Anthem Health, the nation’s second-largest insurance provider by both membership and revenue, has a new chief marketing officer. A company spokesperson confirmed on Monday night that the Indianapolis, Indiana-based company recently hired Bill Beck to fill the position. She declined to comment or make Mr. Beck available for interview. The marketing chief succeeds Patrick Blair,…
The Buddhas of Bamyan were two monumental statues carved into the side of a cliff in Bamyan Valley, central Afghanistan, during the 6th century. Though constructed directly from the sandstone itself, sculptors fashioned some of the more intricate details out of mud, straw, and carefully coated stucco. At 115 and 174 feet tall, they both…
2018 was yet another record-breaking year for digital marketers in the U.S. The most recent estimates–which come courtesy of the latest IAB Internet Advertising Revenue Report released today–put last year’s earnings at $107.5 billion. The report, released by the IAB and prepared by the consulting firm PwC US, represents a 2% year-over-year increase from $88.3…
Before the advertising world descends on the south of France next month for the Cannes Lions, the awards circuit begins to heat up. The ANDY Awards kicked off the season last month, and May is chock full of ceremonies including D&AD in London and, this week, The One Show in New York during Creative Week….
Nineteen fifty-three was a seminal year in world history. Biologists discovered the double helix of DNA. Sir Edmund Hillary reached the top of Everest. Dr. Jonas Salk perfected the polio vaccine. And in a suburban backyard in Fairfield, Conn., a bunch of kids played the first game of Wiffle Ball. All right, so maybe a…
Jezz Chung has always let her curiosity guide her career–and it’s served her well indeed. While a psychology major at UT Austin, Chung made her way into advertising after joining a student-run club called Texas Advertising Group. During her senior year, she participated in three programs that helped launch her career in advertising: AAF’s Most…
There’s great freedom in being independent, yet agencies across the globe that don’t have holding companies hanging over them still wrestle with an ever-changing advertising world. While the major players continue to see their models getting flipped upside down, smaller, more agile shops, while having obvious significant upside, can be just as susceptible to change….
As legacy brands continue to fight against the upstart DTC brands, the swimwear industry is looking to sustainability as its hot new fashion trend. Swimwear is becoming an increasingly lucrative vertical in the fashion industry, averaging about $4.6 billion in sales in 2018, according to NPD Group’s Consumer Tracking Service. And it’s a growing market,…
The Association of National Advertisers (ANA) and cybersecurity company White Ops opened its fourth annual Bot Baseline report with the proclamation that “in some important ways, things are better than they have ever been.” But in spite of that cheery headline, the report left industry leaders feeling cautiously optimistic at best, and downright skeptical at…
The Tribeca Film Festival wouldn’t happen without the involvement of brands. The event, which celebrates its 17th anniversary this year, is almost entirely funded by brand partners and sponsors, like AT&T, Nespresso and Stella Artois. Ticket sales contribute to Tribeca’s revenue, but are vastly outweighed by brand sponsorships. And through Tribeca Studios, the festival’s branded…
Kraft Heinz’s U.S. CMO Eduardo Luz will leave the company at the end of May, six years after joining the packaged food conglomerate. Adam Butler, president, beverages, snacks and desserts, will assume CMO responsibilities on an interim basis. “Eduardo Luz has decided to leave Kraft Heinz at the end of May,” a spokesperson said in…
It’s once again in vogue for brands to take stands on important social issues. The 2018 Edelman Earned Brand study found that “nearly two-thirds of consumers around the world now buy on belief, a remarkable increase of 13 points since 2017.” This isn’t simply the rise of social good-minded millennials, either. “Belief-driven buyers are now…
Every industry has its share of jargon, words freighted with meaning for executives in that field, even if they happen to leave the rest of the world guessing. Every so often, however, business jargon–if enough people use it–makes its way into mainstream English. And that’s what has finally happened to “influencer.” The lexicographers at Merriam-Webster…
Influencers are still going strong, but as the novelty fades, should brands keep including them in their strategies? New research from Toluna suggests they should. While there’s still skepticism–30.4% of American consumers don’t trust influencer recommendations–almost half (49.2%) follow influencers on social media, and 49.3% have bought something based on a recommendation from an influencer….
After months of grim news for the ad-tech sector, this week held a few positive signs for the space. A report found that ad fraud had declined slightly since 2017, while three ad-tech startups raised nearly $100 million collectively in investment rounds. Criteo’s struggles continued, however, despite a 3% year-over-year revenue increase that failed to…
Who do you turn to when you’re a woman trying to navigate your career in advertising? One app hopes you’ll turn to your fellow–or rather, the Fellow app. While it’s still in the beta-testing phase, the platform aims to fill a gap in the industry and provide women with “the tools needed to meet relatable…
Having just celebrated a half-decade in business, Casper is expanding beyond its reputation as the company that upended the mattress industry and putting its muscle behind becoming an end-to-end sleep brand. Right now, that sleep-first mission is right on its packaging. For a limited time, Casper is removing its brand name and logo from its…
Advocacy nonprofit Made of Millions is teaming up with the 4A’s for Mental Health Awareness Month to address an issue that’s particularly prevalent in advertising. The two groups launched the “Dear Manager” campaign, aiming to start a conversation around mental health in advertising. The “pace and pressure of the advertising industry” and agencies’ tendency to…
Imagine you work for a city or town and, out of the blue, an ad agency in Colorado calls you to say that a pizza chain would like to give you money to help pave potholes. Of course, it’s likely there would be an awkward pause, then maybe bemusement and, in the case of Crispin…
Last June in Cannes, Procter and Gamble chief brand officer Marc Pritchard announced the conglomerate’s commitment to hiring female directors for half of its commercials by 2023. The company still has a few more years to go, but it’s made moves over the last year with an initiative called The Queen Collective, a program providing…
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