Hasta La Creative!

Through exclusive content, fueled by Retweet to Subscribe and Twitter Moments, fans got the inside scoop and connection to Manchester United players they cravean experience only available on Twitter.

The talk show delivered, making sure Chevrolet did more than stand out in timelines. During the series’ first few weeks, the automaker connected with legions of football fans, racking up 44 million impressions for its videos and earning a 100 percent positive-to-neutral sentiment.

Thanks to this campaign, Chevrolet expanded the possibilities of innovative video content on Twitter and, in the process, reinforced its brand identity among influential, passionate sports fans.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

Budweiser took a more emotional approach with this video by VaynerMedia. A 30-second version will air during NBC’s coverage of Sunday’s Nascar race at Homestead-Miami Speedway.

Bud will also re-air this spot from 2003.

This one might have legs

Continue reading at AdAge.com

Tencent Holdings is defying the law of large numbers, posting accelerating revenue growth and topping the most optimistic of analyst estimates.

The owner of WeChat, the social network that is nearly ubiquitous in China, reported a 61 percent rise in third-quarter sales. Fueled by advertising and hit game “Honour of Kings,” the growth was the fastest since 2010, when revenue was a mere one-fourteenth of its current level.

By getting WeChat onto almost a billion smartphones in China, Tencent has leveraged the instant message service into an entertainment and gaming platform that is driving advertising sales. Although the Shenzhen-based company remains largely absent overseas, it’s built a 12 percent stake in Snapchat-owner Snap Inc. and is exploring new sources of growth in the cloud, financial services, movies and music.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

When Doug Zarkin grabbed the reins as CMO of Pearle Vision five and a half years ago, he found a 55-year old brand that was “stuck in the death spiral of where brands never want to live — in the middle.” By Zarkin’s count, the brand had gone through 10 different positions, 10 different reasons to believe — none of which caught hold in the preceding decade. He was also greeted with a letter from a franchise owner that said, “Dear Doug: Welcome to Pearle Vision, I hope you suck less than the last person who had your job!” In our interview below, you’ll see how Zarkin rose to the challenge and helped guide Pearle Vision into a clear positioning and a winning execution.

When you first got to Pearle Vision and recognized the need for a new positioning, how long did you give yourself?

Continue reading at AdAge.com

Adam&Eve/DDB leads the 36 agencies shortlisted at this year’s Campaign Big Awards, which celebrate the very best of British advertising.

The 20th edition of Haymarket’s annual event to celebrate excellence in brand experiences has sold out.

Blame fear, pharma, the internet, our more PC culture or the idea that satire has become reality. Or maybe just the client’s desire for activations.

But (seriously, folks) have you noticed that there’s precious little humor in advertising these days? So let’s go back, back to 1993’s 90-second Looney Tunes/Michael Jordan/Nike extravaganza, “Aerospace Jordan,” and just bathe in its sheer artistry, rule-breaking and nonstop comedy.

From the beginning, Nike knew branding. Starting with “Bo Knows” (he knew diddly) and on through Michael Jordan’s run-ins with Spike Lee’s character Mars Blackmon, who called Jordan “Money,” Nike humanized sports stars.

Continue reading at AdAge.com

Welcome to Ad Age’s Wake-Up Call, our daily roundup of advertising, marketing, media and digital-related news. You can now get an audio version of this briefing on your Alexa device. Search for “Ad Age” under “Skills” in the Alexa app. Happy listening.

What people are talking about today: Remember when Papa John’s blamed its falling pizza sales on the NFL’s handling of the anthem protests? The brand has now apologized and said it didn’t mean to seem “divisive.” In a Twitter thread, the pizza chain and NFL sponsor says it believes in the rights of players to protest inequality, and it also says Americans should honor the national anthem. “There is a way to do both,” it wrote, diplomatically.

And then the brand’s Twitter account tweeted this:

Continue reading at AdAge.com

The National Trust has enlisted the help of Bompas & Parr to call on the public to protect the London skyline with an installation of a large red cone.