Adweek

how the claw became the law

While White Claw wasn’t the first hard seltzer to market, it might as well have been. The White Claw brand’s viral popularity has driven the growth of the entire category. Nielsen reports that White Claw accounted for 63% of hard seltzer’s total growth in a 13-week period prior to the pandemic. While that lead slipped to 43% of category growth this summer as new brands proliferated, overall hard seltzer growth only accelerated amid the pandemic, with White Claw perpetually leading the way. From a branding perspective, “they got a lot of things right,” said Schuemann. To start, the name was “brilliant,” he said. “White” invokes something refreshing and light, while “claw” sends a strong, hard message. “The play of that, it’s so easy to remember,” he said. The packaging, with its…

letting artist’s artwork shine

There’s something about stabbing a stranger for several hours straight that reveals their true colors. Having previously worked in a tattoo shop, I learned early on in my career about people making questionable creative choices. The tattoo parlor was a constant source of life lessons. For example, women have a much higher threshold for pain. You should never get a tattoo of your partner’s name (it’s truly a curse). And most people pick the wrong tattoo artist for the job. While a tattoo shop is seemingly worlds away from advertising, choosing the wrong creative person for the job is something I’ve seen happen again and again. The fit matters. The majority of tattoo hunters would walk in, flip through portfolios of amazing designs and then choose an artist whose work blew their mind.…

tiffany zhong

Adweek: How can brands best work with creators to make content that’s authentic and potentially viral? Zhong: It’s super smart for brands like SeatGeek, G Fuel, Chipotle and even Nike to allow creators the freedom and flexibility to do whatever campaign they want that’s in their voice. They are trusting the creator to make something that resonates with their audience as opposed to giving them a script. That’s the only secret to building a successful influencer campaign these days, because really fans can see right through ads. What would you say to the brands that are still hesitant about letting go of some of the creative control? Give them some guidelines, give them some things they can say and cannot say, but still give them the freedom to experiment and test…

2020 jury

THE JUDGES MANY THANKS TO OUR ESTEEMED PANEL OF JURORS WHO TOOK TIME OUT OF THIER BUSY SCHEDULES TO JUDGE THIS YEAR’S MEDIA PLAN OF THE YEAR ENTRIES. IF YOU’RE INTERESTED IN SERVING AS A JUROR IN 2021, PLEASE CONTACT MIMI PATTERSON AT MIMI.PATTERSON@ADWEEK.COM. Al Hawes SVP, Head of Content, Starcom Kate Bower Managing Director, Global Creative Strategy, Spark Foundry Alison Karp Executive Director, Wavemaker Bill Durrant President, Exverus Media Brittany Moten Account Director, Havas Media Christine Chen Head of Communication Strategy and Partner, GS&P David Gong Head of Marketing, PMG Ian Mundorff Global Head of Media, HP Ipalibo Da-Wariboko Global Strategy Director, Carat JiYoung Kim Chief Digital Officer, Carat Jillian Davis Director of Brand Strategy and Associate Partner, barrettSF Lauren Tetuan EVP, Director of Media, Deutsch LA Lawrence Teherani-Ami Media Director, Wieden+Kennedy Lindsey Boan Head of Media, Madwell Marcy Greenberger SVP, Managing Partner, Integrated Investment, McCann Matt VanDyke Director, U.S. Marketing, Ford Motor Co. Olivia Young Head of Media, Noble People Talia Arnold Head of…

axe

In 2006, a one-minute spot hit American TV sets (YouTube was barely a thing yet) and promptly made history—at least in the world of deodorant. Titled “Billions,” the eyebrow-raising, Clio-winning ad via BBH London showed hordes of young, nubile women dashing out of the jungle. Mad with desire, they stampede toward the beach. After a few seconds, it becomes clear what they are all after: an average-looking, shirtless guy. As the women engulf him, he raises his arms in triumph. And little wonder why, as the sweet, woody fragrance he just sprayed on means he won’t be sleeping alone that night. Even if you’ve never seen the ad, you’ve likely seen some variation of it. Spots like this not only ran for a generation, but they made Axe deodorant spray a leader…