KFC Malaysia shows love to all delivery riders (even those of its competitors)

KFC Malaysia recently voiced is support for delivery riders who are still hard at work during the two-week lockdown. In a Facebook post, KFC said the abang-abang delivery are "as strong as steel" and they salute the delivery riders who have consumers' backs, and are satisfying consumers' cravings whenever and wherever possible.

"Terima kasih for your utmost dedication during these trying times so that we can #DudukRumah. Without you, our cravings could never be satisfied," the post added, and was accompanied by a picture with the words "Standing together to serve the nation".

https://www.facebook.com/KFCMalaysia/photos/a.10152632379179247/10157276785784247

In a statement to A+M, CMO Angelina Villanueva said with the #DudukRumah advice from the government, delivery services are even more needed by the public. "Riders are therefore our heroes without capes. Of course, they cannot deliver without in-store support. As such, all employees at restaurants are busy working to support this much needed service," she said.

Villanueva added that gratitude, empathy and patience are important, especially during this period. KFC worked with Entropia for the social media post, which had 4.7k likes on Instagram and 5.1k reactions on Facebook at the time of writing. Reactions from Malaysians were mainly positive. Many of them thanked the food delivery riders and wished for them to stay safe and healthy. GSC Cinemas and The Manhattan Fish Market also commented on KFC's post, calling for everyone to stay safe.

Ramakrishnan CN, partner at Entropia, told A+M that these are trying times and life, as we know it, seems very distant. "In such times, there are many on the front lines who take the risk and allow us to continue life with a small semblance of normality. Amongst all the heroes are the food delivery riders and we wanted to acknowledge and show respect to them, regardless of the brand they are delivering," he explained.

He added that the idea shows that companies need to rise above competitiveness in such trying times and do what is right for humanity. "We are thankful to KFC for agreeing to run this creative that celebrates the heroes, even though they are competitors," he said.

In addition to the post, KFC also launched a contactless delivery option on its web and mobile app, allowing both riders and consumers to keep a safe distance from one another. According to Villanueva, the contactless delivery option will be rolled out progressively across all devices within the next 48 hours. It also has a self-collection option for consumers who order online. Since the announcement of the Movement Control Order, KFC's delivery service has picked up, Villanueva said. Although it has stopped dine-in services, KFC's drive-through and takeaway/self-collection services are still active.

"We are running ads on Facebook and Instagram to educate consumers about contactless delivery. Additionally, we have also increased our hand sanitising frequency, ensure that our delivery bags are sanitised, and implemented health checks for our employees," she said. Villanueva added that tapes have also been placed on the floors in restaurants to ensure individuals are within the appropriate distance of one another.

"Without our restaurants, delivery riders and consumers will not be able to get their food. So we are taking it upon ourselves to ensure we have stringent hygiene methods," she added.

Besides KFC, Pizza Hut Grab and foodpanda have also implemented contactless deliveries. For Grab in particular, contactless deliveries also include food and items purchased from GrabMart. Meanwhile, McDonald's has made its McDelivery, drive-through and takeaway services available to consumers during the two-week period.