It's Chicken Day!

A few weeks ago, Justin Bieber was asked what restaurant he would eat at if he could fly anywhere in the world. The teen star replied he wanted to have a quarter chicken dinner at Swiss Chalet in Canada.

Photo from TheStar.com

The timing of Bieber's quote couldn't have been better for Swiss Chalet and Rogers Cable. Starting tomorrow, Rogers customers will be treated to a 24-hour "fireplace channel"-esque Chicken Channel, featuring two spits of rotating Swiss Chalet Chicken. It will run for 13 weeks on channel 208.

This idea is the brainchild of BBDO Toronto and marks the first time a company has approached a cable company about having a channel devoted to their product. The channel will be largely unbranded, but a promotional code will occasionally pop up and direct watchers to Swiss Chalet's Facebook page to get a deal.

According to Swiss Chalet, the idea is to celebrate rotisserie chicken, the chicken Canadians love. According to me, the idea is brilliant PR. The news release and accompanying YouTube video have done all the work for Swiss Chalet. Every major newspaper has filed a story about it already and I'm sure it will be on the news tomorrow night. Swiss Chalet has garnered the attention of social media, too. People are talking, tweeting and blogging about the Chicken Channel. All Swiss Chalet has to do is show up with chicken on a spit on Monday and they're a winner.

I don't think people will watch all day for all 13 weeks of course, but who isn't going to tune in occasionally to see if they can get a deal? Who doesn't want Swiss Chalet? These are the feelings both companies are banking on, but it's only half the point- Swiss Chalet has done something new and different, got people's attention and got them talking. They will forever be remembered as the first company to try this, whatever the result and that is impressive.