KFC Adds Latin Spice.

In an effort to expand its “war on fast food,” KFC has partnered with Fernando Arau, top Hispanic television personality, to launch its first-ever national Spanish-language advertising and community outreach campaign. The campaign is designed to further build a relationship with the rapidly growing Hispanic market and position KFC as an exciting alternative to traditional fast food meals.

Two spots, highlighting family togetherness, a cornerstone of the Hispanic culture, were created in Spanish by ¡Adelante! Advertising, Los Angeles. The $5.3 million ad campaign, featuring Arau, will air on Univision and Telemundo networks and their affiliate stations across the U.S. The first spot “Amusement Park” will begin airing April 29 and run through May 19, and the second spot “Meet the Parents” will begin airing on August 12 and run through September 1. Tag lines for both ads are “Nothing compares to KFC” (“nada se compara con KFC”).

“The rapidly growing Hispanic community is very important to KFC. We are excited to be launching a new national advertising and community outreach campaign in Spanish to further reach this brand-loyal audience,” said Peter Foulds, Chief Image and Advertising Officer for KFC. “KFC is committed to providing fresh, flavorful and convenient meals that the entire family can enjoy and to building a stronger presence in the Hispanic community.”

The :15 and :30 television spots communicate the great taste, flavor and quality of KFC food, and introduce consumers to KFC’s Original Recipe® chicken, with its secret recipe of 11 herbs and spices. The spots have been created to support three national Hispanic media windows, each featuring a different promotional food offer.

“Recognizing the cultural preference for chicken versus hamburgers, and the desire of the Hispanic consumer to have food extremely ‘flavorful,’ there was no question how well KFC’s product would fare with the Hispanic consumer,” said Sonia Carstensen, President, ¡Adelante! Advertising. “In creating the Spanish-language spots, we wanted to incorporate the importance of family togetherness and Hispanics’ love of flavorful food, while paying careful attention to cultural relevancy, lifestyle and the selection of a popular Hispanic personality to communicate our message.”

Description of the Ads

“Amusement Park” features a young Hispanic family enjoying an afternoon outing at an amusement park. As the family prepares to dine on bland, gray burgers, Arau saves the day, and the family’s palate, from ‘ordinary’ fast food by presenting them with a bucket of KFC chicken. The family selects the freshly prepared, savory chicken over the burgers, and Arau’s mission is accomplished.

“Meet the parents” takes place in the dining room of an All-American family. The Hispanic boyfriend, Jorge, has been invited to meet his girlfriend’s parents, and the mom hopes to impress their new “ethnic” guest with the quintessential all American meal –hamburgers. Mom asks Jorge politely, in broken Spanish, if he liked the hamburgers, and he hesitates to answer because bland hamburgers are not his idea of a great meal. Suddenly, Fernando Arau appears in the dining room next to Jorge with a bucket of KFC chicken. He persuades Jorge to fess up and tell the family that he would have preferred KFC’s Original.

Skip to content