不知道大家有沒有看到這條新聞
「Finger lickin' good」——中國市場這邊的譯名一直都是「吮指回味,自在滋味」,要暫別我們了。確實,這個廣告詞不太符合當下的特殊形勢。
為了讓大家能趁機學點英語,Jane特意去CNN把英語報導原文扒下來了(依舊是上下滑動查看哈)
KFC suspends its 'finger lickin' good' slogan because of coronavirus
By Jordan Valinsky,CNN Business
Updated at 01:31 on Tuesday,August 25
New York (CNN Business) - Kentucky Fried Chicken has decided to pause using its "finger lickin' good" slogan because ... well, that's probably not the best idea right now. Several months after health officials recommended everyone stop touching their faces to help stop the spread of coronavirus, KFC said Monday that the 64-year-old slogan "doesn't feel quite right.""We find ourselves in a unique situation — having an iconic slogan that doesn't quite fit in the current environment," said Catherine Tan-Gillespie, global chief marketing officer at KFC in a statement. The menu isn't changing and the company said the slogan will return when the "time is right."To be clear, Monday's announcement is a marketing campaign. A clever one, perhaps, with good intentions baked into it ... but a marketing campaign nonetheless. KFC blurred out the slogan featured on old billboards and signs in a cheeky ad released on its YouTube page.KFC, like most fast food places, uses bizarre, self-effacing and at times hokey marketing ploys to bring customers into their stores. Fast food is a low-growth, zero-loyalty business with razor-thin margins, so any bump in customers is a major win for quick-serve restaurant chains.In the past, KFC has poked fun at itself by hawking chicken-scented clogs, chicken-scented yule logs, and, best of all, "finger lickin' good" chicken-flavored edible nail polish (that one's probably not coming back anytime soon. (Health experts, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, have been urging people to wear masks, wash their hands thoroughly and avoid touching their faces as way to prevent Covid-19 from spreading.)Also similar to other fast food restaurants, KFC temporarily closed down its dining rooms in March and encouraged customers to order via its drive-thrus or delivery. It also installed Plexiglas counter-top shields between employees and customers, required workers to wear masks and implemented health screenings before shifts. After a couple months of absolutely horrendous foot traffic at restaurant, sales at KFC have bounced back sharply in recent months as people crave indulgences during a particularly stressful time in history. KFC is owned by Yum! Brands, which also owns Pizza Hut and Taco Bell.
這篇報導呢,如果你有仔細閱讀,會發現它十分適合用來學習。沒有什麼長難句,用詞也比較簡單;寥寥幾段話卻把整個事件描述得清晰、翔實,有事實、有觀點。
CNN的功力不得不佩服!So,還不趕緊學起來~
這則新聞報導的第一段是——「Kentucky Fried Chicken has decided to pause using its "finger lickin' good" slogan because ... well, that's probably not the best idea right now. 」從這段導語,我們大概可以知道整個事件是怎麼回事了。
複習一下,肯德基的英文全名是「Kentucky Fried Chicken」(肯塔基炸雞)。「Kentucky」/ken'tʌki/ 是美國的一個州相信你們都知道,這也是肯德基的總部所在地。
肯德基的創始人Colonel Harland Sanders確實是個上校,他的「肯德基炸雞秘方」被拒絕了1009次。1962年,已經年過七十的上校申請到了秘制炸雞專利權,並註冊了「吮指原味雞」(It's Finger Lickin' Good)作為他的專屬slogan。
也就是說,這句slogan距今已經有快60年的歷史了。
歷經半個多世紀還能長盛不衰,它到底有什麼特別的魔力?
🍖
首先,lickin'是licking的簡寫,學了這麼多年英語的大家應該是有這個語感的~
有一說一,把「finger lickin'(舔) good」(直譯就是手指舔起來味道很好.)翻譯成「吮指回味」真的還蠻有才的。
其中的「'」(apostraphe-省略符),在這裡就是為了省略字母g,或者說此處就代替了字母g。這樣在讀的時候,後鼻輔音-[ɪŋ]會變成前鼻輔音-[ɪn]。簡單來說,就是為了更好發音!
和肯德基相愛相殺的麥當勞的slogan也出現過這個用法——I'm lovin' it.
關於這個小小的省略符號「'」,有一個最常見的用法——Rock 'n' Roll,我們可以通過它來一探究竟。
首先,我們已知
Rock 'n' Roll=rock and roll
所以,在 'n' 一左一右的兩個「'」,是為了提示分別有字母a和字母n被省略。
——不僅字母少了、寫法變簡單了,同時讀起來也方便快捷了,從原來的三個單詞變成了「/'rɔkən'rəul/ 」。
也不局限於使用「'」,把「and」縮讀的情況還有Day N Night、night'n day等。
當然了,這種「縮讀」現象主要是出現在美式英語裡。美國牛仔嘛,casual慣了,講話也喜歡講究個抑揚頓挫,所以怎麼好聽、好讀怎麼來。
除了「ing」、「and」以外,美國人也很愛把「them」縮讀,比如get 'em、let'em go等等。
其實,這種縮讀我們也可以說是司空見慣了。為啥?朋友們,這是一道送分題——
I'll/I'd/I don't/I can't.我們可是從小學到大呀!
所以下次看到這種省略,不要信口開河說不認識、沒見過,這個知識點,可是深深紮根在你腦子裡十幾年甚至更久了!
最後,談談我對肯德基這個舉動的看法好了。
從CNN這篇新聞報導中我們也可以看出來,CNN對此的態度是——
「To be clear, Monday's announcement is a marketing campaign. A clever one, perhaps, with good intentions baked into it ... but a marketing campaign nonetheless.」
可謂意味深長卻又旗幟鮮明。為什麼這麼說呢?CNN一直在強調,這是一次市場營銷行為(marketing campaign),雖然它可能傳達出了一些good intentions(意圖;目的;意向),但它畢竟還是一次市場營銷。
作為一個
fast food品牌,肯德基這些年是如此熱衷於營銷活動。比如,推出炸雞味兒的指甲油,還號稱是純天然原材料,關鍵是它還可食用,塗上5分鐘以後就可以開吃.
#又是san值狂掉的一天#
#我為了幫你們學英語真的付出了太多#
肯德基甚至還在steam上推出過一款女性向戀愛遊戲《I Love You,Colonel Sanders!A Finger Lickin' Good Dating Simulator》(我愛你,山德士上校!吮指般美味的約會模擬器),界面長這樣#是的名字就是這麼長#
遊戲裡面的Colonel Sanders是長下面這樣的,和記憶中和藹可親的白鬍子老爺爺好像不大一樣
眾所周知,沒有免費的午餐,免費遊戲裡必定有什麼內購等著我!這款遊戲還真沒有。不過如果你有興趣玩到最後就會發現,從頭到尾它都在宣揚肯德基的價值觀,所以說白了這還是一個廣告、一次營銷。
他哪裡是想和你談戀愛,分明只是在意你的錢包而已。所以,回到這次的「暫停使用吮指廣告詞」事件,不難看出,這個動作倒是符合肯德基一貫的營銷作風。我連自己用了快60年的slogan都能暫停掉,實在是因為疫情太特殊了,「吮指」這個動作最近著實不太提倡。我有情懷吧?我有在為整個社會、公眾考慮吧?
撤換掉了可能存在爭議的廣告詞,又對自己的品牌起到了正面宣傳。妙,實在是妙。
所以,
高級的廣告永遠不是在賣一個產品,而是在輸送一個品牌的理念和價值觀。像肯德基這樣把營銷直接寫在臉上,倒也沒什麼不好。