BRAND STRATEGY

Screenshots via @dennys/YouTube, @jcpenney/YouTube, @johnstonmurphy/YouTube

Is that an ad, or is it a TV show?

Recent ad campaigns from several different brands are trying to be a little bit of both. Denny’s and Skittles borrowed the feel of sitcoms, JCPenney riffed on a docu-drama/reality show, and Johnston & Murphy parodied SportsCenter.

As advertisers look to entertain audiences more than interrupt them, some are taking inspiration from more traditional forms of entertainment to do it. For some, the inspiration comes down to the look and feel. For others, it might also include the release schedule and episode structure: Skittles, for example, rolled out a sitcom series, “Ghost Roommate,” in six-second increments on TikTok around Halloween.

For Denny’s, the appeal of creating its sitcom-like ad campaign, “Welcome to Denny’s,” was borne out of the nostalgia associated with the long-standing TV format—and for potential diners to feel at home in the “third place” that a classic diner provides, Meredith Thornton, VP of brand strategy and communications at Denny’s, told Marketing Brew.

The resulting spots, by BarkleyOKRP, feature a horn soundtrack and a laugh track, as well as warm visual tones and a slight gauzy blur that add to the feel of a ’90s sitcom. One spot seems almost like the title sequence to a show where meal deals are the true stars—although there are still various characters featuring in the mock sitcom, including the “booth,” “night owls,” and influencer guest stars the McFarland family, who have 1.8 million followers on Instagram.

“[The campaign has] really stood out and felt ownable and breakthrough for the brand,” Thornton said. The ability to create “this sitcom feeling of characters and seeing yourself there and the entertainment overall,” she added, has been beneficial for the chain.

Continue reading here.—KM

      

Sponsored By Roku Ads Manager

Hmm…for brand-new terrain, this place sure has a lot of good stuff to watch on the tube.

Roku Ads Manager designed this interactive game to walk you through the journey of advertising on connected TV (CTV). Because if you’re gonna do a walkthrough, why not make it galactically enjoyable?

Choose your own adventure to navigate Planet CTV, and see where the journey takes you.

The background: A growing cohort of mobile marketers are turning to CTV to find new customers and drive measurable actions. These brands are drawn to the unique blend of premium inventory and performance that streaming offers.

But how exactly should they spend that budget? Blast off for Planet CTV to find out.

Saved a seat for ya on the rocket.

SPORTS MARKETING

Sharpie

One of the highlights of an NFL player’s rookie season is the day they sign their contract. If a player is lucky, many more signatures will follow over the course of their career.

Sharpie wants to put their pens in those athletes’ hands.

The Newell-owned brand’s Rookie of the Year program, now in its third year, is meant to achieve something many sports marketers strive for: the tying of a brand to a sport in a way that is unlikely to make consumers question the connection. This year, the program is rolling out through a partnership with Arizona Cardinals running back and No. 3 draft pick Jeremiyah Love.

In its first two years, which also featured individual partnerships with top draft picks, the program has driven increases in clicks, reach, sales, and awareness, according to Newell CMO Nick Hammitt.

“When you think about football, you don’t necessarily automatically go to a pen,” Hammitt told Marketing Brew. “This inflection point of engaging with rookies as they’re almost starting all over again and figuring out how they’re going to make their mark in the league seemed like a perfect way to bring Sharpie authentically into the football conversation.”

Read more here.—AM

      

Sponsored By Snapchat

The purchase decision is evolving. Increasingly, people decide to buy something in a DM or a group chat well before they ever see an ad for it. On top of this, the old ad model is showing strain. Feeds are more crowded than ever, and with AI-generated content adding to the pile, posts are abundant but rarely differentiated. Snapchat’s Sid Malhotra shares his thoughts with marketers.

COWORKING

Justine Frostad

Each week, we spotlight Marketing Brew readers in our Coworking series. If you’d like to be featured, introduce yourself here.

Justine Frostad is CMO of Cognitiv, an AI advertising company. She has also worked at Sightly and The Exchange Lab.

What’s your favorite ad campaign? Spotify Wrapped is one of the most effective modern marketing platforms and a personal favorite. It takes our listening habits, which are incredibly personal, and turns them into something joyful, shareable, and culturally contagious. Every year, people don’t just consume it, they look forward to it, talk about it, compare it. What’s brilliant is that it makes data feel like identity. It’s not “here’s what you listened to”; it’s “here’s who you were this year.” That’s something I think about a lot in the context of AI and data. When you can translate signals into something that feels human, reflective, even a little emotional, you’re no longer just informing people, you’re connecting with them.

One thing we can’t guess from your LinkedIn profile: I have a collection of very random hobbies that probably make more sense together than you might think. I play the ukulele (not well, but enthusiastically), I’m on a beach volleyball team every summer, I live for a good canoe ride, and I rarely miss hot yoga on Sundays. I’m also slightly obsessed with making the perfect sandwich; there’s an art to getting the balance just right. They’re all my favorite kind of reset, the kind where you lose track of time, forget your phone exists, and come back a little clearer.

Continue reading here.

      

Sponsored By Trendos

Visible to the naked AI. Consumers are asking AI for recs—like what the best marketing tool out there is. Trendos can help your brand show up in AI search results. They show you how AI search engines mention, rank, and recommend your brand so you can track your visibility + know what you need to fix.

french press

There are a lot of bad marketing tips out there. These aren’t those.

Keep it simple: Branding agency Siegel+Gale ranked B2B brands based on simplicity.

Digitize: Sensor Tower dropped a report on the state of digital advertising, including analysis of AI-themed campaigns and ChatGPT ads.

’Tis the season: Reddit released its holiday insights report for the year.

^{*A message from our sponsor.}

JOINING FORCES

Francis Scialabba

Mergers and acquisitions, company partnerships, and more.

• On signed Real Madrid and French national team star Kylian Mbappé to lead its expansion into soccer boots. The deal also marks the end of Mbappé’s long-term deal with Nike.
• Visa is now the official payment technology partner of the men’s Rugby World Cup in 2027 and the women’s Rugby World Cup in 2029.
• Sol de Janeiro tapped Washington Spirit teammates Trinity Rodman and Tara Rudd as brand ambassadors.
• Athleta was named as the first off-court apparel sponsor of the Golden State Valkyries.
• AT&T extended its deal with the Dallas Cowboys.
• Subway debuted a new campaign starring Will Arnett.

Jobs

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