts. Comedy Central is promoting the series and contest via Twitter, KFC has several tweets promoting KFC bites and encouraging viewers to watch the show.
I uploaded a
@youtube video youtu.be/ALwRdIyvGkc?a Growing Up and Getting Out: Episode 3 Video Games— KFC Colonel (@kfc_colonel) July 30, 2012
The results so far are promising. On the Comedy Central website alone, the second episode has 10,585 views (since July 23), and 90 Facebook likes – and the video is surrounded by prominent advertisements for KFC bites. The number of contest entries submitted isn’t yet available.
