Pepsi Max among first UK brands to embrace Snapchat Sponsored Lenses with 'Chelfie' Valentine's push

via The Drum

Pepsi Max is of the first UK brands to partner with Snapchat to bring Sponsored Lenses to users.

The drinks giant is turning selfies into ads for its 'Chelfie' Valentine's Day push.

Available for 24 hours on 14 February, the drive will see users give their pictures "a cherry-flavoured" makeover.

A special effect filter will superimpose a fizzing can of Pepsi Max Cherry on to users' images and the interactive decal will then see the drink poured into the Snapchatter's mouth upon movement. The animation will end with selfies being disrupted by a "surprising and unexpected" explosion of the fruit flavoured drink.

Pepsi's senior brand manager, Alex Nicholas said: “Pepsi Max is a digital-first and socially-led brand, continually looking for innovative ways to engage with our millennial audience where they are and create dynamic, sharable content.

"We’re excited to be one of the first brands to authentically engage with our fans on the Snapchat platform," he added.

Snapchat shuttered its Lens store at the start of 2016 to focus on its sponsored filters ad format. The first US brand to make use of the offering was 20th Century Fox which ran a push for The Peanuts Movie on the platform, allowing users to overlay images of Snoopy and Woodstock around their selfies while the show's theme song played in the background.

The UK is the messaging app's second largest market and with 10m snaps reportedly decorated with lenses each day worldwide, it isn't hard to see why marketers want to jump on the Snapchat bandwagon.

KFC was the first company to use the platform's Sponsored Geofilters in UK stores back in December, and just yesterday Viacom announced a multi-year deal with the startup.

Lowdown: Which Super Bowl Ads Might Actually Sell Stuff?

via AdAge

There's often a difference between Super Bowl ads that are liked and ads that sell stuff, at least according to ratings by two syndicated testing firms. But Doritosappeared to perform well on both fronts. The "Doritos Dogs" ad scored tops both on likeability in Ace Metrix consumer testing and in overall creative effectiveness fromAdvertising Benchmark Index, incorporating what ABX says are metrics proved to correlate with sales -- "awareness, messaging, reputation and call-to-action." Ads from Heinz, TurboTax (Intuit) and Snickers also made both lists.

But there were also big differences between the two lists. ABX gave high marks for effectiveness to benefit-laden ads from Advil, Schick, T-Mobile andAvocados from Mexico. Ace Metrix ranked Colgate's "Save Water" ad No. 3. ABX had it at No. 16. Persil and the razor brands -- Schick and Dollar Shave Club -- fared poorly in likeability measures like USA Today's Ad Meter (ranking 44, 50 and 61 respectively). But the spots did well with ABX, ranking seventh, 11th and 13th respectively and above average for TV ads overall in effectiveness.

Here is a look at the top 10 ads as ranked by Ace Metrix and ABX:

ABX Creative Effectiveness Top 10

1	Doritos	Doritos Dogs
2	Advil	Distant Memory
3	Intuit	Never a Sellout
4	Hyundai Automobiles	First Date
5	Snickers	Marilyn
6	Schick Hydro	Robot
7	Doritos	Ultrasound
8	T-Mobile	Drop the Balls
9	Heinz	Wiener Stampede
10	Avocados from Mexico	#AvosInSpace

Source: ABX

ACE Metrix Likeability Top 10

1	Doritos	Doritos Dogs
2	Honda	A New Truck to Love
3	Colgate	Save Water
4	Heinz	Wiener Stampede
5	Audi	The Commander
6	Coca-Cola	Coke Mini
7	PayPal	There's a New Money in Town
8	TurboTax	Never a Sellout
9	LG	Man From The Future
10	Snickers	Marilyn

Source: ACE Metrix

AstraZeneca's Super Bowl ad about opioid-induced constipation was, uhm, stuck near the bottom of a lot of ad-ranking lists, including USA Today's Ad Meter, which gave the "Envy" spot an unenviable ranking of 60 out of 63. But the ad did get people talking on social media the next day -- a victory for an ad whose goal was to raise awareness. There was 183 times more digital content engagement around "Opioid-Induced Constipation" on Monday compared with Sunday, according to Amobee Brand Intelligence.

But among Super Bowl advertisers, Budweiser ranked No. 1 for total digital content engagement on the day after the game, according to Amobee, which measures activity across mobile, video, web and social.

Super Bowl Ad Next Day Association

Ranking of brands with the most Super Bowl Ad related digital content engagement on February 8, 2016.

1	Budweiser
2	Bud Light
3	Hyundai
4	Mtn Dew
5	Taco Bell
6	Audi
7	T-Mobile
8	Heinz
9	Quicken Loans
10	Doritos

Source: Amobee

While Bud ran two spots in the game, the King of Beers owes much of the digital interest to Peyton Manning, who in post-game interviews said he planned to drink some Bud.

Watch Peyton's shout outs here.

Anheuser-Busch said it had nothing to do with the shout-out, as Ad Age reported in the wake of the game. But that hasn't stopped some people from questioning Mr. Manning's motives, referencing his potential links to an A-B InBev distributor.

Still, details around Mr. Manning's distributor ownership interests remain fuzzy. "As far as we can determine, Peyton or a family member has an ownership stake in at least one A-B distributorship to go along with 21 Papa John's franchises he owns," Beer Marketer's Insights reported on Tuesday. Harry Schuhmacher, editor and publisher of Beer Business Daily, reported Tuesday that "Peyton may own a piece of a distributorship in his home state of Louisiana" and that the quarterback "also spoke at an A-B distributor conference a few years ago." But Mr. Schuhmacher also observed that Mr. Manning talked about the brew in a "seemingly genuine way." Mr. Manning "didn't pull out a Budweiser bottle and model it like a QVC host. It honestly sounded like the man wanted to go home and pound some Bud Diesels with friends and family," he reported.

Meanwhile, Colorado craft brewer Left Hand Brewing Co. sought to steal some of Bud's thunder by offering a free pint of beer at its tasting room on Monday and Tuesday in exchange for an empty can or bottle of Budweiser, the Denver Post reported. "We believe that our quarterback in Colorado deserves better and this craft brew is for you," Left Hand spokeswoman Emily Armstrong told the newspaper.

Brewers Association Care Package to Peyton Manning Credit: craftbeer.com

Seperately, the Brewers Association, which publishes craftbeer.com, sent Mr. Manning a care package of craft brews mostly made in Colorado. "Congratulations to The Sheriff on a game well played and a win well deserved," craftbeer.com stated in a post this week. "And while the feat did indeed earn Mr. Manning the right to kick back with his teammates for a beer or two, the seemingly shameless plug of the world's largest beer company made many in craft beer land confused."

For auto brands, one way to gauge Super Bowl success is to measure web traffic on auto research site Edmunds.com. By that score, Buick's spot by Leo Burnett and the Acura ad by Mullen Lowe did pretty well. Edmunds.com recorded a 661% increase in Acura NSX traffic on its website following the commercial, Edmunds reported. And there was a 532% increase for the Buick Cascada convertible. Jeep, whose "Portraits" ad has been lauded creatively, was among the brands that "did not see a cumulative lift," according to Edmunds.

Esurance opted out of a costly Super Bowl spot this year, instead choosing to promote its savings prowess by airing 30-second commercials before and after the game. The spots, which urged consumers to tweet #EsuranceSweepstakes for a possible win of $1 million, paid off. The brand generated more than 173,000 social actions, primarily in tweets, on Feb. 8 according to iSpot.tv.

Persil's Super Bowl ad message was direct: In testing by "a leading consumer publication" its product beat Procter & Gamble Co.'s Tide, and "every single detergent tested."

Watch Persil's ProClean Big Game Commercial.

But the ad didn't name the publication, and a Henkel spokeswoman didn't respond to phone and e-mail requests for comment by deadline. Consumer Reports this summer did give Persil a victory over Tide, the only such test that can be found via Google. But the magazine also has a policy against using its name or content in ads. A spokeswoman for Consumer Reports declined to comment, but pointed to the policy, which says "consumers should enjoy the full context of our information and not hear about our ratings and reports through the language of salesmanship." Last summer's review said the top Persil and Tide products, priced the same, were equally effective on most stains, but Persil outperformed on blood.

Finally, Lowdown leaves you with one last item that has nothing to do with the Super Bowl, because it really is time to move on:

As part of a rebranding and its new "Where You Want to Be" campaign, high-end hotel brand Paradisus Resorts is launching a series of New York City-based activities in the hopes that chilly urbanites will visit its five resorts in Mexico and the Dominican Republic. From Feb. 12 through Feb. 14, a Paradisus-branded purple truck will offer a mobile beach, including the sand, and photo booth to New Yorkers in Times Square and Union Square. The photo booth will shift into a Valentine's Day theme on Feb. 14. Paradisus, which is owned by Meliá Hotels International, plans to soon expand into Costa Rica and Cabo San Lucas.

Coca-Cola Is Teaming Up With Marvel to Run a 60-Second Spot on Super Bowl 50

via AdWeek

Marvel characters get the Coke treatment. Photo: Alfred Maskeroni

Coca-Cola and Marvel are joining forces for a superheroic commercial in Super Bowl 50, the soda brand has confirmed to Adweek.

Adweek received a package Wednesday containing co-branded mini-cans of Coke, featuring illustrations of Iron Man, Black Widow, Hulk, Ant-Man, Captain America and Falcon. A teaser note read, "02.07.16. The Big Game is just the beginning. Follow @CocaCola to watch the story unfold."

The Super Bowl commercial will be a 60-second spot and will air during the second quarter of Sunday's CBS telecast. 

No details about the creative were available.

Pure Leaf Launches Super-Premium “House Collection”

via bevnet

PURCHASE, N.Y., Feb. 1, 2016 /PRNewswire/ — Pure Leaf® Iced Tea, a product of The Pepsi Lipton Tea Partnership, announced today the launch of Pure Leaf Tea House Collection, a super-premium line of the finest organic tea leaves brewed with fruits and herbs, for exciting aromas and layered flavors for pure refreshment. In addition to Pure Leaf Tea House Collection, the brand is building on the popularity of its Unsweetened Iced Tea by launching two new flavors – Unsweetened Black Tea with Lemon, and Unsweetened Green Tea – giving consumers more zero-calorie options that don’t sacrifice on great taste.

“Our robust tea expertise allows us to come to market with innovations that truly meet consumer demand,” said Kathy Kennedy, Director of Marketing, Pure Leaf. Whether it is expanding flavors in our already popular unsweetened iced tea line, or delighting consumers with expertly crafted organic blends for Tea HouseCollection, our passion for realness will continue to extend to everything we do.”

PURE LEAF TEA HOUSE COLLECTION BRINGS A TEA HOUSE EXPERIENCE ANYTIME WITH THE TWIST OF A CAP

An expertly crafted blend pairing nuanced notes of the world’s best organic loose tea leaves with a hint of their perfect fruit or herb companion, Pure Leaf Tea House Collection is available in three unique flavors: Organic Black Tea with a hint of Sicilian Lemon & Honeysuckle, Organic Black Tea with a hint of Wild Blackberry & Sage, and Organic Green Tea with a hint of Fuji Apple & Ginger.

USDA organic and Rainforest Alliance Certified, Pure Leaf Tea House Collection is available in 14oz, signature glass bottles (90 calories a bottle made with organic cane sugar) in select markets nationwide, including Boston, New York, Philadelphia,Chicago,Minneapolis, Denver, Las Vegas, Portland, Seattle, San Francisco, Los Angeles and San Diego.

PURE LEAF TEA HOUSE COLLECTION AT MODERNISM WEEK

Pure Leaf will celebrate the launch of Pure Leaf Tea House Collection at Modernism Week, an annual 11-day event that lauds midcentury modern design, architecture, art, fashion and culture. Positioned among some of the most artfully crafted midcentury architecture in the world, Pure Leaf Tea House Collection will be available to the more than 60,000 attendees. Additionally, the brand will unveil a tea-forward collaboration with Modernism Week Show House designer Christopher Kennedy on the grounds of the Christopher Kennedy Compound. The collaboration takes the form of a modern tea house set against the backdrop of the San Jacinto Mountains, providing a space for heightening senses and elevating enjoyment—everything the Pure Leaf Tea House Collection is all about.

Modernism Week takes place in the greater Palm Springs area of California onFebruary 11-21.

PURE LEAF REAL-BREWED UNSWEETENED ICED TEA

As consumers look for taste preferences that fit their lifestyle, Pure Leaf has expanded the current unsweetened iced tea offering to include additional flavors: Unsweetened Black Tea with Lemon, and Unsweetened Green Tea. These teas are 0 calories per bottle, and provide flavor without compromise on tea taste or calories.

To learn more about Pure Leaf Tea House Collection and the Pure Leaf Real-Brewed Unsweetened line, visit www.pureleaf.com.