Nationwide Unveils New Earnhardt Jr. Ads, While KFC Puts Store Managers On Biffle Car

The start to the NASCAR Sprint Cup season, coupled with a massive renovation at Daytona Int'l Speedway, has all eyes in the motorsports world on the Daytona 500 this weekend. Advertisers are once again using the racing spectacle to unveil new creative and marketing campaigns, including some from Nationwide and KFC. Nationwide continues its partnership with Dale Earnhardt Jr. with two new spots. One ad, titled “Friend Request,” shows Earnhardt chatting around the water cooler with his co-workers, while “Janet’s Baby” features many of Earnhardt’s own animals. Nationwide Exec VP & CMO Terrance Williams said Earnhardt is a good fit for the company because there is an “authentic relationship” between the driver and the insurer. Williams: "It’s not something that was manufactured based on him being a spokesperson for us. We have had a business relationship with the Earnhardt family. They’ve been premium-paying clients of ours for over 30 years, and Dale has personally been insured with us for 20 to 25 years.” Nationwide hopes the ads will not only showcase a couple different sides of Earnhardt, but the company itself. Williams said, “The general public is very aware of who we are, and many can even sing our jingle. Most consumers view Nationwide as an auto insurance company, so our intent is to really begin the process of changing the dynamic of how we are viewed in the public eye and really making consumers more aware of the breadth of products that we offer. Dale is a great person to be able to do that for us.” The ads will air past the Daytona 500, with Williams saying, “We’ll get as much life out of the ads as we can.” Earnhardt will also run a few different Nationwide paint schemes through the season.

PLAYING CHICKEN: Meanwhile, KFC has a variety of marketing plans around Sunday's race to promote its new Nashville Hot Chicken. Greg Biffle will be driving a KFC-sponsored car in the race, and more than 2,100 store managers will have their names written on the No. 16 Ford. Yum! Brands U.S. Dir of National Media & Partnerships Stephanie Mattingly said of the KFC plans, “We really want to recognize our store managers because they’re the ones really that do all the work.” Biffle as part of the promotion also will appear in a new 30-second spot for the QSR. The ad will include a view from an in-car camera where Biffle talks about how he is proud to have the store managers’ names riding along with him. Mattingly said, “He’s actually a pretty good actor, he’s pretty funny.” KFC also will bring back comedian Jim Gaffigan as the latest version of Colonel Sanders in a 30-second ad called “Nightmare.” KFC also will be restarting their ads for $5 Fill Ups, after a brief break from promoting it on TV.