JUNE 28 | What Stole My Attention This Week
June 28, 2024. What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
A spotlight on collabs.
A SPOTLIGHT ON COLLABS
Sweet Cleaning: ScrubDaddy x DUNKIN’
Personally, I’m partial to the dual-sided Scrub Mommy but these sponges are almost cute enough to eat. Scrub Daddy and DUNKIN’ teamed up to celebrate National Donut Day.
“The delicious duo is perfect for scrubbing away donut crumbs and wiping up iced coffee spills.”
What I love about this collab is that it started with a back-and-forth between the two brands on social media before they started to go IRL. Fans are loving it:
“2 better worlds couldn’t have collided #scrubdunkin,” one person said. Someone jokingly suggested another product saying, “i LOVE this Now dunkin needs to make a donut that looks like a scrub daddy/mommy!” To be honest, that one may throw customers off a little bit.
Condiment Couture: HEINZ x kate spade new york
A ketchup bottle tote? Yes. please.
Both unexpected and natural, the makings of a great collab. The kate spade new york brand has often valued novelty and HEINZ frequently gets playful with their packaging and brand identity.
In a world of copycats, this one-of-a-kind capsule collection has already snagged multiple headlines across fashion, business, and general market media.
A “pop of red” has been one of the top trends stylists have recommended this year, making this delicious launch even more timely.
Souped Up Sunglasses: Ray-Ban x Meta
I had the opportunity to try these Ray-Ban Meta smart sunglasses in Cannes - they almost had me hitting the buy button.
Simz and Busta Rhymes just released a video for the product, at least two versions. One that showcases how the glasses can translate visual text and another that showcases the ease of taking photos and video calls.
They’ve also got OFFSET teasing a release. If anything, it’s interesting to watch the content release plan across brand and influencer/partner profiles because here’s a totally different one.
While these would never replace my phone, I see the value in the functionality. Photos, videos, editing with your voice, content creation on command. It finally might be time to invest.
MAY 17 | What Stole My Attention This Week
May 17, 2024. What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
Ads getting censored, the debate over whether TV should still be in media plans, TikTok is testing 60-minute content and ChatGPT is announcing plans on search
In A Double Standard Move, Billboard Flagged For Review
A billboard from Swehl, a company design to support families in the breastfeeding journey, was removed from Times Square because the image “violated guidelines on acceptable content.” The image features celebrity cookbook author Molly Baz and her pregnant belly, holding Swehl’s lactation cookies over her breasts, which are also in a bra, by the way.
Many news outlets have led with describing Molly in the image as “mostly nude”. Is she? Actually, let’s talk about the fact that she’s pregnant. And breastfeeding can be really hard for many women yet our society judges women who don’t breastfeed. It shouldn’t matter if they won’t or they can’t, it’s their choice. So to further create shame around the image overall, when I think you’d be hard-pressed to find a woman in your life who doesn’t have some kind of complicated feelings around her body, just sets us back.
This New York Times article reminds us of so many other things around women’s health that are censored in this industry.
“Advertising has long had an ambivalent relationship with women’s health content. It was not until 2017 that an ad for period products was allowed to run using red liquid, as opposed to what has been deemed the more palatable blue. In 2020, an ad by the mother and baby care brand Frida that realistically depicted the pain of postpartum recovery was rejected from airing during the Oscars. And online content related to women’s health or breastfeeding is often censored on social media, as was the case for the baby care company Tommee Tippee, which ran a campaign titled “Boob Life” for its breast pumps, depicting a montage of realistic breastfeeding vignettes and breasts.”
Just getting women access to information about their health should not be so difficult.
I wonder who flagged the content? As E.L.F. Beauty recently pointed out, there are a lotttttta Dicks sitting on corporate boards.
The Great TV Debate Continues
Just as much as we love to pretend we don’t love winning awards we created to give to ourselves, people in advertising love to debate whether “TV works”.
I do know that our jobs have become so much more complex in the last 10 years, as the WSJ points out here. Media is fragmented but creative is expected to carry the red thread across every channel and medium, regardless of size, length, or fidelity.
“A lot of people think streaming might be a salvation, but no, all of TV is in secular decline. No matter how much streaming grows, it can never make up for the lost linear ad inventory so long as ad loads remain light and consumers exhibit preferences for ad-free options,” said ad analyst Brian Wieser.
It’s the wild west right now. Streaming services are expensive even though their measurement practices are shady and often can’t confirm where or when ads ran, which is odd for something born of digital. And the Global SVP of Consumer Experience at Mondelez points out to WSJ that they wouldn’t even buy linear TV if they weren’t grandfathered in at certain prices.
It all goes to back to objectives and budget. TV might work, just depends on what you are trying to achieve and how much you have to get there.
TikTok Is Certainly Persistent
TikTok is testing the ability for users to upload 60-minute videos. The feature is available to a limited group of users in select markets, and TikTok says it doesn’t have any immediate plans to make the feature available widely.
It’s funny coming off of the ‘great TV debate’ since so often experts cite one of the reasons TV is dying is due to younger generations not having the attention span. Maybe they do have the attention span if the content is to their liking?
TikTok has regularly experimented with longer form content, likely to stay competitive with YouTube.
Also, follow social media consultant Matt Navarra if you don’t already.
Google Search Is Getting Some Competition
On Monday, OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, will announce it’s new AI search product. That would be one day before Google is expected to announce plans for its Gemini AI products. Zing.
ChatGPT has been respected for it’s ability to filter and distill information from the internet but was stunted in providing more current information until an integration with Microsoft’s Bing search engine for paid subscribers.
Google, long considered the authority in the search space, is getting challenged all around. A senior vice president at Google even admitted that, in their studies, 40% of ‘young people’ don’t go to Google Search or Maps, they go to TikTok and Instagram.
Read more about the speculation on OpenAI’s search plan on Forbes.
MAY 10 | What Stole My Attention This Week
What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
May 10, 2024
Hidden fees hurting brands, naked fashion, TikTok bans, people are getting it wrong on Apple Crush!
April showers bring May flowers
The Connection Between “Junk Service Fees” And The Customer Experience
Our consumers are already worried about cash. And inflation. And interest rates. Now, the WSJ reports that the price we initially see versus what we eventually pay, is getting more egregious. I knew this started to become a problem when a haircut no longer included the complementary blowdrying, thanks to Dry Bar and all of the blow-dry salons that followed.
“It diminishes the relationship a company has with its customers,” says Alexander Chernev, a professor of marketing at Northwestern University’s Kellogg School of Management.
The fees tacked on to event tickets, paying with credit over cash, and the tourist taxes have started to bleed into almost every product and service imaginable, and people are pissed off. President Biden’s Administration estimates that American’s pay over $90 billion (that’s a ‘B’) in “junk fees” every year.
Read more on the WSJ
A Rare Misstep For Apple?
HOT TAKE - Is the controversy surrounding the Apple iPad Pro new release spot another example of the creative industry taking themselves too seriously?
Maybe my years in CPG makes me a sucker for a great product demo and benefit metaphor, which is all this is at the end of the day. The iPad Pro is a powerful tablet with pretty incredible tools that support creativity. The spot was created by the company that has always celebrated creativity. It was created in-house with Tor Myrhen at the helm, a respected creative leader.
Are the same people reacting negatively to this spot the ones who are rejecting AI as a tool? If this spot came from IBM it would be a different story, but it didn’t. Context is key.
The Naked Fashion Trend Is, Unfortunately, Still Here
This week marked the first Monday in May and for some of us, that means Met Gala. Haters will say it’s out of touch and frivolous, and they’re not wrong. I’d say, I welcome frivolity to balance everything else happening in the world at the moment.
This year’s theme was "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion" and the dress code was "The Garden of Time", referring to the short story by J.G. Ballard. The story's protagonist, Count Axel, slows an angry mob nearing his castle by cutting flowers from his garden until none remain.
All very ironic considering one of the most famous lines from ‘The Devil Wears Prada’; “Florals? For Spring? Groundbreaking”.
Anyway, the large majority missed the mark on the dress code, either being too literal or just too…naked? More than two attendees allowed their fashion choices to take priority over their ability to walk.
My top picks: Gigi Hadid, Tyla in a sand dress, Demi Moore
Will They Or Won’t They?
TikTok Sues the U.S. Over Potential Ban
Would it be a marketing newsletter without a TikTok reference? In the ongoing of saga of whether or not TikTok will be banned in the U.S., TikTok is fighting back. Their claim is that the 270-day timeline for ByteDance to divest is not possible and unrealistic.
They are also trying to take a stance for the people, saying it will “silence” the many millions of Americans who use the app to communicate and connect. But let’s be real - the level of data that TikTok collects (and censors) that has made connection to people and topics each user finds so relevant is exactly one of the reasons a ban is being suggested. I say this as someone who has thoroughly enjoyed consuming TikToks.
Wouldn’t another platform emerge as a place for those many of millions of Americans?
ROAR Organic Picks Indie Bandits & Friends As Lead Ad Agency
ROAR Organic, the second-fastest-growing brand in the functional water space, Picks Indie Bandits & Friends As Lead Ad Agency
ROAR Organic Seeks Next Stage of Brand Growth with Indie Ad Agency, Bandits & Friends
“Unlike other brands in the category that follow a safe and conventional full-funnel approach, we’re breaking free from the mundane. Our partnership with Bandits & Friends is about being LOUD— unapologetically LOUD. We’re not here to replicate what others have done; we’re here to disrupt and create a narrative that stands out in an otherwise cluttered market.”
Following a competitive pitch, independent agency Bandits & Friends was named lead agency for ROAR Organic, the second-fastest-growing brand in the functional water space. This collaboration marks a pivotal moment as ROAR seeks to become a household name by elevating its platform, ‘Drink Out Loud’.
Bandits & Friends, known for their boundary-pushing creative strategies, aligns seamlessly with ROAR’s commitment to doing things differently. Together, they plan to redefine the landscape of the functional water space, bringing a fresh approach to the industry. This exciting partnership propels ROAR into new creative expressions and disruptive marketing, redefining what it means to ‘Drink Out Loud’.
The scope of the assignment includes brand strategy, a brand campaign, social and partnership strategy. The work is expected to hit the market in the Summer of 2024.
“When the clients responded positively to our ‘tough love’, we knew the partnership was meant to be. We’re excited to work with ROAR because they want to do things right, and they want to be bold. We have zero interest in doing the expected and neither do they.”
JAN 5 | What Stole My Attention This Week
What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
2024 predictions, Pop-Tarts acting like idols, Zuckerberg sells a helluva lotta stock, Netflix potentially pivoting on games.
Strawberry, The Pop-Tart Mascot, Is A Star
Anthropomorphic characters have had a resurgence of late, think Duolingo’s green owl Duo and his following on TikTok. And the charm that a character can bring hit hard at the Pop-Tarts Bowl at the end of last year.
As our own David Suarez predicted for 2024, humor will re-emerge as a preferred tone amongst the best advertisers. Some shitty things happened in 2023 and 2024 has a lot on the docket - wouldn’t it be nice just to make some people smile? When Strawberry unveiled himself to a perfectly-timed Taylor Swift song and later happily toasted himself as a celebratory snack, the brand managed to steal attention for minutes. It was irreverent, innocent, and memory-making.
Deepwater Predictions Are Ones To Watch
Speaking of 2024 predictions…Deepwater Asset Management released their 2024 predictions after 8.5/10 of their 2023 predictions were accurate.
Three of Deepwater’s predictions are around Apple; 1)Apple will bring generative AI to Siri 2)Apple will not announce any additional devices in the Vision product line and 3)Apple will acquire Peloton. This isn’t the first time this prediction has been made, but coming from Deepwater gives it more weight.
Other notable predictions? Reddit will be acquired for its data. the IPO market will return to 2019 levels. And maybe a few investments to consider.
Zuckerberg Sold $428M of Meta Stock
Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg sold Meta stock every day during the last two months of 2023, right as the stock price rebounded. Previously, he hadn’t sold a dime since November 2021.
Unclear what his plans are for the cash but we have heard he’s building a $100 million compound in Hawaii, complete with an underground bunker and its own food and energy sources.
Netflix Reportedly Weighing How to Monetize Games
Two years ago, Netflix announced their ambition to be a destination for must-play games, which are currently free on the platform as part of the strategy to keep users coming back. Now, it sounds like that could change.
According to the WSJ, Netflix is considering how to generate money from their games. In two years, Netflix launched 40 games, including Grand Theft Auto Trilogy - the Definitive Edition, Football Manager 24 Mobile, and Storyteller. Monetizing the experiences would be a big pivot for the streamer.
“We want to have a differentiated gaming experience, and part of that is giving game creators the ability to think about building games purely from the perspective of player enjoyment and not having to worry about other forms of monetization, whether it be ads or in-game payment,” Netflix Co-Chief Executive Greg Peters told investors in April.
No decisions have been made, but the debate demonstrates the constant struggle even many marketers face - balancing a flawless customer experience and spend/monetization.
Dec. 15 | What Stole My Attention This Week
What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
This week, we focus on developments in AI as it relates to advertising.
A lot of developments in AI this week that have a direct impact on our industry.
OpenAI Strikes Deal To Bring Current News To AI Tools
OpenAI, the parent company of ChatGPT, has struck a deal with Axel Springer, which operates a number of German and U.S. media outlets. The large majority of what you get out of ChatGPT is drawn from a knowledge base that wrapped in 2021, due to its training process.
This relationship means using vetted journalistic data to train the intelligence model and ChatGPT will also provide attribution to news publishers and links to full articles in its responses.
In a statement, the two firms said the new arrangement "explicitly values the publisher's role in contributing to OpenAI's products" and marks a “significant step” in both firms‘ commitment to “creating new financial opportunities that support a sustainable future for journalism."
Court Dismisses Sarah Silverman IP Case, Favoring AI Firms
Comedian and actress Sarah Silverman brought a case against Meta arguing that its AI systems are an infringement that is only made possible by information extracted from copyrighted material.
“This is nonsensical,” the U.S. District Judge wrote in the order. “There is no way to understand the LLaMA models themselves as a recasting or adaptation of any of the plaintiffs’ books.”
This ruling, together with a federal judge ruling against artists who argued that AI tools using the billions of images on the internet as training material constitute copyright infringement, creates a major precedent for our industry. Without being able to produce evidence of AI-created material being identical to copyrighted work, courts seem to be seeing the cases as insufficient.
What has yet to be decided is the impact this has on AI generated content being used commercially.
3 Execs Fired From Sports Illustrated After AI Scandal
Sports Illustrated was found to be publishing content “created by” AI but passed off as real human authors. Staffers and readers were outraged. Sports Illustrated pass the blame onto a third party content provider. Now, a majority investor will step in as interim CEO.
Trivago Uses AI to Halve Global Transcreation Time
Trivago is launching a new global campaign this week with a 30-sec spot, using AI to adjust visuals and vocals for 10 diff”erent markets including the U.S., Denmark, Canada and Mexico.
While I am a big proponent of our industry using AI for efficiency purposes, Trivago seems to be dancing on a thin line of using AI in place of making progress on representation. This quote from their CEO in particular made me cringe a bit; “The AI makes it more authentic, where you suddenly have a spokesperson you can relate to much better without huge effort,” said Johannes Thomas.”
“Without much effort” - at what point does not hiring an actor from a different culture cross the line from efficiency to inappropriate? It’s reminiscent of the backlash Levi’s received when they said they would be using AI models to promote diversity.
Dec. 1 | What Stole My Attention This Week
What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
It’s the first of the month - saying “rabbit, rabbit, rabbit” brings good luck.
Musk Told All Of Us To Go F*ck Ourselves
This is not usually the kind of response I have when one of my clients does something that is a natural reaction to how they’ve been treated…
At the NY Times DealBook Summit in NYC, after Musk had already exhibited disgusting antisemitic behavior the week prior, he told advertisers to go fuck themselves. This was his eloquent response when asked about advertisers fleeing the platform (who of you were left?!). Then, CEO Linda Yaccarino doubled down her support.
One theory is that Musk is deliberately trying to devalue the company to reduce his interest payments to financiers.
My theory is that Musk is incompetent and using this concept of “free speech” irresponsibly and applying it inconsistently.
An Unexpected Thanksgiving Hero
A 96-year-old woman flawlessly delivered a Carnation Milk jingle she remembered from childhood while preparing Thanksgiving.
Carnation Milk is the best in the land / Here I sit with a can in my hand / No tits to pull, no hay to pitch / You just punch a hole in the son of a bitch.
(Has your IT system flagged us yet?!)
The charming performance was captured on video and posted to TikTok by her granddaughter. Carnation Milk, which seemingly started a TikTok account specifically to respond to this cultural moment - which we all know is no easy feat - stitched their response. A wholesome way to spend the holiday.
Sports Illustrated Busted Trying to Pass AI Off As Real Authors
…Allegedly. Futurism says that Sports Illustrated published content from non-existent writers, used AI to generate headshots and full bios, and used AI to generate the content itself. The magazine’s publisher, The Arena Group, denied wrongdoing and passed the blame to a third-party vendor they license content from. However, Sports Illustrated has since deleted all of the suspicious content from their site. Seems innocent.
Walmart Taking Cues From Hallmark With Shoppable Holiday Series
Big city gal with no time for a personal life returns to her hometown for the holiday… and we know what happens next. Walmart has been an innovator early adopter when it comes to commerce and streaming. In 2022, they did a deal with Roku to try and making streaming a shopping destination. Now, they are debuting a 23-part shoppable holiday series, which they dubbed “RomCommerce”, across Roku, TikTok and YouTube.
Nov 17 What Stole My Attention This Week
What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
Witness Let Slip that Apple Gets 36% of Google Revenue for Default Search Status
During the US v. Google antitrust trial, University Of Chicago Professor Kevin Murphy revealed the figure while testifying. According to Bloomberg, Google lawyer John Schmidtlein “visibly cringed when Murphy said the number.
Google being the default search engine on all Apple devices and the fact that it spends billions a year to do so, is central to the case. In 2021, they spent $26.3 billion for the privilege, $18 billion of which went to Apple.
How Many Of Gen Alpha’s Slang Terms Do You Know?
Sticking out your gyat for the rizzler
You’re so skibidi
You’re so Fanum tax
I just wanna be your sigma
These are the lyrics to a song making the rounds on TikTok, stringing Gen Alpha’s slang words together.
Educate yourself with the full take by The New York Times
It’s About Time for Women’s Sports
Emma Hayes will coach the U.S. Women’s National Soccer Team - and landed a record salary to do so.
Joining from Chelsea FC Women, Emma’s value deserves to be compensated appropriately. She will earn a base salary similar to the U.S. men’s coach of $1.6 million a year, with bonus amounts ultimately impacting final compensation.
Read more on The Wall Street Journal
A UK Grocery Store Fired Its Self-Checkouts
Customers preferred the problem-solving capacity of a human instead of a machine calling the shots. Now apparently WalMart and Costco are taking notice.
Quality of YouTube Ad Inventory Called Into Question, Again
After a scathing study earlier this year claiming 80% of YouTube ads break Google’s rules, resulting in advertisers paying too much and ads being placed on low quality websites, a new report is in. According to Ad Week, advertisers are having trouble verifying the channels their most premium YouTube ads are running on.
Does This Car Qualify for Free Shipping?
Soon, people will be able to shop for a Hyundai on Amazon. (But you still need to go to a dealership to pick it up)
Apparently Gen Z’s Attention Span Craves Podcasts
Spotify just released their 5th annual Gen Z trend report, which shows that Gen Z is driving a significant spike in podcast listening.
Nov 10 What Stole My Attention This Week
What Stole My Attention This Week. A distillation of the most interesting things that happened in creativity, culture & commerce.
TikTok Shop Just Can’t Stop
As they continue to push against Amazon, TikTok is looking to to “forge partnerships with retailers to do deliveries to support perishable products” said Mike Westgate, head of home, living and retail for TikTok Shop U.S.
Speaking at the eComm Fronts, Westgate also noted that they are "aggressively" exploring how to allow users to buy digital products and professional services based on related videos they are watching.
So far, TikTok Shop has only been open to DTC companies that are capable of handling their own fulfillment.
None of it is surprising and all of it continues to position TikTok as it's own self-contained ecosystem.
Are You Overpaying Your Influencers?
CreatorIQ polled 225 organizations, asking how much they pay on average for Instagram influencers of various follower counts for a single post. Isn't it always nice to have a budget reference?
For Instagram influencers with 100,000 to 300,000 followers:
• $500-$2,500—the range cited by 36% of those surveyed
• $2,500-$10,000—the range cited by 31% of those surveyed
300,000 to 1 million followers:
• $2,500-$10,000—the range cited by 23% of those surveyed
• $10,000-$50,000—the range cited by 31% of those surveyed
More than 1 million followers:
• $10,000-$50,000—the range cited by 31% of those surveyed
• $50,000-$100,000—the range cited by 21% of those surveyed
VOGUE & SHEIN (Ironically) Talk Sustainability
Vogue Business hosted me for a breakfast over the topic of sustainability. The head of strategy for SHEIN - identified by many as the most popular fashion brand in the world - was a featured panelist. Earlier this year, TIME Magazine noted that "several reports over the last year reveal the company’s shocking track record of human rights violations and an environmentally-unsustainable model." My key takeaway - most sustainability conversations focus on pre-market. What brands should be considering is the after-market, no longer reserved for auto. For example, many Gen Zers gift their clothing within their friend group when they are finished with it. How can brands be encouraging that circular behavior through offering repairs or deep cleaning?
As brands are deep in 2024 planning - have you noted what your stance is on sustainability?
The best sneaker releases of the week
Is the Hollywood strike really over this time? Policy on AI and streaming services were the final sticking points.
Feel-good social follow of the week
Meet Cutes NYC on Instagram