pnj.com: Chick-fil-A is giving you a good reason to eat chicken, but there's a catch.

On Friday, all Chick-fil-A chain restaurants will be celebrating the fourth annual Cow Appreciation Day. The restaurant will be offering a free Chick-fil-A meal to any customer that comes to the eatery fully dressed as a cow. This means the customer needs to be dressed from head to toe as a cow.

If you're partially dressed as a cow, such as a cow-printed T-shirt, hat, vest or purse, Chick-fil-A will give you a free entrée.

Last year, thousands of customers throughout the county visited Chick-fil-A dressed in cow-themed costumes, ranging from simple cow-spotted T-shirts to full cow suits complete with furry ears, cow bells and homemade sandwich boards with personalized renditions of Chick-fil-A's "Eat Mor Chikin" cow messages.

What theme can you think of for your restaurant to hit the crowd?

Got a cow suit? [pnj.com]

What happens when you put baggy jeans, duct tape, and helium together?

Coming off the success of their viral video hits (all filmed in the environs of Los Angeles), “Guys backflip into jeans” and “Super chill monkey does Hollywood”, the creative folks at UnbuttonedFilms pull off “Guys fill their jeans with helium”. It's a good way to drive viral traffic online with the popularity of YouTube in today's Internet age.

Snellville (Atlanta), GA USA. A Ukrainian inventor, Johan De Broyer has conceived the idea for a re-sealable aluminum soda can featuring hidden advertising messaging. The idea was developed/designed by Robert Davis, Davis Advertising Inc. of Snellville (Atlanta), GA USA. K Mac McClintock, Advercan (Dallas, TX USA) is handling messaging technologies and representation.

The ingenious new “Soda Seal®” can appears like a standard soda can -- until it is popped open. When the tab is turned the can becomes re-sealed with a water-tight and gas-tight seal,* revealing full-color, high-resolution advertising messaging. The potential for the new soda can is proportionate to the 250 billion soda cans consumed annually.

There are numerous benefits including:

-Net-zero production cost. The “mini-billboard” advertising message is sold to co-promoters. Advertising revenues will offset the cost of production.

-Advertising messaging can include hidden codes, prizes, logos, branding, websites, scent, flavor and other messaging technologies.

-The “novelty aspect” of the new can, in addition to the hidden promotional messaging, may result in added beverage sales, especially when used in conjunction with sweepstakes, contests, giveaways, etc.

-Advertising messaging can be customized for local, regional, national or worldwide (with language translation) implementation. The closing disks can be printed and distributed to various packaging facilities for specific advertising/
promotional targeting.

-The can’s all aluminum construction requires no deviation from current recycling programs. There are no plastics or other materials used.

-The Soda-Seal top assembly is fitted to a standard aluminum can. There is no redesign, retooling or machining required for the standard can which resides beneath the Soda-Seal can top assembly.

Advercan is now seeking partnerships with MCC Rexam, Ball, Crown Holdings, Etc. More info is available at: http://www.davisadvertisinginc.com/sodaseal/

Newswire: OversockArt.com, one of the web’s most successful distributors of reproduction oil paintings, has set up shop on one of the world’s most popular youth-driven websites – Facebook.com

The company’s new application called, “My Art Gallery”, allows Facebook members to upload photos of various pieces of art for sale on the OverstockArt.com website for free. Members can enjoy works from such notable artists as Van Gogh, Degas and Monet to name a few.

Like other businesses tapping into the youth markets through popular social websites like Facebook, OverstockArt.com is gearing its affordable products toward trend-savvy, college-age individuals who want to boost the atmosphere of their apartments and dorm rooms with real oil paintings.

“We think the younger market is a great place to pitch our product,” said Amitai Sasson, OverstockArt.com’s marketing director. “Kids are becoming more and more trend-savvy these days and are also interested in uploading cool applications to highlight their profiles on social networking sites like Facebook and Myspace.”

OverstockArt.com’s application allows members to choose as many paintings as they want from all the available paintings on their website. Members can also choose to invite friends and comment on their friend’s galleries. Each uploaded painting also has a purchase option attached to it.

New Application from OverstockArt.com Gears Product Toward Trend-Savvy Youths on Facebook.com [Newswire]

Internation Herald Tribune: Near the end of an early galley of "Cathy's Book: If Found Call (650) 266-8233," a young adult novel that will be published in September, the spunky eponymous heroine talks about wearing a "killer coat of Clinique #11 'Black Violet' lipstick." But in the final edition of the book, that reference has been changed to "a killer coat of Lipslicks in 'Daring.' "

As it turns out, Lipslicks is a line of lip gloss made by Cover Girl, which has signed an unusual marketing partnership with Running Press, the unit of Perseus Books Group that is publishing the novel.

By now, television and movie viewers have become used to this kind of thing: when they see sneakers or cars on a show or in a film, they generally assume that these appearances have been paid for by the companies that make the brands.

But product placement in books is still relatively rare. The use of even the subtlest of sales pitches, particularly in a book aimed at adolescents, could raise questions about the vulnerability of the readers.

From a marketing perspective, said Michael Watras, chief executive of Straightline International, a New York strategic branding agency, "it's a great concept."

Product Placement Deals Make Leap From Film to Books [International Herald Tribune]

The FASTForward Blog: Dove (Unilever) is taking social networking to a whole new dimension as it relates to campaign development: they’re letting customers not only create ads (which they did last year) but vote on them and then announce the winner at the Oscars. Someone has looked at every angle of cross-integration for this (including mobile voting).

I can’t even feel comfortable calling it either a promotion or an event — it’s both and more. It’s synthesis in a decidedly different way that is a mashup of sorts, but focused on reframing and repurposing existing methods in unexpected ways. It introduces an interesting leap from incidental product positioning in productions (actor drinks well-displayed Coke during scene) to intentional co-event creation.

What’s also interesting is how significant a role the metrics played to reinforce additional investment this year.

“…last year’s campaign leading up to the Oscars resulted in over 1.5 million people visiting the official entry site at dovecreamoil.com, and the company got more than 1,200 ad submissions.”

Advertising + Social Networking = New Equation by Paula Thornton [The FASTForward Blog]

So you have seen advertisements from commercials to billboards. Now advertisers are looking at your skin to place their ads! Look at how this Orange County based company is getting venues to let advertisers on their customer’s hands.

This is a new form of advertising and is completely different from the television commercials and magazine ads people are used to. What do you call advertising on your hands? "Well I like to call it Handvertising", said Mike Brown CEO of Handvertising USA.

Handvertising USA is transforming the way advertisers are looking at your skin, more specifically your hands. "Almost everyone has been to a county fair, swap meet, bar or club and had had their hand stamped for proof of entry. We have found a better use for this space that could make everyone happy" said Mike.

HandvertisingUSA.com

Canton Daily Ledger: At some point in life, just about all of us have spelled something out on our plate with food. A University of Illinois Horticulturist has taken this concept to new heights - spelling out the words "Fresh Salads" on a billboard advertisement using real, growing lettuce.

Pierceall was first contacted by the Leo Burnett advertising company to ask for his assistance in creating the billboard for one of their clients, McDonald's Corporation -- the goal being to stress the fresh salads in their menu. "Burnett googled horticulture and Chicago and my name kept coming up, so they called me," said Pierceall.

The billboard was mounted in Wrigleyville near the intersection of Addison and Clark streets. Pierceall said that the "shelf life" of the billboard is unlimited as defined by Mother Nature, and even she can't be pushed. "The ad agency wanted the billboard to be up this summer, but I told them it had to wait because lettuce is a cool season crop and would never be successful in the summer in Chicago. The seasonal nature of the plants defined the presentation timing and the eventual length of the presentation, kind of like installation art."

Pierceall has over 30 years of experience in environmental education and landscape design. Currently he is advisor of a horticulture degree-completion program for Chicago area students.

U of I horticulturist grows salad billboard [Canont Daily Ledger]

Bizreport: "With SmartEdition, publisher’s customers benefit from anywhere/anytime access to current and back issues of their publications, while enjoying audited paid circulation and a new advertising platform," was written on the company website.

The platform is geared toward small, local newspapers. Called AdGet, it is a cost-per-action model geared toward advertising for digital editions of the local papers. The platform allows for audio and video ads and also gives consumers a "click to transact" button so that advertisers can offer a quicker transaction. Restaurants could offer online reservations or car dealers could offer online sign-ups for test drives, according to one report.

The SmartEdition itself is a kind of cross between traditional newspapers and online editions. It offers a text reader for the online editions. NewspaperDirect is currently working with more than 550 local newspapers, many of which are in Canada.

Newspapers may get a boost from AdGet [Bizreport]

Cherryflava: We remember that a couple of years ago SAA painted on of their 747's in hideous colours in an apparent celebration of managing to send an entire Olympic team overseas without loosing all of their luggage.

That plane is probably still lurking around, 'cause it would have been too expensive to repaint the thing.

But, in an ongoing strategy to milk more money out of their human trafficking business model, other airlines are selling fuselage space as an advertising canvas.

Planevertising: Jet-fueled billboards [Cherryflava]

BizReport: The study was commissioned by Ball State University and found that just over 55% of college aged kids are open to receiving ad messages on their cell phones as long as they get something in return for looking at the message.

Michael Hanley, a marketing profession at Ball State said, "All you have to do is offer free ring tones, cash or access to the Internet because this age group has grown up with cell phones and other mobile devices. It is the way they communicate with each other as well as with the outside world.”

College students are already affecting mobile marketing. Nearly 37% of those studied said they had received a mobile message in the past year, up 13% from last year's numbers. Students are also using their phones for more than talking. 40% of students surveyed said they sent photos through their cell or email and 10% said they sent video via cell or email.

College students are open to mobile ads [BizReport]

Adpunch: This is an exceptionally brilliant and intelligent ambient campaign launched in Canada to promote security glasses. In a unique and impressive advertisement campaign in Vancouver, 3M firm, deals in security glasses, wanted to create a solid image of their product. In order to pursue their objective, they decided to modify a bus stand and fitted their security glass at the sides of the shelter. They further filled the security glasses with real banknotes to lure miscreants to take attempt to lay their hands on it.

The idea clicked and many attempted fruitlessly to gain access with golf clubs and baseball bats however, the glass remained intact. Seeing this ambient advertisement, one could safely conclude that the product benefit is very effectively demonstrated to the masses. The remarkable idea and its perfect execution provided the firm a strong platform to project its product with a bright image.

3M Security Glasses: A Perfect Ambient Ad to Display Product Benefit [Adpunch]

BizReport: It should, therefore, come as no surprise to learn that Google is expanding into the world of video games. Bernie Stolar, Google’s Dean of Games, is adamant that Google won’t be publishing its own games or building its own console, but that they do have plans for a new system, called “AdSense for Games”.

For Google, in-game advertising was always on the cards. On its acquisition of AdScape the search engine giant said, “Over the past few years, the video game experience has become richer and more interactive. We think this rich environment is a perfect medium to deliver relevant, targeted advertising that ultimately benefits the user, the video game publisher and the advertiser.”

“AdSense for Games” will enable advertisers to purchase ad space within games and game publishers can integrate the system to monetize their products. Text and video ad formats will be on offer. Initially the system will only be available on web-based games but there are plans to include PC and console games in the future.

Google to launch 'AdSense for Games' [BizReport]

Update on Zoopa.com, featured on CoolBusinessIdeas.com on March 17, 2007:

Zooppa.com is revolutionizing advertising by involving the consumers themselves in the creative process. Companies partner with Zooppa.com to sponsor online commercial contests where users( who are the creatives and the potential consumers these companies are marketing to) are invited to create their own ads for the brand based on a brief the company provides. Participation is not limited to just shooting a video however. Users can write a script, upload photos or simply post an idea for an advertisement for others to use in their videos (this collaboration is rewarded as well). Users then compete for real cash prizes as the community of registered users votes for their favorite ads to decide the winners of the contest.

The new features developed on Zooppa 1.0, far surpass the beta version as well. Users will be able to comment on ALL posted contributions, where previously only on-air and active videos were available for comment. The creatives behind Zooppa are building a new video player to add more relevance to users’ contributions, as well as communicate with them in a more efficient way. The type of material possible to post on Zooppa has also been expanded. Now users can generate photos and other images to create advertisements for the Zooppa contests. In addition, users will now have the option of privately contacting one another.

Zooppa.com

Cool Hunting: Call it ingenious marketing or just plain bad taste, but a company promoting its laxatives on a bus stop billboard on busy Avenida Faria Lima in São Paulo has incorporated toilet lids attached to the seats where bus passengers sit and wait to further drive home its message. Those innocently taking a rest while waiting for their rides on public transport unwittingly become part of the ad, which gives off the impression they’re sitting on a toilet actually waiting for, well, something other than the No. 2 bus line.

Lax(ative) Advertising [Cool Hunting]

Springwise: Dutch Gratis-Post lets people order envelopes with free postage for mailing within The Netherlands. Like most of the free love concepts we've covered in the past (from free photocopies to free phone calls), the concept is supported by advertising, in two parts. Ads are printed on the back of the envelope, and in exchange for 5 free ready-to-mail envelopes, users also agree to receive advertising messages by email for a period of four weeks.

If you think consumers can't possibly be interested in being ad-bombed for four weeks in exchange for EUR 2.20 (one stamp is EUR 0.44) worth of postage on ad-covered envelopes, you're wrong ;-) Gratis-Post ran out of its first print-run of 52,500 envelopes a few hours after they launched last Monday. Registered users can order a maximum of 5 envelopes per week. To give you a bit of insight into the format's revenue structure: for EUR 12,500, advertisers can have their ads printed on 10,000 envelopes, an email shot sent to registered users and banners placed on gratis-post.nl.

Free snail mail, sponsored by advertisers [Springwise]

Springwise: An innovative Japanese company is offering university students free photocopies. This free love is made possible by printing ads on the back of the copy paper, which is slightly thicker than normal to prevent ads from shining through. For JPY 400,000, advertisers can have their message printed on 10,000 sheets of paper.

Tadacopy machines have been placed at a few dozen campuses, and are a big hit with students. The company was founded by students at the universities of Keio, Chuo and Hosei, who installed the first free copy machine in April of last year. Nice one for student entrepreneurs to set up in other countries! You'll make some extra money, your fellow students will thank you, and local advertisers will be able to reach a targeted audience in a novel way. Like any good free love concept, it’s a win-win-win situation.

Free Photocopies for Students [Springwise]

BizReport: A new website gives advertisers the chance to brief online video ad developers for considerably less than the cost of a production agency.

It’s a win-win situation for advertisers on Zooppa, a new website launched this week. It is essentially a platform for paid, user generated video, with a twist.

Businesses are encouraged to supply advertising briefs, including specifics such as target audience, product details, core message and brand guidelines. Users create video ads which are then entered in to a contest where they are reviewed and voted on by other Zooppa users. At the time of writing details of the value of the prizes are not known.

"Zooppa.com's purpose is to create a community of professional and amateur creatives and videomakers that compete in creating the best and the most viral video commercials ever,” said Zooppa’s Allison Green.

Advertisers can use new website for online ad production [BizReport]

The Boston Globe: In an ad-saturated world, the cellphone screen is a nearly pristine canvas.

But a number of area companies are helping to transform the device that 220 million people are loath to leave at home into a personal, pocket-sized billboard, hawking everything from the latest ringtone to Fabio-favored "I Can't Believe It's Not Butter!"

"We're calling the phone 'the brand in your hand' -- you're never more than a foot away from it, 24 hours a day," said Fareena Sultan , associate professor of marketing at Northeastern University's College of Business Administration. The challenge, Sultan said, will be to produce an advertisement for the phone "that excites the person holding it."

Fueled by faster wireless networks, more capable phones, and increasingly popular data services, the cellphone ad space is poised to grow, according to industry watchers, and a cluster of Boston start-ups have positioned themselves as the middlemen who bring brands to the screen.

Boston-based Enpocket Inc. partnered with Sprint Nextel Corp. to place banner ads on the carrier's mobile browser homepage last year. Third Screen Media Inc., also in Boston, builds cellphone-sized banner ads for major brands such as Burger King Holdings Inc., Bank of America Corp., and Toyota Motor Corp.

Cellphone screen is today's hip billboard [The Boston Globe]

Isoceania: Discover Wizmark, the interactive urinal communicator, its advertising you can't help but look at. An idea so original, it has everyone talking. Wizmark's interactive capabilities will get results, providing the perfect guerrilla marketing medium for men of all ages.

Targeting your audience can be half the battle in marketing. Given the venue of this marketing tool's location, it will undoubtedly be the vastly perfect media format for every male oriented product and promotion.

As a one-of-a-kind, fully functional interactive device, Wizmark can talk, sing, or flash a string of lights around a promotional message when greeting a "visitor". The large anti-glare, waterproof viewing screen is strategically located just above the drain to ensure guaranteed viewing without interruptions. Using the elements of surprise and humour in a truly unique location will allow Wizmark, in combination with your ad, to make a lasting impression on every male that sees it.

The Interactive Urinal Communicator comes in 3 different models.

Wizmark [Isoceania]

BRAND INFECTION: Over and over again funny amazing what kind of ideas companies have. This time it is all about toasts and raising money for charity organisations like World Vision, Save the Children or others you can help decide on.

It works the following way: you give YourNameOnToast some money and they write your desired name or web address on toast in order to put it on their website. Your toast will act as a link to your website and the more you pay for your toast, the higher it will appear in the listings.

Your Name On A Piece Of Toast [BRAND INFECTION]

V-Lodge is an online business-to-business marketplace for smarter, more civilized product placement and advertising weaved into video games. The new company will facilitate direct contacts between interested parties and contribute to more informed decision makings. In-game advertising is the next frontier in entertainment marketing.

The content section on V-Lodge will feature articles on both the theory and practice of savvy advertising and product placement for video and mobile games, as well as relevant industry stories and interviews. The ultimate goal of V-Lodge is to build a marketplace for in-game ads that is friendly to three groups of stakeholders: game developers and publishers, advertisers, and entertainment consumers.

Media Life: The Wall Street Journal is smelling out a new way to advertise. The newspaper, which recently debuted a new design, is gearing up to offer advertisers the ability to run scented ads. These ads would be on the regular newspaper pages and not on inserts, according to details that emerged in yesterday's earnings conference call. Rather than lifting a flap, the way most current scent advertising is distributed, the reader would rub the ad in order to release the scent, much like the scratch-and-sniff stickers kids play with. The paper has not yet completely refined the technology, but so far it has developed the ability to create chocolate and perfume scents. A WSJ spokesperson this morning said that no advertisers have been approached yet about using the technology, which is part of the paper's push to find new ways to add value for advertisers.

A smelly proposition: WSJ sniffing out scented ads [Media Life]

Adrants: Here's something we don't get to report every day. Massachusetts company Alt Terrain LLC unleashes an actual new media platform. We were like, is that possible?

The patent-pending 360 Degree Mobile Video Billboard delivers ad content (even 30-second moving spots) to thousands of eyeballs in a given hit. Right now it's in New York, LA, Chicago, Boston, and San Francisco. You attach it to your car, truck or SUV.

360 Mobile Video Billboard Brings Times Square to a 'burb Near You [Adrants]

Strange New Products: Arcade Marketing Inc., in tandem with the California Milk Processor Board, is putting up a new type of advertisement at bus stops that emit the smell of chocolate chip cookies.

The ad, which will be placed at five bus stops in downtown San Francisco, utilizes the company's technology called MagniScent®, which disseminates smell via
scent-infused adhesives affixed to the inside of the bus shelters and undersides of the benches.

While scent-based advertisements have been used in magazines, it's supposedly a first for outdoor advertising. Though, I swear some fast-food burger joints deliberately pump burger smoke outside just to get me to walk in!

Interesting that the Milk Board would use cookie smell to attract attention to milk.

Scented Bus Stops [Strange New Products]

Post-Gazette.com: Maybe the writers finally ran out of ideas for the MasterCard "Priceless" ads. That's what it looked like earlier this year when they sat an actor down in a chair and had him type out empty spaces, inviting viewers to try filling in the blanks themselves.

Apparently, the ad copywriters were just up with the latest fashion.

This is the moment of in-your-hands consumer advertising -- the kind generated by the masses rather than for the masses. From Emerald Nuts' make-your-own contest to Mozilla FireFox's posting of consumer-produced spots at firefoxflicks.com, the creative directors seem to be handing over the work to us common folk.

There's marketing powerhouse Procter & Gamble, responsible for such memorable ad icons as Folger's Mrs. Olson and "99 and 44/100 % pure'' Ivory soap, offering a $1,000 prize to food-service professionals who can come up with the best pitch for the Dawn Grease Fighting Arsenal used in cafeterias and restaurant kitchens.

All these efforts to encourage consumer-generated marketing may look like a cheap trick to get free ideas, but advertising executives say there's more to it. What's actually happening is the industry is trying to plug into a very connected online audience that has little patience for traditional ads.

On Marketing: New approach to ads lets you do the work [Post-Gazette.com]

GUSH magazine: Buyjake.com is a website set up by a mother who thinks her child is so cute that companies will want to put their logos on his clothing or him for $100 000 a year. “I will dress in your company’s provided apparel (and sport a tattoo!) everywhere I go for the amount of time chosen. Want me to do a commercial? How about a public appearance? I’ll do that too.** All advertising must be pre-approved by Mom (nothing distasteful).”

A company called perfectpopcorn.com, has actually offered Jake $350 for a month’s worth of wearing their clothing. “Here is what Tim Farina, President & CEO of Javanni Inc. has to say about Baby Jake: In today’s creative world of advertising we not only need to know our customers but we need to find creative ways of reaching them to deliver our message.

Children - A New Advertising Medium? [GUSH magazine]

Trend Hunter: It seems we’re running out of advertising space (or at least good/fresh space) so now companies are eager to increase their market share in space. In 1985, Coca-Cola and Pepsi seized an opportunity to test the viability of carbonated drinks in space. Both companies benefited from the first unofficial taste test in space. Then in 2001 Pizza Hut flew with the Russian Space Agency and became the first to deliver pizza in space. Radio Shack followed with a commercial aboard the International Space Station. It featured a Russian cosmonaut opening a Father’s Day present. NASA has been reluctant to participate, but marketers say advertising could help fund scientific research. NASA is currently working with the Bush administration to conduct an evaluation for a commercialization strategy in space.

Spacevertising [Trend Hunter]

The Gazette: High-tech spy Sam Fisher uses a Sony Ericsson phone to snap a picture of terrorists and sends it to home base. Then he reads his mission briefings on his PDA - personal digital assistant - from the same gadget maker.

While Fisher may be fictional hero of Ubisoft's Montreal-made Splinter Cell video game series, the tools he needs to complete his missions are quite real. And this is only the beginning for the fast-growing industry of advertising in video games, as the eyeballs of young men shift from the television to the gaming console.

"Advertisers want to engage audiences in the environments where they are," said Brandon Berger of Ogilvy interactive, which creates in-game ads for client brands.

"Games are not even a phenomenon anymore. It's mainstream. These are major consumers."

As video games become increasingly lifelike, so do their ability to imitate the world's ad-cluttered landscapes. And as production costs for major titles can hit $40 million, some extra cash is highly welcome.

And it can only grow from here. Depending who you ask, in-game advertising could be worth up to $4 billion by 2010, Berger said.

Product placements like Sam Fisher's camera phone is the most popular choice, linking the brand directly with an enjoyable activity.

Product placement enters virtual world [The Gazette]

Brand Infection: Here’s one for Switzerland’s airline group Swiss Air, created by Artfield (website in german), a company shaping agricultural land into art but also advertising. Using fields between 50.000 and 100.000 square meters the company can create characters of up to 100meters length while only using natural colors and elements.

Pretty crazy but hey, this works perfectly next to airports where people already see the advertising from far up.

Fieldvertising [Brand Infection]

Teleformance: Teleformance is a Pay-Per-Call advertising account management company, and is the only company in the nation devoted solely to this service. Our goal is to connect your business to qualified consumers that are seeking your company’s product or service by eliminating the waste of traditional direct response advertising methods. We manage every aspect of the Pay-Per-Call advertising campaign process for your company. Our experienced team will work with you to customize your strategic campaign and distribute your ads across the nation’s largest network of search engines and online directories.

Teleformance - http://www.teleformance.net

Teleformance's President Terry McCarthy wrote to convince us why his company is different from the #1 business in the PPCall industry, Ingenio, which recently launched a new service called Ether. In his own words:

4. When they hit submit, the user phone will ring and a message will announce that their call is being connected. Within a second or two, the toll-free call will seamlessly ring into the client's designated phone number.

MSNBC: Psstt. KFC wants to share a secret. No, not that secret.

Colonel Sanders’ herbs-and-spices recipe for Kentucky Fried Chicken is still safely locked away, but the chain unveiled a new TV ad Thursday that allows viewers to crack a hidden message if they play the spot back slowly on a digital video recorder or VCR. The gimmick is aimed at countering the rise of technology that enables television viewers to skip past commercials faster than ever before.

“This is taking the exact opposition approach — rewarding viewers for taking the time to engage and be interactive with television,” said Tom O’Keefe, an executive at Foote Cone & Belding, the advertising agency that created the spot for KFC Corp.

For those savvy enough to solve the secret, the prize is a coupon for KFC’s new, sauce-drenched Buffalo Snacker chicken sandwich. The 99-cent Snacker debuted a year ago and is credited in KFC’s earnings rebound.

KFC plants hidden secret in new TV commercial [MSNBC]