Bob's Your Uncle

Popeyes Launches Chicken Nuggets With a Targeted, Social-First Strategy

When Popeyes introduced its first chicken nuggets to Canada, it didn’t try to recreate the giant, culture-shaking spectacle of the chicken sandwich launch. It built something smarter — a targeted, insight-driven rollout rooted in social behaviour, specialty TV, and audience segmentation.
Bob’s Your Uncle localized the campaign for the Canadian market, adapting U.S. creative while shaping a media strategy tuned to Canadian consumer behaviour.

Coverage

Media in Canada — “How Popeyes is hyping chicken nuggets in Canada”

URL: https://mediaincanada.com/2021/07/27/how-popeyes-is-hyping-chicken-nuggets-in-canada/

“This time around, Popeyes is launching nuggets in tandem with the U.S… taking a more targeted approach instead of mass reach.”

“Popeyes is doing more social in the early stages… followed by a full TV campaign, leaning into a bigger specialty TV buy.”

“Canadian agency Bob’s Your Uncle localized the campaign and media buys.”

Why This Matters

Launching nuggets in Canada wasn’t about volume — it was about precision.

1. A smarter archetype for new menu innovation

Rather than another massive OOH blitz (like the chicken sandwich), this approach focused on:

Specialty TV
Social-first moments
Audience-specific efficiency

2. Built on deep Canadian insights

Canadians prefer boneless chicken more than U.S. customers — a behavioural detail that shaped messaging, channel selection, and timing.

3. A campaign built for food-culture velocity

Bob’s Your Uncle localized the U.S. creative and ensured the Canadian rollout matched cultural nuance, media consumption, and regional distribution.

4. Reinforcing Popeyes’ category momentum

The brand continued its leadership in the QSR “chicken wars,” but with a more controlled, conversion-focused playbook.

Case Study

https://www.bobsyouruncle.com/work/popeyes-chicken-sandwich-launch