How Festivals Like Coachella Make Stars Out of Smaller Brands

Whether you think a music festival is gathering to see and hear the biggest artists or simply as a star-studded social media event, Coachella is the embodiment of both. The annual phenomenon captures attention well beyond the California valley where it’s been held (minus two pandemic years) since 1999. So it’s a must that brands…

Taco Bell Recruits Dolly Parton and Doja Cat for Mexican Pizza Musical

Looking to welcome back its Mexican Pizza with some pizzazz, Taco Bell is giving its fans dinner and a show. The chain is creating what it describes as an “off off-Broadway” musical starring Mexican Pizza megafan Doja Cat and country icon Dolly Parton. The satirical show, produced by Live M?s Productions, tells the story of…

Building a Successful Branded Content Playbook With Colman Domingo 

With a career spanning over three decades, a quick glance at Colman Domingo’s r?sum? reveals he’s pretty much done it all: plays, musicals, television, movies, talk shows, playwriting, and directing. In one of his more recent projects, Domingo partnered with AMC Networks to launch Bottomless Brunch at Colman’s. What started off as a branded content…

Once a Pandemic Superstar, Peloton Rode Straight Into a Wall. Now What?

Last December, the millions of fans who tuned in for And Just Like That, the much-anticipated sequel series to the late ’90s cult phenom Sex and the City, were in for a big surprise–literally. Leaving aside the challenge of updating Carrie, Miranda and Charlotte with a bit more wisdom and a bit less collagen, there…

FaZe Clan Launches Live Reality Competition Show on Twitch With New Brand Partner

Esports brand FaZe Clan is ramping up production of original content with a new reality competition series to provide more premium reach for brand marketing partners. And the esports giant is coming into this new phase with a new partner: lifestyle nutrition brand Ghost. The news comes after FaZe Clan ended its partnership with energy…

This NCAA Athlete Became an NIL Darling After March Madness Cinderella Run

The NCAA Tournament is the ultimate basketball event in the college domain. This year, it also became a case study for brands on how to navigate name, image and likeness (NIL) deals with student-athletes. The 2022 championship drew an average of 10.7 million total viewers for its 67 live telecasts, up 13% year over year….

Online Casinos Join the Streaming Wars With Branded Live Dealers

The streaming wars haven’t been limited to streaming services–there’s livestream shopping, live sports, Twitch (just to name a few) and, as it gains regulatory approval in more places across the U.S., online gambling. That’s because more casino apps are hosting live casinos, in which real dealers shuffle cards and spin roulette wheels as remote gamblers…

Magnolia Bakery Rebrands to Expand Ecommerce Business

Life was different in 2000, when an episode of Sex and the City catapulted Magnolia Bakery into the national consciousness. The iPhone and Instagram didn’t exist. Ecommerce represented around 1% of total U.S. retail sales, according to the Census Bureau. Now, the iPhone is ubiquitous, a reported 2 billion people scroll through Instagram each month,…

Reebok Looks to Make Bank With Money Heist Merchandise

Following the end of any captivating TV series, dedicated fans are often left wanting more–more answers, more missions and, most importantly, more content. In collaboration with Netflix’s series La Casa de Papel–known in the U.S. as Money Heist–Reebok has launched the Reebok x La Casa de Papel Collection of apparel and footwear. As a nod…

Rock Idol Lenny Kravitz Is Playing a New Riff: Promoting Healthy Teeth

Even though he’s toured the world, won four Grammys, sold 40 million records, acted in several Hollywood films and, as a child, sat on Duke Ellington’s lap while the jazzman played piano, Lenny Kravitz has one particular memory that’s never left him. And it’s got nothing to do with fame or music. Since 1989, the…

Jameson and Pinterest Team Up for an Orange-inal Color Takeover

Irish whiskey brand Jameson is owning orange, the vibrant Spring color, in Pinterest’s first-ever color takeover partnership. Starting today, users who search for orange will see Jameson’s content for its new spirit flavor across top orange hits on Pinterest’s page. The break-through ads will appear in searches like orange chicken and orange nails, according to…

You Can Relax, Twitter: Guitar Center Adds a ‘G’ to Logo

For a couple of years now, Twitter users have been pointing out something odd about Guitar Center’s logo. The crux of the discussion: The guitar, which has a slight gap between its body and neck, is meant to represent the letter “G.” Some consider it a stretch: I just feel like we’re being really generous…

The Knot Worldwide Gears up for Wedding Season With Hiring of CMO Jenny Lewis

The wedding industry was severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Nearly half of couples (47%) postponed their wedding reception to a new date according to The Knot, the 25-year-old media, commerce and technology platform that is all things weddings. Now, the industry is booming. 94% of weddings planned for 2021 successfully took place…

These Brands Are Crushing the Collab Space and Contributing to Culture

We are used to seeing brand partnerships where brands with shared values come together to broaden their reach and maybe cachet. However, what we have seen more recently are brand collisions and mash-ups, where on the surface, it’s not as obvious as to why they’ve come together. Perhaps when thinking about potential collaborations, shared brand…

Call It 31.2: Baskin-Robbins Taste Tests Brand Refresh

Brands have fallen in love with flat and simple logos, to go along with pared-down messaging, in hopes of establishing a faster and deeper connection with consumers who are spending increasing amounts of time on smartphones. Trying to hit on those flavors of innovation and quality, Baskin-Robbins is updating its logo with a new simplified…

What Charlamagne tha God Wants Brands to Know About His Podcast Network

Charlamagne tha God debuted The Black Effect Podcast Network in September 2020, dedicated to Black listeners and voices in Black culture, with audio network iHeartMedia. And while the audience growth since then has been solid, the network’s founder wants brands to recognize the platform is not only for Black audiences. “We keep having these conversations…

L’Oréal and Eva Longoria Teach Bystanders How to Stand Up Against Street Harassment

Despite the #MeToo movement raising awareness and advocacy against sexual harassment, the need for education and advocacy remains. And while the onus will always be on every individual not to harass, beauty brand L’Or?al is offering tips on how to help when it happens. L’Or?al’s “Stand Up” campaign was created in partnership with global nonprofit…

Steve Nash, Serena Williams, Kerry Washington Talk Equity—in All Its Forms

The word “equity” is synonymous with Silicon Valley. The tech hub is packed with startups short on capital using equity to entice employees with stock options and ownership in a company. That’s where Carta comes in. Created in 2012, the fin-tech startup helps manage equity for about 20,000 companies. With the goal of educating employees…

Fat CEO Salaries Tick People Off. So Why Isn’t Executive Pay a Marketing Liability?

Those of us old enough to remember the financial meltdown of 2008 might also recall the final, disgraceful chapter of it. It wasn’t just that 9 million people lost their jobs; it was that the financial institutions that had traded all those securities based on subprime mortgages–and then been bailed out by the federal government–proceeded…

Mastercard Makes Marketing as Accessible as Its Touch Card

Mastercard’s marketing team was well aware of the challenge inherent in launching the Touch Card, its payment tool for the blind and visually impaired, with a TV commercial. The idea behind the ad, “Spotlight,” reflects Mastercard’s wider attempt to convey its appeal to all senses, while demonstrating its intention to foster inclusion among underrepresented groups….