DDB New York has hired Lisa Topol and Derek Barnes as co-CCOs, effective in March. The duo will lead the agency's creative department across a client roster that includes Unilever, Mars, PepsiCo, Henkel, Merck, Tribeca Enterprises and Cotton Inc while reporting to DDB North America CCO Ari Weiss. "Lisa and Derek have had careers that...
↧
DDB New York Welcomes Creative Duo From Grey as Co-CCOs
↧
Uber Shines a Light on Its Most-Complimented Drivers in Series of Long-Form Ads
Uber is beginning 2018 by focusing more on celebrating its drivers, beginning with a pair of documentary-style spots--timed to National Compliment Day today--profiling two drivers who've gotten some of the most in-app compliments from passengers. "A compliment can go further than you think," says onscreen copy at the beginning of the spots, which were made...
↧
↧
Missy Elliot and Morgan Freeman Will Battle a Busta Rhymes-Peter Dinklage Duo in the Doritos vs. Mountain Dew Super Bowl Spot
PepsiCo's Super Bowl LII ad for Mountain Dew and Doritos just got a lot more epic. The snacks and beverage company announced today that hip-hop legends Missy Elliot and Busta Rhymes will appear in the ad alongside actors Morgan Freeman and Peter Dinklage. In a second teaser (below), Elliot is paired with Freeman for Mountain...
↧
Avocados From Mexico Releases a Wonderfully Wacky, Guacamole-Filled Super Bowl Teaser
Get ready for your mind to be blown by all the wonderful things you can put guacamole on (we're talking toast, sandwiches, tacos and more) thanks to Avocados From Mexico. The trade group released a teaser for its 30-second Super Bowl spot, which will focus on the versatility of guacamole. GSD&M is handling the creative....
↧
Why Brands in These 3 Categories Need to Prepare for the Voice Era
Amazon, Google, Microsoft and Facebook are investing in AI-enhanced devices that provide answers when we ask questions. We're at the beginning of a big year for voice-based marketing as these companies double down on these investments and brands experiment with new customer experiences powered by voice. According to our recent survey of 1,000 consumers, 73...
↧
↧
The 3 Trends That Will Take Mobile Ad Creativity Into a New Era
When data-driven analysts prognosticate about industries like mobile advertising, they tend to be very ... well, data-driven. They look at increases in ad spend in certain areas, movements from big companies in the space or investments in certain technologies. While there is certainly a place for data in understanding what's next for mobile creative, some...
↧
YouTube Is Making Its Official Artist Channels Hubs for All of Artists’ Content
YouTube launched Official Artist Channels in 2017 in an effort to make it easier for fans to find content from their favorite artists, including music videos, lyric videos, covers, unplugged sets, live performances and backstage footage. Now, the Google-owned video-sharing platform will begin combining subscribers from across multiple channels into artists' Official Artist Channels. In...
↧
Publicis Groupe Names New Client Lead for Verizon Account
Publicis Groupe has hired Shenan Reed as president, chief client officer for VM1, a' dedicated Verizon unit housed within Zenith. Reed will be tasked with leading strategic activity across Publicis Groupe's Zenith, SapientRazorfish, Moxie, Rokkan and The Community units for the client. "I'm excited to join the team," Reed said in a statement. "I look...
↧
GoDaddy Buys Marketing Platform Main Street Hub
There will be no controversial Super Bowl ads from domain provider and cloud platform GoDaddy this year, but that hasn't kept the company out of the news. GoDaddy announced an agreement to acquire Main Street Hub, a full-service marketing platform aimed at enabling small businesses to optimize their social media marketing. The deal is valued...
↧
↧
Team Visa’s Athletes Use Social Media to Preview the Company’s Winter Olympics Push
Olympic athletes chase gold, silver and bronze. But for their everyday spending needs, Visa's fantastic blue plastic sure comes in handy. Most of the 54 members of the company's Olympic and Paralympic endorsement roster, representing 21 countries and 15 sports, pull together for a global campaign ahead of the Winter Olympic Games in PyeongChang, South...
↧
Facebook Acquired Identity Verification Provider Confirm
Facebook appears to be working on some new ways to check IDs. Confirm, which developed technology that enabled verification of government-issued identification, such as driver's licenses, announced that it will be acquired by Facebook. The agreement covers the company's technology and employees, and Kurt Wagner of Recode reported that the Boston-based startup will join the...
↧
ColorComm Launches Men of Color in Communications to Promote Diverse Leadership
ColorComm, an organization for women of color in advertising, PR and communications industries that launched in 2011, is introducing a new group called Men of Color in Communications. MCC aims to provide resources to men of color in advertising, PR and communications, promote the advancement of men of color in leadership roles in these industries...
↧
CBS Is Reviving Murphy Brown Next Season
Once NBC's revival of Will & Grace became one of this season's biggest hits--and ABC scheduled a Roseanne return for midseason--it was only a matter of time before a rival decided to bring back another '90s hit. And now, CBS has announced it will be bringing back Murphy Brown next season, with Candice Bergen reprising...
↧
↧
Wieden + Kennedy London Fires Partner, Chief Strategy Officer and 10-Year Veteran Paul Colman
This week, Wieden + Kennedy London fired chief strategy officer Paul Colman, a global partner who spent more than 10 years with the agency. "I can confirm that Paul Colman will no longer be working at W+K London," said an agency spokesperson. Paul Colman The representative declined to elaborate on the reasons for Colman's abrupt...
↧
Bill Hader Gets His Mind Blown Stacking Flavors in Pringles’ First Super Bowl Ad
When you stack different Pringles flavors on top of each other and eat them all at the same time, crazy fun things happen to your taste buds. At least that's the premise of the brand's 30-second Super Bowl spot, "Wow," which debuted today. The ad will run during the first half of Super Bowl LII...
↧
The Grammys Are Bringing IBM Watson’s Artificial Intelligence to the Red Carpet
Watson won't be wearing anything fancy to the Grammys this weekend, but that's not going to keep it from judging everyone else's outfit. For the 60th anniversary of the music awards, the Recording Academy is partnering with IBM to bring its artificial intelligence to the red carpet. On Sunday night, IBM will deploy its AI...
↧
As Super Bowl LII Approaches, Twitter Reflects on the NFL Season
Loved, hated, respected, but definitely not ignored: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was the most mentioned National Football League player during the 2017 season, at more than 3 million mentions. The Patriots will take on the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LII Feb. 4, and despite suffering a season-ending injury Dec. 10, Eagles quarterback...
↧
↧
The Lesson of Facebook’s Hammer Drop? Build a Community, Not an Audience
Last week, Mark Zuckerberg announced a massive shift in what Facebook's 2 billion users will see on their news feeds: fewer posts from businesses and media companies, and more from friends and family. It's a change that Zuckerberg says is a direct result of community feedback that "public content--posts from businesses, brands, and media--is crowding...
↧
Volvo Shows the Nightmare of Consumerism and Says Maybe You Shouldn’t Buy Your Next Car
Against the backdrop of the world's looming environmental disaster, as well as the advent of self-driving cars, Volvo has unleashed a bleak yet grand new global commercial in which it sees a future where people no longer buy cars--but subscribe to them instead. The 2:30 spot, by Swedish agency Forsman & Bodenfors, opens with an...
↧
Nissan Hired Surprising Instructors to Support Saudi Arabia’s First Wave of Female Drivers
On Sept. 26, Saudi Arabia officially lifted its ban on female drivers. Set to take effect in June, it's a historic ruling that underscores the crown prince's commitment to reinvigorate the country's economy with long-awaited liberal reforms. It will change the lives not only of women but of families, communities and economies--with minimal costs and...
↧