Every summer as the County Fair is held in towns across the country, food lovers, festival fans and oddity collectors marvel at the latest food creations sold to fairgoers. From barbeque pork sundaes to Krispy Kreme cheeseburgers, food blogs have taken a liking to spotlighting a new and slightly terrifying treat every year. The fair food phenom of 2011? Hands down, it has to be deep-fried Kool-Aid. Yes, the beloved Kool-Aid man has been kidnapped, dipped in batter, dusted in powdered sugar and served up for thousands of adventurous eaters.
While the head scratching machinations of such a treat are cause for many a tweet (as of this writing, “Deep Fried Kool-Aid” is trending on Twitter), the real story here is Charlie Boghosian, the marketing marvel and mad genius behind these devilish delights.
For the last five years, Chicken Charlie’s has wound up in every national newspaper and online news website for throwing odd food items in a deep fryer and selling them at highly-attended summer county and state fairs across America. Twinkies, Girl Scout cookies, s’mores, avocados, Oreos and now Kool Aid have all taken the deep fryer plunge and wound up on Charlie’s menu. Conan O’Brien, ABC News, the Los Angeles Times and scads of food bloggers have covered the culinary “oh no he didn’t!” adventures of Boghosian. For a business that only operates during the summer, Charlie relies on his newest menu items causing a sensation.
During the summer months, Facebook and the company’s website work overtime in tempting hungry fairgoers with deep-fried delicacies. Deep fried Kool-Aid, which is something like donut holes with the drink mix added to the batter, have caused a stir, with mentions in the San Diego Union Tribune and the LA Weekly.
Charlie and his frying factory might not be for everyone’s palette, but the story of a guy who loves to fry any and every thing is one news outlets haven’t gotten tired of. The story is timeless and entertaining — in other words, it’s PR gold.
So, my lovely readers, let me ask you this: What story, product or service does your business have that is marketing and media magic? Holler back in the comments section below!
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