KFC apologises for 'tasteless' promotion
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A recent marketing campaign error made by KFC in Germany has infuriated hundreds of people on various social media platforms.
For those who may not be familiar, on November 9th 1938 – 84 years ago – one of the most horrific events in history took place.
This was the 'Night of Broken Glass', or Kristallnacht, during which Nazi mobs across German towns and cities attacked and vandalised Jewish shops, businesses and synagogues.
This was seen as the beginning of the systematic attempt to annihilate Europe's Jewish population, with many people being killed or injured during these attacks. It's a night that is still remembered today to honour those who lost their lives.
Credit: Holocaust Resource Center of Buffalo.
So you can imagine our absolute disbelief when we found out that KFC had sent out a notification via its app inviting German customers to celebrate this anniversary by ordering fried chicken and cheese!
The message read: 'Commemorate Kristallnacht – treat yourself to more soft cheese and crispy chicken. Now at KFCheese!'
Social media experts in Germany said they were astounded that the company had no checking mechanism in place to pick up on such an obvious error, especially given how sensitive this particular anniversary is.
After receiving many complaints from outraged customers, KFC issued an apology nearly an hour later, saying that it was all just a big mistake caused by 'a fault in our system'.
In a statement released after the 'tasteless' blunder, KFC Germany blamed the message on a bot, saying that the automated notification was linked to calendars that include national observances.
They apologised for the 'unplanned, insensitive and unacceptable message' and said app communications had been suspended while an examination of them took place.
'We understand and respect the gravity and history of this day and remain committed to equity, inclusion and belonging for all,' said the fast food chain.
This incident just goes to show that even the largest corporations can make monumental mistakes. We hope that KFC has learned its lesson from this and will be much more careful with its marketing campaigns in the future. Though you would think they’d have more checks in place to prevent situations such as this.
Our thoughts are with those who lost their lives on Kristallnacht and with the Jewish community as a whole.
What are your thoughts, members? Share them with us in the comments.
KFC Germany mistakenly invited customers to commemorate a horrific historical event by eating cheese and crispy chicken. Credit: Pexels/Eric Mclean.
For those who may not be familiar, on November 9th 1938 – 84 years ago – one of the most horrific events in history took place.
This was the 'Night of Broken Glass', or Kristallnacht, during which Nazi mobs across German towns and cities attacked and vandalised Jewish shops, businesses and synagogues.
This was seen as the beginning of the systematic attempt to annihilate Europe's Jewish population, with many people being killed or injured during these attacks. It's a night that is still remembered today to honour those who lost their lives.
Credit: Holocaust Resource Center of Buffalo.
So you can imagine our absolute disbelief when we found out that KFC had sent out a notification via its app inviting German customers to celebrate this anniversary by ordering fried chicken and cheese!
The message read: 'Commemorate Kristallnacht – treat yourself to more soft cheese and crispy chicken. Now at KFCheese!'
Social media experts in Germany said they were astounded that the company had no checking mechanism in place to pick up on such an obvious error, especially given how sensitive this particular anniversary is.
After receiving many complaints from outraged customers, KFC issued an apology nearly an hour later, saying that it was all just a big mistake caused by 'a fault in our system'.
In a statement released after the 'tasteless' blunder, KFC Germany blamed the message on a bot, saying that the automated notification was linked to calendars that include national observances.
They apologised for the 'unplanned, insensitive and unacceptable message' and said app communications had been suspended while an examination of them took place.
'We understand and respect the gravity and history of this day and remain committed to equity, inclusion and belonging for all,' said the fast food chain.
This incident just goes to show that even the largest corporations can make monumental mistakes. We hope that KFC has learned its lesson from this and will be much more careful with its marketing campaigns in the future. Though you would think they’d have more checks in place to prevent situations such as this.
Our thoughts are with those who lost their lives on Kristallnacht and with the Jewish community as a whole.
What are your thoughts, members? Share them with us in the comments.
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