Ad Tech’s Data Leakage Problem Begins with Contract Talks
The mysterious exchange of people’s online information starts with pen and paper. Contract negotiations between buy-and sell-side advertising platforms are what kickstart the aggregation and selling of user data for the purpose of serving targeted ads, but lawmakers and regulators are ramping up scrutiny of these opaque data practices, since data can easily fall in…
Target Nabs Wingstop Marketer as New SVP of Marketing
Target has appointed Maurice Cooper as its newest senior vice president of marketing. In joining the company, Cooper will directly oversee Target’s marketing operations, overseeing campaigns and promotions across paid, owned and shared media. According to a statement from Target, he will create “plans that are guest-centric, culturally relevant and inclusive to fuel consumer affinity…
Virgin Invites Locals to Test Out Its New Nashville Hotel by Accomplishing ‘Firsts’
No one’s suggesting that visitors to the new Virgin hotel in Nashville should act like rock stars, circa 1969, tossing TVs off balconies, smashing plate-glass windows and trashing the place. In fact, the hotel would rather you didn’t. But if you want to get up to some mild 2020-style shenanigans–like checking in with a fake…
How Phenomenal Became a Leading Social Impact Apparel Brand
Meena Harris, like many American women, was driven to action after the 2016 election. “I found myself wondering what I personally could do to lift up women, make our voices heard and support issues I cared about,” Harris said, recalling the period just after Trump’s election (and the loss of what many expected would be…
Global CMO Suzy Deering Is Leaving eBay After Nearly 5 Years
After almost five years with eBay, first as chief marketing officer for North America and then as vp and global CMO, Suzy Deering is leaving the ecommerce platform. In a statement shared on LinkedIn, Deering called the decision to leave eBay “anything but easy,” but noted that the timing is right for her to pursue…
Stream This Song to Help Save Bars and Clubs, Thanks to Crown Royal
Key Insight: During the pandemic, brands have been lending financial support to establishments crucial to their business model. Crown Royal plans to give back to the very places that have made it a household name: bars, clubs and other small music venues. The Diageo-owned Canadian whisky brand will debut a national campaign Monday featuring a…
Kentucky Derby Horse or Ad Agency: Can You Tell the Difference?
Ahead of the Kentucky Derby each year, Adweek takes to the streets of New York to quiz random people about whether they can tell whether a name is a Kentucky Derby horse or an ad agency. This year, with the Kentucky Derby postponed until Sept. 5 and most people still working remotely, we changed things…
ESPN and Celine Dion Capture the Mood of a Nation Yearning for Football
Sports fans haven’t had many reasons for excitement in 2020, with several keystone events canceled and seasons delayed. Even when sports like basketball have seemed on the path to returning to normal, new rounds of Covid-19 infections made each subsequent week uncertain. But for now, optimism reigns as the NFL regular season prepares to begin…
Road to Brandweek: General Mills’ Brad Hiranaga Says Consumers Have Higher Expectations of Brands Now
Key insight: The pandemic has highlighted consumers’ desire for brands to add value and show a human interest. It’s a good time to be in the CPG business. As stay-at-home orders forced people inside (and out of restaurants), grocery stores became one of the few storefronts that remained open for business. And as unprecedented challenges…
Agencies Are Strengthening Their Ecommerce Chops, Including VMLY&R and Horizon Media
A slew of agencies have inked a partnership with Profitero, a performance analytics firm that helps brands, particularly ones in the CPG space, optimize ad spend on Amazon, Walmart and other ecommerce sites. Profitero’s clients include L’Oreal, General Mills and Revlon. By directly partnering with the agencies that service these companies and their various brands,…
Disney+ Tests Out a Bold Pandemic Experiment With Mulan
Mulan, the live-action remake of the 1998 animated Disney classic, arrives on Disney+ today, marking the beginning of an experiment from the company to see how much revenue a major motion picture can rake in through premium video rentals instead of a traditional theatrical release. The film, whose planned March theatrical release was pushed back…
Apple’s Contradictory Privacy Moves; Most-Watched Streaming Shows: Friday’s First Things First
Welcome to First Things First, Adweek’s daily resource for marketers. We’ll be publishing the content to First Things First on Adweek.com each morning (like this post), but if you prefer that it come straight to your inbox, you can sign up for the email here. Apple Sends Mixed Messages About Privacy Today, Apple released a…
Quirky Dr. Bronner’s Throws Its Brand (and Money) Behind Legalizing Psychedelic Drugs
Key Insights The liquid soap brand is pushing for the FDA to legalize psychedelic drugs to treat PTSD, depression, anxiety and other disorders. Dr. Bronner’s “Heal Soul!” labels are very much in keeping with its longstanding, and highly effective, branding. One of the lesser-told stories of the coronavirus pandemic is how the virus, apart from…
After Pleas for the Pretzel Bun’s Return, Wendy’s Unveils New Pub-Style Cheeseburger
This week, Wendy’s unveiled a new hamburger that involves applewood smoked bacon, muenster cheese, smoky honey mustard, warm beer cheese sauce, crispy fried onions and pickles all between a soft pretzel bun. If that sounds like a lot of ingredients and calories (730 to be precise) in one sandwich, it is. The bun itself returns…
Apple Will Delay Rollout of Part of iOS 14, a Relief to App Developers
Apple ended weeks of speculation today by announcing it will delay part of its iOS 14 rollout, which will begin later this month. Part of the update includes asking app developers to seek consent from users for third parties, aka app monetization partners, to access their data. Now, Apple says that new feature will be…
VMLY&R Names Chief Integration Officer, Establishes Transformation Initiative
VMLY&R has promoted Myron King to chief integration officer. In the new role, King will be responsible for leading the organizational design and cultural integration strategy for North American clients, which encompasses overseeing the integration of core agency capabilities for new and existing clients across the region for the agency, which resulted from WPP’s merger…
The Umbrella Academy, Shameless Top Most-Watched Streaming Shows
Key Insight: While Netflix’s Umbrella Academy drove viewership, most of the other most-watched series are older library titles. Netflix U.S. subscribers watched more than 3 billion minutes of the Netflix original series The Umbrella Academy during the first full week of August, according to new viewership data from Nielsen. Beginning today, the measurement company has…
Apple’s New Ad Champions Privacy by Reminding Us About Everything We’d Rather Keep Quiet
Some of our personal data needs to be kept private to protect us from hackers and thieves. But a lot of it is just flat-out embarrassing. Apple covers both groupings of info we like to keep quiet in its new ad from TBWAMedia Arts Lab, which creates a satirical world where people loudly broadcast their…
Pinterest Won’t Run Ads Next to Election-Related Content
Ahead of the U.S. elections this November, Pinterest is making some changes to boost civic engagement on its platform and tightening its policies on political ads. The company will not run ads against election-related search terms to “help ensure there’s a lower risk of ads appearing next to content that’s not inspiring (and therefore less…
Anheuser-Busch Brings Back Its 38-Year-Old Ad Slogan to Promote Responsible Drinking
In a lighthearted new spot that harks back to one of the first responsible drinking ads by a major alcohol brand, Anheuser-Busch is celebrating service industry workers who take their jobs a step further by helping keep patrons safe. The minute-long ad opens with a bar manager explaining that while she’s asking a lot of…