In national TV spots and in-store POP posters promoting its KFC Snacker, the company has embedded a "secret" image. Each day until May 3, the first 1,000 of those who spot the dol ... er, image and go to KFC.com will get a $1 KFC gift check which may be used toward the purchase of a 99-cent Snacker (tax may be extra).

So much does the company want people to win Snacker coupons, it gives them the following to choose from when entering the contest online: The Colonel; KFC Bucket; Four Quarters; Dollar Bill; State of Kentucky.

In the :30 spot, a trio of young adults discusses the value of a dollar and how it can buy a KFC Snacker. The Snacker is a chicken breast strip with lettuce served on a sesame seed bun that comes in four versions, including BBQ, Honey BBQ and Ultimate Cheese.

"We are an innovative, fun brand," spokesperson Rick Maynard tells Marketing Daily. "We like to engage with our customers and get them involved in our promotions."

KFC is spreading word of the promotion by emailing its Colonel's Club, which has nearly 1 million members, Maynard says, and at KFC.com.

The effort is directed at new customers as well as at fans, he says. "KFC is a dinner brand, and the Snacker line is a lunch item. We want to give people a reason to have lunch at KFC."

Previous campaigns, since early 2006, include KFC becoming the first brand to have a logo visible from space, freeze-frame ads that prevented viewers from fast-forwarding with DVR technology, ads embedded with high-pitched ring-tone technology and KFC aroma placement in the halls of corporate America.

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