KFC Ties Sweepstakes to 'Earl' Premiere

KFC is out with a sweepstakes tied to NBC’s “My Name is Earl,” which offers the chance to win $25,000.

The promotion was created to drive tune-in to the show’s Sept. 27 premiere and traffic to KFC restaurants.

To enter, people visit a KFC restaurant, find the cast of "My Name is Earl" on P-O-P materials to obtain a secret code. Codes can be entered through Sept. 27 at NBC.com/My_Name_Is_Earl/games/kfc_sweeps. Customers can also enter by sending a text message with the secret code to 62288. One grand-prize winner will receive $25,000.

One of the goals of the promotion is to generate awareness of KFC Famous Bowls, a mix of KFC ingredients layered in a plastic bowl. The item is available in three varieties: Mashed Potato Bowl, Rice Bowl and Chicken and Biscuit Bowl.

Banner ads, e-mail blasts and TV spots on NBC programming support the promotion. In addition, a KFC vignette will air during the season premiere of "My Name is Earl" at 8 p.m. ET on Sept. 27.

In a separate contest, people can write in and tell their humorous stories of how they would use $25,000 to right a wrong. KFC is awarding $100 in gift checks for every story that is published on the Web site through Sept. 27.

One wry winner from Seward, VA, wrote, “If I had $25,000 to right a wrong, I would get a divorce and pay him off to leave me alone.”

Another winner said they would use the money to buy their ex-roommate a frying pan. The entry said, “Before she moved out, she packed up all her kitchen stuff and because I had nothing to cook with I was pissed. As a result I took my Swiss army knife and put a 3-inch gouge in her $100 gourmet frying pan.”

“This promotion lets these folks ‘connect with their inner Earl’ and strive to make things right,” Melanie Dyer, KFC Media, said.

Mediaedge: CIA negotiated the “Earl” promotion NBC. It is being executed in house with NBC.

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