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I purposefully didn’t post on April Fool’s Day because I don’t want to deceive you, my dear readers. But the following tale appears to be for serious.

Kentucky Fried Chicken has decided to add the word “grilled” to their name, thus making them Kentucky Fried & Grilled Chicken. The name change has been a long time coming, having been tested in focus groups and advertising, according to sources.

To prove this is for real, check out the press release from the KFC site.

Ok, now let’s pick apart this finger lickin’ mess of a brand name. The old name worked, it was short, snappy, easy to remember, and best of all, it described the restaurant. Attaching the name to a southern state was a clever way to subtly tie in the traditions of American cuisine south of the Mason–Dixon line. But adding “& Grilled” makes it cumbersome and awkward, lacking a snappy abbreviation. KF&GC not only adds two syllables but punctuation. Doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue. I fear that a goofy name will spell the end for Kentucky … whatever.

So this brings me to the rub, what should their name be? “Kentucky Chicken” works, because it encompasses all their chicken products whether fried, grilled, boiled, etc., but the KC abbreviation doesn’t have the same snap as KFC. Boston Market was once Boston Chicken, so maybe KFC wants to be “Kentucky Market”? How about changing the name entirely to something like “Colonel Sanders’?” With so much competition in the fast food space, a name change can be deadly.

Unfortunately, I don’t have the answer. KFC bosses will ultimately have to make a decision and stick with it. Unfortunately, I fear the decision will be based on compromises and lowest common denominators rather than a gutsy brand-forward decision. Adding on to an existing name, especially one with such a history, is usually the safe decision, not the best one.

Spotted this on Brand New

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