Double Down at the Dirty Bird

No, it is not consumer-driven fast food mashup like the Mcgangbang. Nor an obscure sport-eating food from the This Is Why You're Fat photoblog — like Ottawa's own gravy pizza.

This is an actual meal marketed by Kentucky Fried Chicken:

[via AdFreak]

Note that I called the chain by its old name, as opposed to the euphemistic "KFC". That was on purpose.

Years ago, the Colonel's troops got on the healthier food bandwagon and started offering grilled chicken and other low-fat options. Their corporate site still claims, "We believe eating sensibly, combined with appropriate exercise, is the best solution for a healthy lifestyle."

[via AVClub]

Made of two slabs of boneless fried chicken, bacon, double cheese and mayo-based sauce, the Double Down has 540 calories, 32 grams of fat, and 1380 milligrams of sodium.

So, an "appropriate exercise" to work the Double Down into anything resembling a healthy lifestyle would be to Running for an hour at about 8.4 km per hour (burning 531 of those 540 calories) or if you actually want to lose weight, biking for an hour at about 25 kph (590 calories). Of course, this assumes you didn't get a combo with a pop and fries...

Oh, and Health Canada recommends that adults do not exceed 2,300 mg of sodium per day. Per day.

While McDonald's keeps toying with portion control in an attempt to appeal to more health-conscious family consumers, Kentucky Fried Chicken has obviously decided their future lies more with young adult males. To this big-eating, big-drinking, burn-it-off-somehow generation the Double Down will provide a tempting alternative to heart-busting treats like the Burger King Quad Stacker and the Wendy's Baconator.

[via wikimedia]

Don't get me wrong. I love a good "bad" meal as much as the next guy. But this idea of competitive junk food eating being embraced by more and more international brands in their everyday menu items kind of turns my stomach.

Social Branding

As integrated Social Issues Marketing specialists, we do more than PSAs at Acart. A big part of our business includes the branding of campaigns and programs that change attitudes, provoke action and improve lives.

One of our recently-launched social brands is Hazardcheck, a Health Canada program to help Canadians identify and reduce environmental health hazards in their homes.



Our stated objective was to create a brand that could be the next "Participaction" — that is, an engaging and potentially grassroots campaign that could be used as a basis for ongoing communication about home hazards.

As you can imagine, we went through a long process of generating naming options. We put together a large think-tank of creative and strategic people, and I moderated one of the most intense brainstorming sessions we've ever had. And, of course, it had to be developed concurrently in English and French.



Next, we worked on identifiers for the program that would get a strong message across without being overly shocking.

I can't tell you what else was on our shortlist, but "Hazardcheck" was the winner.



As a parent, I really appreciated the chance to work on something so basic, and yet so essential, to helping people keep their families in good health. Doing research for the branding project, I also learned a few new things to look out for.

Social branding is all about making important things simple and relevant. I think we've done that with the development of a plain-language name that is also a call-to-action, as well as an internet-inspired icon that communicates both "home" and "caution".

Our next job was to develop a Guide and other materials to promote the new brand. And a video is now in the works. (Maybe someday they'll let me write a Participaction-esque jingle!)



Get the information you need to keep your family healthy and safe at http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/ewh-semt/hazards-risques/index-eng.php

"Legalize it... and I will advertise it"

Back in the '70s, when Peter Tosh wrote that lyric, it was literally a pipe dream. But today, as the medical benefits of marijuana for cancer and other patients are becoming increasingly recognized by authorities, ads for legal pot are actually starting to appear.

In Colorado, for example, KUNC reports that ads for medical marijuana clinics are elevating the mood of a struggling advertising and media industry:

"Colorado voters approved the use of marijuana in 2000 for debilitating medical conditions such as HIV/AIDS and cancer. The industry is now blooming with more than 14,000 people statewide approved to use the drug, and that's a 70 percent jump from last year...

Colorado's booming medical marijuana industry is doing more than just benefiting dispensaries that sell the drug for a profit. Some media outlets hit hard by the recession are cashing in on the so called gold rush, collecting thousands of dollars in advertising. Others are taking a wait and see approach to the somewhat controversial revenue stream."

However, the article also quotes a legal expert who states that pot advertisers are still in danger from prosecution because they are breaking federal law.

In Sacramento, California, apparently advertisers are getting around this problem by using vague copy:

"There's no need to suffer in silence, Canna Care is here to help...If you're coping with chronic pain, arthritis, nausea, glaucoma or side effects from chemo, there are reliable alternatives."

Of course, this is just mainstream media. Online communities like "vendormaps.com" actively promotes itself as "a place where medical marijuana vendors and medical marijuana co-ops can legally connect to exchange overgrow."

Then again, there was a time when today's illegal drugs were common medications:


I'm curious to know if anyone can find me an example of a modern Canadian ad. I'm doubtful, though. Medical marijuana here has been mostly decriminalized since 2000, but the dope itself seems to be sold either quietly by the government or through speakeasy "compassion clubs". I doubt either of these sources is eager to advertise.