Yum aims to feed sales with service, ad boosts

Yum! Brands Inc., with fourth-quarter earnings driven up 5% by strong sales at its Taco Bell chain and overseas KFC and Pizza Hut branches, is looking to reverse downward trends at domestic units of those two chains through menu innovation, speedier service and new advertising. Advertising at the troubled KFC chain, which posted a 6% dip in January same-store sales, will focus on "differentiating the brand" through family meals in buckets, individual plated meals and snack items. Meanwhile, Pizza Hut, which reported a 4% contraction in January comparable-restaurant sales, is set to deliver a new advertising message in the second quarter and will continue its strategy of building sales from new-product news.