Marketing winners and losers of the week
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Aviation Gin: The Ryan Reynolds-backed gin’s “Nick Cannon’s Vasectomy” spot was the most-viewed Father’s Day ad, according to AcuityAds, which studied the period of May 19th to June 16th for its ranking, which can be viewed here. The spot promoted a cocktail dubbed the called the “vasectomy”—which is, umm, self-explanatory. Reynolds first introduced the cocktail for Father’s Day in 2021.
The electric vehicle maker tops Cars.com’s American-Made Index, which ranks brands “creating the greatest impact on the U.S. economy through factory jobs, manufacturing plants and parts sourcing.” Tesla landed four models in the top 10, including the first-ranked Model Y. Lincoln, Honda and Jeep also cracked the top 10. See the full list here. The week was not a total joy ride for Tesla, though: CEO Elon Musk announced a 10% cut in salaried staff to prepare for a possible recession. Musk also said Tesla factories in Texas and Berlin are "losing billions of dollars" because of supply chain issues, Reuters reported.
Since nearly all U.S.states have lotteries, these accounts can be long-term money makers for the creative agencies that hold them. A new review for a creative agency for the Illinois Lottery, for example, is likely to be a “hot ticket.” In addition, an agency can hold more than one lottery account at a time, giving each agency multiple chances to win.
The Hasbro-owned brand met with mockery when it unveiled its first mascot, a Nerf gun-toting, gender-free being made of Nerf darts and named “Murph.” The mascot is evocative of Gritty, the crazy-eyed Philadelphia Flyers mascot. “Nerf’s New Mascot Is Terrifying the Internet,” read one Paper Magazine headline. Hasbro worked with the Martin Agency on Murph and its promotional campaign “Unleash the Play in You.” Of course, any publicity could be good publicity–even if it’s in the nightmares of children?
Advertising watchdog group Truth in Advertising filed a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission against the meal kit company. TINA said that HelloFresh engages in deceptive advertising, in violation of the Restore Online Shoppers Confidence Act and FTC law, by promoting “free” meals and taking consumer credit card information but then repeatedly charging without explicitly specifying terms or details upfront. “The company employs dissuasion and diversion tactics so that consumers encounter unnecessary difficulty when trying to cancel their HelloFresh subscriptions,” wrote TINA in its letter to the FTC, adding that HelloFresh “also uses deceptive social media influencer advertisements that fail to adequately disclose the influencers’ material connections to the company.” HelloFresh did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The health-based food delivery brand was forced to recall a lentil and leek crumble dish after many consumers took to social media to voice food poisoning complaints. When the company posted on Instagram urging followers to click through for an “important message,” customers cried foul again. “Why not include the important message in the caption? Is your social media aesthetic more important than consumers' health?" one person said, according to NPR.
On Thursday, the Food and Drug Administration ordered the e-cigarette maker to stop selling its product in the U.S. Many blame the brand for the rise in vaping by teens and younger consumers, prompting concerns about future harm from antismoking groups and regulators.
The age of Popeyes this week. The fast food chain celebrated by offering a five-piece fried chicken promotion.
“Lots of brands are trying to do good but all of us can spot bullshit from 100 paces. We can tell if you are a bandwagon jumper." –Eugene Cheong, chief creative officer at DDB Asia and president of the Outdoor jury at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, about how judges can tell if a brand’s work is purpose-driven without deeper meaning.
PepsiCo named Rachel Ferninando president of PepsiCo Foods Canada; she had been chief marketing officer of Frito-Lay North America. The company also named Cara Keating chief customer officer of Frito-Lay North America; she was president of PepsiCoFoods Canada. Mike Del Pozzo was named president and general manager of the Gatorade Performance Portfolio; he had been chief customer officer of Frito-Lay U.S. In addition, Brett O’Brien was named CMO of Frito-Lay U.S. after working as general manager and senior VP of the Gatorade portfolio. Hooters promoted Bruce Skala to CMO from senior VP of marketing.
Shift Digital, a digital marketing vendor, hired longtime Ford executive Matt VanDyke as president. He most recently was CEO of FordDirect.
