The Secret Behind KFC’s Success - Nudge

What this episode covers

KFC keeps its recipe secret. It’s stored in a vault in an unknown location. Only two KFC executives know the ingredients. Neither are allowed to fly on the same plane. But this secrecy is illogical. The recipe isn’t important. Today on Nudge, Richard Shotton explains how the secrecy makes customers more loyal. He shares his favourite ad of all time, and we run one of his experiments on you. --- Read Richard’s book: https://a.co/d/fEW7amQ Sign up for my newsletter: https://www.nudgepodcast.com/mailing-list Connect on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/phill-agnew-22213187/ Watch Nudge on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@nudgepodcast/ --- Today’s sources: Heimbach, J. T., & Jacoby, J. (1972). The Zeigarnik effect in advertising. Advances in Consumer Research: Proceedings of the 3rd Annual Conference of the Association for Consumer Research, 746–757. Loewenstein, G. (1994). The psychology of curiosity: A review and reinterpretation. Psychological Bulletin, 116(1), 75–98.Zeigarnik, B. (1927). Über das Behalten von erledigten und unerledigten Handlungen. Psychologische Forschung, 9(1), 1–85.

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Frequently Asked Questions

How long is this episode of Nudge?

This episode is 23 minutes long.

When was this Nudge episode published?

This episode was published on January 12, 2026.

What is this episode about?

KFC keeps its recipe secret. It’s stored in a vault in an unknown location. Only two KFC executives know the ingredients. Neither are allowed to fly on the same plane. But this secrecy is illogical. The recipe isn’t important. Today on...

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