Día de los Muertos (DDLM) is a cherished Mexican holiday and a staple on El Pollo Loco’s (EPL) marketing calendar. To celebrate, EPL offered free pan de muerto (traditional “bread of the dead”) with family-sized meal purchases.
While familiar to many of EPL’s Mexican-heritage customers, others saw it as just free bread. To bridge this gap, we partnered with Mexican creators on TikTok to authentically share the cultural significance of DDLM. Creators shared personal stories about the holiday, focusing on its meaning rather than the promotion, which helped avoid cultural appropriation while subtly highlighting the appeal of pan de muerto.
By honoring DDLM authentically, the campaign created two of the top trending videos on TikTok. The videos not only drove interest and sales of family meals but also left audiences unfamiliar with the holiday seeing that pan de muerto wasn’t just any bread.
Team: Creative Direction: Eric Leighton | Design: Marley Schmidtlein | Animation: Yaxi Xiao | Copy: Danny Rosenberg | Project Management: Rachel Habrowski