Marketing news

• DDB Chicago introduces ‘Lime-ageddon’ to mark return of the lime Skittle

  14-07-2017 22:45
  
  Zima isn’t the only retro flavor making a comeback this summer. 
  After much fanfare, Skittles is bringing back its lime flavor – which was replaced by green apple in 2013 – for a limited time. To mark the occasion, DDB Chicago has created a social video that features a newscaster covering the return of lime-flavored Skittles to store shelves. After finding out that there’s only a limited number of bags left, she ditches the newscast to go grab some before i
  
  Read more

• Now you can book your next mani-pedi via Google

  14-07-2017 22:01
  
  After rolling out a new job search functionality last month, Google is further expanding its repertoire by enabling consumers to book appointments at US spas and salons directly within Google.
  This is in addition to the ability to book fitness classes – with more bookable services to come, Google said.
  That’s according to a blog post, which noted consumers interested in availing themselves of this service should find salons and spas on Google Maps or via search and look for
  
  Read more

• The Wizard of Moz will set off on his own yellow brick road

  14-07-2017 20:48
  
  As SEO software firm Moz prepares to kick off its 10th Mozcon event Monday (July 17), chief executive Sarah Bird said founder – and Wizard of Moz himself – Rand Fishkin is moving into an advisory role next year.
  In early 2018, Fishkin will take on a supporting role as a Moz Associate and “you'll still see his enthusiastic face in Whiteboard Fridays, on the Moz Blog and on various conference stages”.
  According to Moz, Moz Associates are “industry experts wh
  
  Read more

• IKEA and MEC Wavemaker partner with Superfruit’s Mitch Grassi and Scott Hoying for interactive Snapchat experience

  14-07-2017 20:07
  
  IKEA US and MEC Wavemaker, MEC’s content division, have partnered with pop duo Superfruit’s Mitch Grassi and Scott Hoying to launch a first-to-market interactive Snapchat video experience for ‘Back to College’ season to appeal to a millennial audience.
  Tapping into the influencer bench of Fullscreen Media, IKEA and MEC leaned on music and comedy duo Mitch Grassi and Scott Hoying (real-life roommates) for authentic, entertaining content that brings to life IKEA&r
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Roku is eyeing a public offering this year

  14-07-2017 19:56
  
  Streaming media company Roku is getting ready to go public before the end of the year – and it might even file in the next few weeks.
  That’s according to the Wall Street Journal, which cites “people familiar with the company’s plans”.
  Roku declined comment.
  The Wall Street Journal says Roku has hired Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and Allen & Co. as underwriters and it is seeking a valuation of $1bn. However, the Wall Street Journal pointed to the lackluster deb
  
  Read more

• Hockey Hall of Fame encourages the ‘real reality’ for visitors

  14-07-2017 18:52
  
  Poking fun at the focus on technology, Toronto’s Hockey Hall of Fame and McCann Canada, have created a spot around the “Real Reality.” The phrase, which is now trademarked, plays into the spot where visitors put on empty virtual reality glasses and really experience what’s inside.
  “I just wanted to have people recognize that there is so much more than just seeing something on the screen,” Peter Jagla, vice president of marketing and attraction services at the
  
  Read more

• Personalisation and privacy: can old enemies unite?

  14-07-2017 18:32
  
  Google has finally decided to stop scanning personal Gmail messages for ad targeting, and privacy campaigners are delighted. But, there’s a danger this may set a wider precedent in the industry – a move away from personalisation, driven by privacy concerns.
  Over the years, privacy and personalisation have been increasingly pitted against each other. The digital world’s answer to Superman versus Lex Luthor or Magneto versus Professor X: privacy versus personalisation. And, at th
  
  Read more

• 'Make room for creativity': Beyond the Brief featuring Alix Montes, Wunderman

  14-07-2017 17:54
  
  Working on the account side is a major balancing act, but Wunderman senior account executive Alix Montes keeps an endless sense of chill from years of yoga and swimming.
  Before joining their DC office to work on Pfizer, Montes worked at Ketchum’s DC office and Virginia-based LMO Advertising on the Air National Guard. The George Washington University grad credits his acumen for handling multimillion-dollar accounts to his high school years selling snacks, stints with his college NSAC (Natio
  
  Read more

• Advertisement

• Asos: We don’t know if social media is a threat or an enabler

  14-07-2017 17:26
  
  Asos has admitted that while it relies heavily on social media to communicate with and market to its millions of customers, its relationship with sites such as Facebook and Instagram is not always straightforward.
  Speaking on a results call yesterday (13 July) following Asos’s third quarter results, CEO Nick Beighton said: “[Going forward] we don’t know whether [social media] will be a drag or an enabler. But certainly with potential buy buttons coming through social media, the
  
  Read more

• Travel brands must be more human to grab attention on social media

  14-07-2017 17:06
  
  Social and travel fit together like sunshine and beaches. They were made for each other; consumers ask for recommendations on social, they share their booking choices on social and they most definitely post their holiday snaps on social. In fact, last year there were almost 60m open web conversations about travel on social media.
  The challenge for travel brands though, is in cutting through the noise to gain attention in that sea of chatter. In truth, the industry does not fare well. A look at t
  
  Read more

• How startup Yourfeed is aiming to become the ‘LinkedIn for millennials’

  14-07-2017 16:15
  
  With 500 million users, it’s fair to say Linkedin dominates the online job market. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean the ‘social network for professionals’ always benefits young workers.
  A whopping 71% of Linkedin users are above the age of 35, while the average user age is 42, according to Jack Parsons, a 23-year-old entrepreneur. Subsequently, he has founded social media startup Yourfeed, which is aiming to serve as the “Linkedin for millennials”.
  With
  
  Read more

• KFC shifts marketing to focus on quality and provenance

  14-07-2017 15:56 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  KFC is focusing on quality and provenance in shift in its marketing to change perceptions about its food in the UK and Ireland.
  
  Read more

• Brits to double the time spent watching videos on smartphones

  14-07-2017 15:44 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  People in the UK will watch 20.3 minutes of online video this year, nearly double from last year which was only 10.9 minutes, Zenith's Online Video Forecasts 2017 predicts.
  
  Read more

• Hostelworld on digital transformation: ‘Beware of the coffee machine terrorists’

  14-07-2017 15:35
  
  Brands embarking on a digital transformation must make sure that all members of the team are on the journey with them and beware of “coffee machine terrorists” who nod along in meetings but moan in private. That is the advice of Hostelworld CMO Ottokar Rosenberger.
  Speaking at Oystercatchers’ Evolve 2017 event last night (13 July), he said that having internal buy-in for any big changes is key. That includes having a “clear mandate from the top down” and keeping the
  
  Read more

• Sainsbury's launches sunset countdown billboards

  14-07-2017 15:18 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Sainsbury's has taken over digital billboards at UK's busiest stations with a countdown to sunset.
  
  Read more

• Carat hires former Coke and P&G brand manager Anderton as global Diageo lead

  14-07-2017 14:38 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Carat has hired Phil Anderton as global client president for Diageo, replacing Richard Morris.
  
  Read more

• People on the Move featuring Twitter, Snap Inc, Media Storm and more

  14-07-2017 13:55
  
  This week has seen another wave of appointments and departures at brands, media owners and agencies. The Drum has rounded up the key moves from the EMEA, APAC and North America regions below. 
  Loading...
  Twitter
  Twitter has announced the appointment of Ned Segal as as its new chief financial officer, who will succeed the current incumbent Anthony Noto, in late August.
  In his new role, Segal will report directly to Twitter chief Jack Dorsey and will oversee the publicly-listed comp
  
  Read more

• British bobbies hit the streets of Denver to promote Norwegian Air’s low-fare service

  14-07-2017 13:53
  
  The British bobbies are out in force in America, but if you get a ticket from them, it means you’re getting discounted airfare.
  Several members of the British police force will be making a special trip to Denver this weekend. Throughtout July 1 and 16, the public servants will patrol the streets hoping to instill some British manners. 
  This British invasion, which was kicked off by Norwegian Air and McKinney last weekend in Seattle, will see the bobbies on the lookout for those not ex
  
  Read more

• Pearlfinders and Rainmaker MD on the move to Borough and being inspired by Team BRIT

  14-07-2017 13:43
  
  With Article 50 recently triggered, a snap General Election under our belts and the on-going economic and political instability many business leaders could be forgiven for opting to batten down the hatches so they can slip quietly into survival mode for the remainder of the year.
  Fortunately, The Drum operates in an industry where risk seldom seems to exert too much dominance on the decision-making processes of business leaders. By their very nature leaders in the marketing sector embrace change
  
  Read more

• Commercial Emmy nominees announced, with R/GA, McGarryBowen, 72andSunny and others getting nods

  14-07-2017 13:41
  
  With most of the hype centered on network versus cable shows when the Emmy Award nominations are announced, it’s easy to lose sight of the single category focused on commercials.
  Luckily, that category still exists, and the 2017 Emmy nominees for Outstanding Commercial have been announced. They range from quite funny traditional spots to longer-form PSAs about love, diversity and inclusion.
  Below are all five nominated spots.
  Calling JohnMalkovich.com – Squarespace
  Agency: John
  
  Read more

• The Fake News Network: a look at Facebook’s role in a crisis of trust, democracy and security

  14-07-2017 13:34
  
  Fake news is not only perceived as a threat to the future of journalism, democracy and freedom of speech, but also wields a security risk given the rise of falsehoods aimed at stoking the fire of extremism. While Facebook’s role in disseminating fake content becomes ever more complex as its identity becomes muddied, one thing is clear: it’s dangerous.
  Such were the conclusions drawn by the New York Times and Channel 4 at an event hosted by Westminster Media Forum which saw the media,
  
  Read more

• Why bravery is a bad idea in advertising

  14-07-2017 13:31
  
  In the army, deliberately shooting yourself in the foot is considered an act of cowardice. The advertising industry does much the same thing in the name of bravery.
  I have never understood the misguided fixation with being brave, mainly because, for an industry whose sole purpose is good ideas, this is a crap one.
  If you want to use reverse psychology to talk a cautious client out of approving an ad, tell her it’s a brave idea. It demonstrates a startling lack of empathy. Bravery is a func
  
  Read more

• "You can create incredible content but if nobody sees it then it doesn't matter," says News UK's Joanna Carrigan

  14-07-2017 13:20
  
  Last month, News UK launched a vertical video studio which they believe will improve mobile advertising across the web and not just on its own sites.
  News UK’s head of branded content, Joanna Carrigan, a nominee for the First Women Awards and judge for The Drum Content Awards, said: "V-studio has been incorporated into our branded content offering in three ways - through vertical video production, through reproducing existing assets, and distribution through our V-formats.
  "It allows
  
  Read more

• Tesco, Pepsi, Ikea: 5 things that mattered this week and why

  14-07-2017 13:16
  
  Tesco’s digital Clubcard fails to materialise
  Back in 2014, Tesco unveiled grand plans for a digital Clubcard that would shake up the loyalty sector by offering tailored, gamification-style rewards. Yet fast forward three years and those plans are still nowhere to be seen. Its latest, underwhelming, update to Clubcard is to make the card contactless. It’s a nice bit of tech that will speed up checkout but it’s hardly groundbreaking.
  In some ways it’s not a surprise the di
  
  Read more

• APC Microbiome Institute appoints Spinning Clock to Mind Your Microbes brief

  14-07-2017 13:00
  
  APC Microbiome Institute (APC) at the University College Cork, has appointed creative agency Spinning Clock to create an app to educate children of all ages on the human microbiome.
  Mind Your Microbes educates people about the role and importance of the human microbiome, for a national and international audience. The Human Microbiome is the collective term used to describe the trillions of different microbes (bacteria, viruses, bacteriophages) that reside in and upon all human beings. They are e
  
  Read more

• Campaign TV: a look at Mark Denton's 'Art mart!'

  14-07-2017 12:59 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  The creative mind of Mark Denton and his team at Coy! Communications have created a new art exhibition with a difference in Shoreditch.
  
  Read more

• How do I win a business award? 13 tips from The Drum's former awards judges

  14-07-2017 12:40
  
  If you’re thinking of entering one of The Drum’s coveted awards, then you might be wondering what will make your entry stand out against the rest.
  The third Drum Awards breakfast workshop took place at Havas Media on Thursday 13 July with a panel of previous and current judges and past winners discussing what makes an entry stand out to them.
  Stephen Lepitak, The Drum’s Editor chaired the panel which included: Andrew Carter, chief executive officer, BCMA, who will be judging th
  
  Read more

• T in the Park: Tennent's and DF Concerts decline committing to the festival's future

  14-07-2017 12:25
  
  The future of Scottish music festival T in the Park (TITP) continues to be hazy as neither organiser DF Concerts or sponsor Tennent's will commit to its return, amid its apparent replacement by sister festival TRNSMT.
  The Drum posed the question to the firms on the news that Glasgow-based replacement festival TRNSMT, that lands on the same weekend TITP traditionally sits, will return in 2018, bringing into doubt the return of the Tennent's-sponsored festival.
  A report in the
  
  Read more

• Workplace wellbeing: A startup’s perspective

  14-07-2017 12:16
  
  Wellbeing is everything. A business is only as good as the people in it and if they are motivated, healthy and full of energy it’s ultimately going to be better for the business.
  I remember I was on a work trip to Naples seeing a factory. I was having a conversation with the CEO, and it got to 1pm, and he said: “I’m so sorry; we will continue this conversation, but it’s lunchtime and we all have lunch together”.
  It really reminded me of the importance of s
  
  Read more

• Miley Cyrus spikes interest in holiday bookings to Malibu

  14-07-2017 12:16
  
  Southern pop starlet Miley Cyrus has a new single titled ‘Malibu’. Released in May 2017, the video features her dancing on a picturesque beach in Malibu with the chorus including the line “the sky’s so blue, in Malibu”.
  The pop ballad is reportedly about her relationship with Aussie movie star Liam Hemsworth and the part Malibu has played in their lives so far.
  Since its release, search engine interest in the keyword “Malibu holidays” has increased by 17
  
  Read more

• F1 British Grand Prix: what are the brands up to?

  14-07-2017 12:11 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  The news this week may have been dominated by the announcement that Silverstone planned to stop hosting the British Grand Prix from 2019, but the event remains no less of a platform for the brands involved.
  
  Read more

• Hungarian government calls a halt to ‘anti-semitic’ propaganda campaign

  14-07-2017 11:39
  
  The Hungarian government has brought an end to an ‘anti-Semitic’ poster campaign, decrying the alleged influence of international financier George Soros on national affairs, to a premature halt amidst global protest.
  A grinning Soros, a Hungarian émigré who happens to be a Jew, is featured prominently on billboards around the country and in full-page newspaper ads paid for by the nationalist government of Viktor Orban, captioned: “Don’t let Soros have the la
  
  Read more

• Pablo hires six from Fallon, Mother and Wieden & Kennedy

  14-07-2017 11:32 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Pablo has made six creative and account management hires from Fallon, Mother and Wieden & Kennedy following several major account moves this year.
  
  Read more

• KFC: why making weird products seems to be a global brand strategy

  14-07-2017 11:02 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Think the KFC smartphone is weird? You haven't seen anything yet.
  
  Read more

• MC&C investment forges a ‘new model of media agency’ with global network

  14-07-2017 11:01
  
  MC&C, the performance media agency, has accepted a £6.6m private equity investment from Key Capital Partners (KCP) to launch a global performance media network bringing a ‘new model’ of working to the business.
  MC&C International will dovetail with a new group executive board formed of founder Mike Colling, executive chairman Steve Booth, UK managing director Mark Jackson and deputy managing director Robin Trust.
  They will be joined by KCP partner Mike Fell with a
  
  Read more

• Farm Safety Foundation plants seeds of knowledge with help from TVC Group

  14-07-2017 10:36
  
  The Farm Safety Foundation, a charity dedicated to raising awareness of farm safety and changing attitudes towards farming safely, has brought TVC Group on board to support on Farm Safety Week, happening later this month.
  Now in its fifth year, Farm Safety Week runs from 24 to 28 July to encourage the farming community to stop and think about their safety while working on their farms.
  TVC’s activity will include PR and content with a social element. The primary target being farmers and agr
  
  Read more

• Wins this week: Britvic, Citroën, Network Rail

  14-07-2017 10:33 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Campaign's round-up of account moves across advertising and media.
  
  Read more

• Penniless photographer pleads poverty in monkey curse case

  14-07-2017 10:33
  
  A photographer who won the jackpot only to see his life turned upside down after snapping an iconic monkey selfie in the jungles of Indonesia is ruing the day he snapped the crested black macaque six years ago.
  Wildlife photographer David Slater has been hounded by animal rights group Peta ever since in a crazy legal dispute over who owns the copyright to the image – Slater who set-up the shoot or the monkey which pulled the trigger.
  In the latest twist Peta’s lawyers turned up at th
  
  Read more

• 22,000 fall foul of Wi-Fi small print toilet scrubbing clause

  14-07-2017 10:02
  
  Free Wi-Fi provider Purple has signed up 22,000 unwitting volunteers willing to carry out 1,000 hours of community service after sneakily inserting a civic duty clause into its terms and conditions which people must agree to when signing up for its services.
  Amongst the suggested duties contained in the ‘community service clause’ were requests to clean portaloos, manually relieve sewer blockages and paint snails shells.
  Rather than an altruistic drive to clean manky toilets or bright
  
  Read more

• Britvic hands creative business to VCCP and Saatchi & Saatchi

  14-07-2017 09:57 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  Soft drinks giant Britvic has awarded the creative brief for its adult brands to VCCP, while Saatchi & Saatchi will handle the company's kids' and family brands.
  
  Read more

• Sky Sports knocked out of next month’s US PGA as it loses broadcast rights

  14-07-2017 09:31
  
  A fledgling golf channel launched amid much fanfare by Sky Sports has hit the rough just days into its short life after the US PGA Championship opted not to renew a decade-long media partnership with the broadcaster.
  The snub comes as the golfing body instead seeks to forge relationships with unnamed ‘new platforms’ which while likely to involve live broadcasts certainly won’t be delivered by Sky. The PGA will instead seek to engage a different breed of consumer, potentially vi
  
  Read more

• Is this the beginning of the end for Fairtrade?

  14-07-2017 08:21
  
  On 16 February 2010, Sainsbury’s announced it had replaced Walmart as the world’s biggest retailer of Fairtrade products. £1 in every £4 spent on goods with the distinct blue and green roundel was at the supermarket chain. “I believe in Fairtrade for Fairtrade’s sake. But I also believe in Fairtrade because it gives my business a competitive advantage,” said then chief executive Justin King.
  Not any more, it seems. “[Fairtrade] might have been fit
  
  Read more

• Uber-rival Gett hires St Luke's for creative brief with risky remuneration model

  14-07-2017 08:00
  
  On-demand taxi app Gett has tapped creative agency St Luke's to help launch a service allowing people to travel a set route for just £2. Its success will be predicated on the ability to convince people to ride-share with strangers; if it manages, the creative agency should reap significant rewards thanks to experiments with a new remuneration model.
  The brief was won following a pitch against five agencies that Gett - which recently attracted $300m investment from German car giant&nbs
  
  Read more

• Dentsu to face trial in 'karoshi' case: reports

  14-07-2017 07:42 via campaignlive.co.uk
  
  The company is set to face a formal open trial for its role in an employee's death.
  
  Read more

• Influencers in the office: how Youtube videos on Japanese pop culture led Beckii Cruel to agency life

  14-07-2017 04:22
  
  It’s a logical step for social media agency credibility but having influencers on the payroll is becoming commonplace.
  Just this week Visual Amplifier’s co-founder Aaron Brooks put pen to paper to discuss why agencies needed to work with influencers, citing their own relationship with Tasha Lam, who works as a talent director. 
  One of the most recent influencers to make this transition is Beckii Cruel, who works with The Social Circle as a creator liaison. Cruel’s journey
  
  Read more

• Has Fifa World Cup found the 'sweet spot in social media' as Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat bid for highlights?

  14-07-2017 02:30
  
  From live updates to live streaming; Facebook,Twitter and Snapchat have slowly ascended into sports broadcasting and are all set to seek online rights to video highlights to next year’s Fifa World Cup from 21st Century Fox.
  The step seems logical for social media platforms to step-up in the place of TV, as TV is showing signs of decline in audience figures. Sky's live Premier League viewing figures hit seven year low, signaling a changing of the tides for the world's most lucrative le
  
  Read more

• Flipkart and iVOOMi get into an innovative tech partnership

  14-07-2017 02:00
  
  To expand its marketing strategy in India, iVOOMi has partnered with ecommerce major Flipkart.
  Earlier, iVOOMi said it wanted to capture a 4% share of the Indian smartphone market by mid-2018 and this sees it moving in a step in that direction.
  iVOOMi intends to use Flipkart's marketing intelligence support to target smarphone users in tier 3 and tier 4 cities in India. It also plans to facilitate its research and  and development (R&D) in Hong Kong and China, with s
  
  Read more

• FanDuel and DraftKings merger called off due to suit filed by FTC

  14-07-2017 01:30
  
  A merger that has been in the works since November between fantasy sports companies FanDuel and DraftKings is off, according to statements by both companies.
  The two companies have been in stiff competition for fan dollars, and much scrutiny has been paid to the proposed merger. The US Federal Trade Commission had been reviewing the deal and recently the FTC, plus California and Washington DC attorneys general, filed a suit to block the merger. The companies, if combined, could possibly represen
  
  Read more

• Vice launches drug safety campaign ‘Safe Sesh’, talks down the media's role in the UK’s growing narcotics problem

  14-07-2017 01:01
  
  Vice UK has partnered with The Royal Society for Public Health and drug testing organisation The Loop to launch a drug safety campaign targeted at young people during festival season, a campaign rooted in better drug education which aims to fill the gap left by the ‘out of touch’ government and its ‘unrealistic’ prohibition agenda.
  But the millennial-focused media company, which recently ran a week of programming dedicated to weed, ‘Weed Week’, doesn’t b
  
  Read more

Follow @marketing_UKnws on Twitter!