KFC’s iconic slogan ‘It’s Finger-Lickin’ Good’ was forged back in the 1950s. Although the slogan hasn’t been used much in the US of late, it has been a major part of the brand’s communications globally. In the wake of the pandemic, to avoid sending out the wrong message to people, KFC decided to drop the ‘Finger Lickin’ part out of their slogan to encourage people to avoid touching their faces.

One of their commercials released in back March came under the radar of UK’s advertising critics and received some flak for showing people licking their hands amidst the pandemic lockdowns. Subsequently, KFC issued an apology admitting that their advertisement was insensitive to the current scenario.

The brand then went on to partner up with the creative agency Mother and the PR agency Freuds to create a campaign where they pulled the “Finger-Lickin’ ” from their advertising by blurring it out in their commercial or with a more direct approach in their billboard advertisements where they showed buckets that featured disclaimers like “Wash fingers thoroughly before lickin’ ” or “Finger-Lickin’ not currently advised”. The quirky campaign wittily reminded people that the chicken is still good, but it’s best for people to not lick their fingers at the moment.