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Essential marketing and PR news & intel to start your day.
September 8, 2021
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Building Better Branded Virtual Events

 

Let’s face it: Virtual work has lasted much longer than many of us thought it would. Other activities — such as shopping and branded events — are also still happening predominantly online, creating high demand for virtual events as brands seek to connect with stakeholders both internally and externally. 

 

In light of that demand, Brandlive, a leader in the industry, and Toldright, an on-demand production resource that helps brands make high-quality videos, have partnered to bolster both of their offerings, creating a one-stop shop for companies that need assistance with virtual content such as company meetings and product demos.

 

The two companies shared more about their team-up exclusively with Morning Consult. Read more here: As Demand for Virtual Events Grows, an Industry Leader Is Teaming With a Premium Video Provider to Enhance Offerings

 

Top Stories

  • Anheuser-Busch InBev SA named Benoit Garbe its new chief marketing officer for the United States, while current CMO Marcel Marcondes will shift into an unannounced new role after overseeing U.S. marketing for the world’s largest brewer since 2016. The company also announced Kyle Norrington as its U.S. chief commercial officer, a new role that brands are increasingly adding to better connect their sales and marketing efforts. (Ad Age)
  • Fox Sports will begin selling ads for Super Bowl 57 next week, even though the event doesn’t take place until Feb. 5, 2023, said Seth Winter, the network’s executive vice president of sports sales. NBCUniversal, which will air the 2022 game, has announced it’s already sold 85 percent of its in-game ad inventory for Super Bowl 56, charging a record $6 million per 30-second spot. (Adweek)
  • John Gibson stepped down as chief executive officer of video game company Tripwire Interactive LLC after drawing backlash for tweeting support for the Texas abortion ban. The company, which released a statement saying Gibson’s comments “disregarded the values of our whole team, our partners and much of our broader community,” announced vice president Alan Wilson as interim CEO. (The Washington Post)
  • Veronica Wu, a board member of VF Corp. — one of the world’s biggest apparel companies, which owns brands such as The North Face, Timberland and Supreme — stepped down days after Axios published an email in which she wrote that Black Lives Matter activists “are the true racists trying to stir up things to make this country going [sic] to socialism or even communism potentially.” (Axios)
 

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Events Calendar (All Times Local)

 

What Else You Need to Know

Advertising
 

KFC Isn’t Advertising Chicken Tenders Because of Supply Crunch

Leslie Patton, Bloomberg

Fried-chicken chain KFC would like to advertise its breaded tenders on television but is opting not to because there’s still not enough chicken, especially of the boneless variety, to go around.

 

Facebook Advertisers Struggle To Track Sales After Apple Privacy Changes

Garett Sloane, Ad Age

Social network informs marketers that it will use new models to calculate some ad results.

 

Foursquare and Clear Channel Outdoor Partner to Advance Cross-Platform DOOH Measurement

David Kaplan, Adweek

Their combined tools aim to bring the oldest mass ad format up to speed.

 

Gap Skips Models, Putting Fall Styles on Change-Makers

Richard Collings, Adweek

New campaign features Oscar-winning director Chloé Zhao and space enthusiast Alyssa Carson, among others.

 
Media and Entertainment
 

Microsoft rebrands its news feed as ‘Microsoft Start’

Mary Jo Foley, ZDNet

Microsoft is introducing new “Microsoft Start” branding for its news and content feed across Windows 11, 10, iOS, Android and the Web.

 

AMC attendance surpasses 2019 levels for first time during the pandemic thanks to Marvel’s ‘Shang-Chi’

Sarah Whitten, CNBC

More than 2 million people watched movies at AMC’s U.S.-based cinemas between Sept. 2 and Sept. 5, marking the highest number of admissions for Labor Day weekend in the company’s history.

 

Hulu Raises Price For Both Of Its On-Demand Streaming Tiers; Live Service, Disney Bundle Rates Won’t Change

Dade Hayes, Deadline

Effective October 8, the basic, ad-supported version of Hulu will go from $5.99 a month to $6.99, while the ad-free tier rises a dollar to $12.99.

 

CNN Testing Pricing with Users on CNN.com For Upcoming Streaming Service

Jason Gurwin, The Streamable

The company had been running tests on the price of the service over the last week on CNN.com. They had been testing price points from $1.99 to $9.99 a month. A company spokesperson said that a price point has not yet been determined.

 

YouTuber David Dobrik Signs Deal With Discovery Streaming Service For Travel Series

Abram Brown, Forbes

Social media star David Dobrik is back—now with his own TV show.

 

Yahoo Brand In the Know Launches a New Style Vertical Focused on Shoppable Commerce

Mark Stenberg, Adweek

In the Know, a Yahoo title geared toward Gen Z and millennial audiences, announced the debut of its third section, In the Know Style, a fashion and beauty vertical that will feature original shoppable content.

 

Vox Media Set to Acquire Podcasting Newsletter Hot Pod

Brian Steinberg, Variety

Vox Media is acquiring Hot Pod, the independent news outlet focused on the podcasting industry, as part of a bid to expand offerings from its technology site, The Verge.

 
Social Media and Technology
 

What TikTok’s Growing Threat to YouTube Means

Kaya Yurieff, The Information

A new report from mobile analytics firm App Annie is a reminder of the pressure on Google’s video business, which produced $7 billion in ad revenue during the most recent quarter. 

 

App Annie: 74B Social Apps Have Been Downloaded to Date

Brandy Shaul, Adweek

Mobile analytics company App Annie released its latest report analyzing the growth of social media applications over time.

 

Amazon brings its cashierless tech to two Whole Foods stores

Annie Palmer, CNBC

The company has deployed the “Just Walk Out” technology to a growing number of store formats, including at several Fresh grocery stores and in its Go convenience stores.

 

You Can Now Buy Met Merch on Instagram

Emilia Petrarca, The Cut

This year, in keeping with the theme of American fashion, the museum has invited a handful of American designers to design special pieces that will be sold exclusively on Instagram, which is the sponsor of this year’s Met Gala. 

 

Apple’s iPhone 13 event will take place on September 14th

Jay Peters, The Verge

The company typically announces the year’s new iPhones at the fall event, and this year’s entry is expected to be called the iPhone 13.

 
PR and Marketing
 

Impossible Foods Begins Rollout of Its ‘Chicken’ Nuggets

Deena Shanker, Bloomberg

The plant-based poultry product marks the company’s entry into the increasingly crowded category.

 

See Absolut Vodka’s New Bottle Design

E.J. Schultz, Ad Age

Absolut Vodka is playing up its Swedish heritage as part of its biggest bottle design overhaul since the brand debuted in the U.S. in 1979.

 

On the Texas abortion law, corporate America stays quiet

Emily Stewart, Vox

America’s biggest businesses still aren’t sure what to say about abortion.

 

Where Diversity Still Disappoints

Andrew Ross Sorkin et al., The New York Times

Black directors have held only 1 percent of board seats at private companies backed by top venture capital and private equity firms.

 

Brandy Melville’s partnership with Pacsun is in jeopardy amid allegations of racism and sexual exploitation at the ‘one-size-fits-most’ brand

Kate Taylor, Insider

Pacsun, the cult teen brand’s only US wholesaler, said it was “deeply troubled” by the allegations. A Pacsun spokesperson said it is “looking into the situation to make a determination on next steps.”

 

Apple, Target And Costco Among Big Brand Winners During COVID

Jack Neff, Ad Age

Retail brands performed particularly well during the pandemic—with Target and Costco making big gains in “brand intimacy” in the past year, according to a new study by research firm MBLM. Apple, always a strong brand, got even stronger, holding the place it won last year as No. 1.

 

Businesses grapple with vax mandates and COVID policies

Kate Marino, Axios

A growing number of U.S. companies have mandated COVID-19 vaccinations for employees. But in the absence of a federal mandate there’s a wide variance in what’s happening, with employee demands being put front and center thanks to the Great Resignation.

 

Deutsche Bank Calls End of Honeymoon Phase With Remote Work

Jennifer Surane, Bloomberg

A growing number of workers report feeling isolated from colleagues, Deutsche Bank said in a report to clients. Nearly 40% of workers in the U.S. say they feel exhausted after a full week of virtual meetings. 

 

How Office Culture Changed in the Pandemic—From Workers Who Went Back Ages Ago

Te-Ping Chen, The Wall Street Journal

Some employees have been toiling in cubicles for months while private offices sit empty; shifting rules and surprise doughnuts.

 

Shaquille O’Neal’s Big Chicken Prepares For Big Growth

Heather Lalley, Restaurant Business

The former NBA star’s fast-casual chicken concept is getting into ghost kitchens, franchising and cruise ships, all the while finding the best ways to leverage its famous founder’s image.

 

Meet the typical Kroger shopper, a married suburban Baby Boomer earning over $80,000

Dominick Reuter, Insider

Kroger has more than 2,700 stores in the US and employs approximately 465,000 people. The company’s 2020 sales were $132.5 billion across more than a dozen subsidiary brands.

 

Everything to Know About Naomi Osaka’s New Skin Care Line Kinlò

Conchita Widjojo, WWD

The tennis star launched the brand specifically for people of color.

 

Amazon’s climate goals take root in Brazil

Andrew Freedman, Axios

Up to 47 million acres of Amazonian rainforest have been damaged in fires since 2001, per a “Nature” study out last week, but the company Amazon and the Nature Conservancy hope a new initiative may help alleviate the situation.

 
Morning Consult