El Pollo Loco knows it’s serving two masters. The brand’s Mexican roots draw U.S. Spanish-speaking Hispanics, while its chicken and sides attract a general audience seeking freshness and flavor. Though it isn’t the only company to use two agencies—one general, one specializing in Hispanic marketing—to reach distinct audiences, we were impressed with Pollo’s follow-through in simultaneous television campaigns that broke in March. Spots for general markets reintroduced The Master of the Flame, a grill chef who tells jaded patrons quick-serve can be fresh, too. Meanwhile, four Spanish-language spots employed humor and soap-opera-ish drama customized for Hispanic audiences. Together, the March spots generated a 7-percent comp store sales gain and helped kick off one of Pollo’s strongest-ever product launches. In a time when so many brands struggle with demographics, El Pollo Loco has segmentation down pat—and the creativity to make it work.

Eager to raise awareness of its Green Burrito brand, CKE looked for a creative advertising approach—and found the menuboards in its more than 1,000 Carl’s Jr. locations nationwide. In May, the Green Burrito Taco Salad became the newest premium entrée salad on the menu at Carl’s Jr., giving a first taste of the Mexican brand to a proven market of beef-loving, bold-taste-seeking customers. (Some Carl’s Jr. locations already co-brand with Green Burrito. The result, besides big sales? New credibility for the Green Burrito brand, increased franchise queries, and talk of “mini co-branding,” or featuring a limited Green Burrito menu in all Carl’s Jr. restaurants.

The metaphors could not line up more perfectly: Gourmet cooking meets comfort food. Fancy ingredients meet traditional fare. If Chipotle and its chef-founder Steve Ells were waiting for the perfect moment to test television advertising, then the chance to sponsor the PBS show Mark Bittman Takes on America’s Chefs, in which Bittman challenges famous chefs to top his family-style cooking must have set their mouths to watering. Chipotle ran three spots spoofing on PBS’s staid style; in one, the voice of a white-haired telethon host gets drowned out when operators standing by are too busy eating Chipotle burritos to pick up the phones. Just think about the market focus: You have to imagine the markets watching PBS are largely the same ones strolling by Chipotle’s hip urban locations.

Its competitors spend hundreds of millions each year on advertising. But Cousins’ pockets aren’t that deep, so it was understandable when officials there sounded giddy announcing they scored ESPN star and sports media master Dan Patrick as a celebrity shiller. Marketing reps for the homegrown Wisconsin brand, with locations throughout the Midwest and on the West Coast, wouldn’t disclose how much Cousins is paying Patrick or how long the relationship is slated to last (though it’s been labeled “long-term”). They do say he scores high marks on recognition and credibility and brings a “logical connection” with the brand and its key markets. Translation: He’s a big guy who likes to eat satisfying sandwiches, presumably in between sports events, meaning Patrick should connect well with that young, hungry, male market that can fuel Cousins’ expansion.

Domino’s scored a PR coup when NBC’s The Apprentice gave the pizza brand a seat at Trump’s conference table. During the March 31 episode, The Donald challenged contestants to create the company’s newest pizza. Domino’s even landed a marketing first on the show by running two commercials featuring Trump himself. But then Papa John Schnatter sent Domino’s back to school. Papa John’s purchased two 30-second commercial spots during the same hour-long show. “Why eat a pizza made by an apprentice when you can have a Spicy Meatball Pizza made by the pros at Papa John’s?” asked Schnatter in one spot. In the other, he told viewers to let the competition know they’re—you guessed it—fired. Operations >