Local students from SMU won second place in the Chipotle/YouTube “30 Seconds of Fame” contest.  Students, organized in 70 teams from more than 20 colleges were asked to create 30-second commercials for Chipotle to compete for a $10,000 prize.

The winning entry from the University of Nebraska was watched more than 8,000,000 times with the second place entry from SMU being watched more than 7,700,000 times.  Add those views with those of the 68 other entries and you get a number north of 30,000,000 views of Chipotle advertisements.  The total investment by Chipotle?  $30,000 ~ .001 cent per view.  What would Chipotle have spent to produce an ad much less get college students to watch it 30,000,000 times?
Social media programs like this have the added benefit of helping a brand build a tighter bond with its hardcore fans as well as the possibility of reaching new fans.  Thanks to Mike for pointing this one out.