For over 85 years, Old El Paso has been the go-to brand for Mexican-inspired meals at home that bring people together. Their philosophy is simple: happiness comes from sharing food with the people you love. 

Mexican food, particularly fajitas, is the ultimate customizable, crowd-pleasing meal that invites creativity, connection, good noise, and, most importantly, fun.

Making Fajita Fridays a family habit

During the first half of 2025 we partnered with Old El Paso to disrupt the social feeds of families and embed Fajita Fridays as a weekly ritual.

The aim was to engage different household dynamics across the UK, by creating more than just a social media moment. We wanted to cultivate a habit, a shared experience that family units could look forward to and customize together. We designed content concepts around the phrase ¡Sin Excusas! (no excuses), leaning into the fact that Fajita Fridays are a non-negotiable. 

The campaign was built on two strong creative routes, each designed to resonate with different aspects of family life and encourage participation:

Family, Flavour, and Fun

Staple content

To build on the ¡Sin Excusas (no excuses)! concept, the majority of content that flooded the feed demonstrated how Fajita Friday is suitable for any occasion, no matter who you’re with or where you are. Whether you’re hosting a dinner party, spending the day at the beach, or on a road trip, there’s always a way to make a Fajita Friday happen!

This is also where we tapped into our “Nacho Average Kid” concept, showing how easy fajitas are to make, whether that’s having the kids take charge, or tasking the culinary novice in the group to make a delicious feast.

Nacho Average Antics

Viral opportunities

We know that disruptive creativity on TikTok – taking what's “expected” from your brand and flipping that on its head – drives top of mind awareness and purchase consideration

This playful spin on ¡Sin Excusas! allowed us to experiment with Fajita Friday popping up in truly unexpected places, whilst still being in situations that bring people together, and solidifying that Fajita Friday is a non-negotiable. Fancy a fajita mid skydive? Old El Paso has you covered.

Why TikTok?

TikTok was the optimal choice for this campaign. With a demographic heavily weighted toward parents aged 25-45 and a culture driven by trends and authentic storytelling, we knew that influencer content would reach modern families.

Statistics show that 67% of TikTok users are inspired to buy products they didn’t plan to after seeing them on the platform, and 31% turn to TikTok to lift their spirits, making it an ideal channel to introduce a joyful, feel-good family ritual.

El Burrito Monster (aka Oli Paterson) is an example of an ideal fit for this TikTok campaign. Not only is “burrito” in the name, but he is also renowned for putting shocking and creative spins on classic meals. In one of his pieces of content, he whipped up a giant burrito wrapped in latticed pastry – a Mexican-inspired take on a beef wellington. 

TikTok is Oli’s main platform, where he has almost a million followers. He has a track record working with brands like Pepsi, Doritos, Harvester, and MyProtein, so we knew that Old El Paso would integrate seamlessly into his usual style of content and choice of brand partnerships. 

His audience is also primarily 18-to 24-year-olds in the UK who love food! So, content was guaranteed to reach the desired target audience even without paid boosting. 

Reflecting modern households

It was important that we selected creators who represent the different family units that make up the world around us – from couples with kids to friendship groups. We also embraced various dietary choices like Veganism, which can mean coming together as a family to enjoy a meal can be challenging. The variety of creators brought humor, relatability, and variety that ensured every piece of content was unique and engaging. 

Content highlights

Raising Kevin

Tola and Kev's channel is a fun-loving and positive space on the internet, where Tola documents what it's like raising her autistic son in a family of 5. Kevin is currently at college training as a chef, making them the perfect partner for this campaign as Kevin expands his culinary skills. They showcase how naturally coming together as a family is and how versatile the Old El Paso product is for the whole family to enjoy in a fun Fajita Friday! Kevin is beaming with pride thanks to Old El Paso’s easy-to-follow kit. 

Stuart and Francis

Stuart and Francis are two dads who are navigating life as a family of four. With upbeat and cheerful videos, they were a great choice to bring infectious energy to the Fajita Friday concept. They show how Fajita Friday is a fun family night in their household. And what Fajita Fridays look like now, with kids, compared to their Fajita Fridays when they started dating. 

Lauren Griffiths

Originally going viral on TikTok for her Takeaway Thursday videos, Lauren is no stranger to a weekday ritual. Lauren's infectious personality, visible throughout her content, has offered her engaged and enthusiastic community of foodies a glimpse into her life, often involving family and friends throughout her videos. Another of Lauren's popular video series is 'Lunch at Nan and Grandads', so naturally, Lauren’s lovely grandparents won her audience’s hearts in her Fajita Friday video. 

The Fajita Friday impact

The campaign sparked genuine conversations and enthusiastic participation, turning Fajita Fridays into a shared cultural moment for families. Comments and engagement reflected how well the content was received: 

With content going live on TikTok over a 6-month period, and paid boosting to push the best-performing creative towards the target audience, we successfully achieved a full feed takeover that positioned Old El Paso Fajita Fridays as a staple family ritual. 

We achieved 31,779,576+ blended impressions (244% of guarantee), an outstanding 8.8%, engagement rate, and 99.38% positive engagement that showed audiences’ enthusiasm towards Fajita Friday.

To learn more about how your brand can influence audiences' behavior by partnering with aligned influencers,  reach out to us at hello@digitalvoices.com. 

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