KFC's clever ad to say sorry for 'running out of chicken' in its 700 restaurants is a lesson in PR

A closed sign hangs on the drive through of a KFC restaurant after problems with a new distribution system in Coalville, Britain, February 19, 2018. REUTERS/Darren Staples - RC1A614DBE30

KFC UK which ran out of chickens in its 700 out of 900 outlets last week delivered a lesson in PR crisis management with a humorous full-page advertisement published in newspapers next day.

The fast-food franchise put out an advert which read, “FCK! We’re sorry”—a play on the letters present in its name. "A chicken restaurant without any chicken. It's not ideal. Huge apologies to our customers, especially those who travelled out of their way to find we were closed," KFC apologised.

The supply fiasco happened as KFC changed its suppliers from Bidvest to DHL, which is using one warehouse near Rugby for its deliveries across the UK. DHL apologised for the debacle and blamed “operational issues” for it.

“It's been a hell of a week, but we're making progress, and every day more and more fresh chicken is being delivered to our restaurants. Thank you for bearing with us," the KFC advertisement further added.

Among the PR circle and on social media, the advertisement was hailed as "a masterclass in PR crisis management".

Founder and Group Managing Director of Frank PR, Andrew Blotch said on Twitter, “KFC apologises with a full page ad in today's Metro. A masterclass in PR crisis management.”

KFC apologises with a full page ad in today's Metro. A masterclass in PR crisis management.#KFCCrisis pic.twitter.com/ZF4SfAuHl5

— Andrew Bloch (@AndrewBloch) February 23, 2018

Another user, a motivational speaker said it was a brilliant advert.

Brilliant advert from KFC
Sometimes you have to use some humour to say sorry #brilliantadvert #saysorry #leadership #motivation pic.twitter.com/4ZCgFzBPgz

— Nigel Risner (@Nigelrisner) February 23, 2018

An advert like this is almost enough to make me want to get back into advertising... kudos to @KFC_UKI #advertising #KFC pic.twitter.com/uW7iRrmbHz

— Marian Arnold-Lawson (@MarketingMaz) February 23, 2018