Why Bud and Jay Z's 'Made in America' is Going to California

Via AdAge

Budweiser's "Made in America" music festival is going bi-coastal, adding Los Angeles as a venue alongside Philadelphia.

The addition of a West Coast city to the annual fest curated by Jay Z marks a significant expansion for the event, which will once again be held for two days on Labor Day weekend. Musical acts -- which in the past have included A-listers such as Beyonce -- have not been announced yet.

But the brewer is once again cranking up the hype surrounding the event, which typically gets significant ad and marketing support. Jay Z on Wednesday announced this year's plans at a press conference at Los Angeles City Hall alongside L.A. Mayor Eric Garcetti and Budweiser U.S. brand VP Brian Perkins.

The choice of L.A. as a second venue is revealing from a business perspective. The brewer faces deep challenges in the all-important California market, including competition from Mexican imports such as Corona and Modelo Especial, as well as a bevy of California-based craft beers.

The increased investment in the festival is also notable because it signals that A-B InBev plans to continue putting a big push on music-based marketing under its new lead marketing executive for the U.S, Jorn Socquet. Mr. Socquet earlier this year took over as U.S. marketing VP from the departing Paul Chibe, who oversaw Made in America's 2012 launch.

The lead marketing agency for Made in America is Translation with production handled by Live Nation. Proceeds benefit the United Way. The end-game for A-B InBev is marketing, and drawing a younger and more multicultural crowd to Budweiser.

The brand and brewer could use a boost in California. A-B controlled some 50% of the state's beer market 20 years ago, but has steadily lost share in recent years, falling another another 1 share point last year to 37.5%, according to Beer Marketer's Insights. That's far less than the brewer's 45.6% national share. By contrast, Constellation Brands -- which markets Corona and Modelo in the U.S. -- gained a full share point in the state and now has 13.8% share, according to Beer Marketer's.

A-B InBev is bringing the festival "right into one of the largest metropolitan areas where it's been vulnerable," said Benj Steinman, president of Beer Marketer's, who noted that California is home to some 400 craft brewers. "This is obviously an attempt to shore that up with a vehicle that A-B would say has a proven track record."

Much of California's beer market is driven by Hispanics, giving Constellation a natural edge with its Mexican imports. It's no surprise, then, that A-B InBev is planning to give the L.A. event a Hispanic feel. Mr. Perkins in an interview pointed to L.A.'s significant Hispanic population, saying, "we need to make this festival relevant to Hispanic culture."

The brewer is undecided about promoting Made in America with national TV ads, as it has done in the past with spots starring Jay Z.

But as always, the event will be promoted heavily in social media and with related events, Mr. Perkins said. The brewer will host "Made In America" parties in 30 cities in the weeks leading up to the event.

Last year, Beyonce co-headlined the Philadelphia show along with Nine Inch Nails. Made in America celebrates a "mash-up" of styles, ranging from hip-hop to rock to electronic dance music, Mr. Perkins said. Today, "people don't define themselves by music style. And that's an insight that I don't think other festivals have capitalized on," he said.

But the brewer might also have to deal with logistical issues in L.A., where it could draw as many as 50,000 people to the heart of downtown, according to the Los Angeles Times. The newspaper on Tuesday reported that L.A. Councilman Jose Huizar has warned that "street closures and beer sales could create a 'nightmare' for downtown residents."

Mr. Perkins pointed to Philadelphia, where he said officials are "delighted" with the event, which he said helps the local economy.

Millennials Trust User-Generated Content 50% More Than Other Media

WHAT'S THIS?

Via Mashable



It seems as if millennials have avoided traditional media ever since they learned how to read.
The results of new research by marketing startup Crowdtap and the global research company Ipsos shed new light on how the connected generation gets its news. When it comes to trust, it turns out, millennials almost always choose their peers over professionals.

User-generated content (UGC) is media created by your peers. It includes status updates, blog posts and restaurant reviews — any content from non-professionals without any real motivation besides adding an opinion to the sea of already existing opinions. In a more logical world, it isn't the type of content we'd trust over a professional's review.

Ipsos' study, however, reveals that millennials trust UGC just as much as professional reviews. UGC is also 20% more influential when it comes to purchasing and 35% more memorable than other types of media. You can chalk that up to the fact that millennials spend five hours per day with UGC.
Click here to view an infographic that gives the visual breakdown of how much time millennials are spending with UGC, where they're getting it and how it's affecting the media landscape.

Latest Horror-Movie Ad Prank, With a Screaming Devil Baby, Is Completely Messed Up

via adweek.com

Here's one baby that no one's expecting. "Devil Baby Attack," a rather mean-spirited if grimly hilarious marketing stunt for the upcoming horror film Devil's Due, shows what happens when well-meaning New Yorkers try to check on an unattended baby carriage.

Here's what happens: They get screamed at by a horrific demon infant. And sometimes chased around by the horrific demon infant's remote-controlled stroller.

Sure, the prank—by Thinkmodo, which also did last year's super-viral Carrie coffee-shop spot—sparks some fun jump-screams from passersby. But watching the results, it's hard not to think of last year's spot-on parody by Canadian agency John St. about the cruel lengths to which advertisers now seem willing to go.

If we must be subjected to more prankvertising stunts, it would be nice to see ones that punish people for making poor moral choices rather than watch normal pedestrians get tormented because they tried to check on a screaming baby left alone in the snow.

Coke Zero Spot for Selection Sunday

Gatorade Looks Back at Its Impressive History Once Again in New Ad

If Gatorade's latest commercial from TBWA\Chiat\Day seems vaguely familiar, that's because it treads some of the same ground as Element 79's mid-'00s work for the brand, recounting the drink's 1965 creation in a lab at the University of Florida. From there, the TBWA spot mixes stock footage and new clips of Peyton Manning, Michael Jordan, Dwyane Wade and others as it assesses the brand's place in the history of modern sports. Thisheady concept works best in a pop-culture context. Gatorade is a beloved and ubiquitous game-day fixture, itself iconic, sloshing around in small plastic cups and giant buckets, ever ready to drench the winners in sparkling showers of limey-electrolyte glory. Sure, Gatorade might help gifted athletes—and by extension, you and me—win on the playing field. But more important, the brand is synonymous with triumph and superior achievement in overall. That status gives Gatorade a shared meaning that transcends its sporty origins and helps ads like these appeal to anyone hoping to catch lightning in a bottle.

Dr Pepper credited in Billboard online profile of C2C

Excerpt from billboard.com

...C2C

Thanks in part to Dr Pepper, a quirky dance tune is rising up the Alternative airplay chart. C2C's "Down the Road," as featured in a recent TV spot for the soda, debuts at No. 35 on the list this week (after reaching a No. 28 peak on Dance/Electronic Songs last week). The track, released Stateside on Casablanca, is the French quartet's first U.S. Billboard chart hit. It rose to No. 1 on the France Digital Songs survey last year.

The profile also included the Jen Mayfield /1 spot in its profile of C2C.

Has Apple lost its cool?

It's a question that's been asked since Apple rose from the ashes in 2001, a time during which the company has become nothing less than the most valuable in the world. Nevertheless, journalists, analysts and just about everyone else have been champing at the bit to pinpoint the exact moment when the company will lose its imagined Svengali-like grip on the minds of American consumers and Appleapocalypse is upon us.

Venus and Serena Williams in ad for the iPhone 5.

The latest occasion was Apple's report on the last quarter of 2012, a record quarter that was nonetheless panned by investors sniffing a post-Steve Jobs slowdown and the mass realization that its iPhone finally has a worthy rival in the Samsung Galaxy.

In an interview, technology analyst Rob Enderle stated an entirely conceivable negative outlook for Apple. As Apple combats a saturated U.S. market, Mr. Enderle expects a "continual slide, much like when Jobs left, when it went into a slow then more rapid decline over 10 years."
And he wasn't the only Apple bear. Ricocheting around the web last week was a Wall Street Journal article headlined: "Has Apple Lost Its Cool to Samsung?" CNBC asked "Is Samsung Cooler Than Apple?"

For a marketing world that has been hanging on every Apple move for decades, these are huge questions that seem to herald some sort of new brand order.

They also might be the wrong ones entirely. After all, it's been a long time since Apple has had to worry about issues of cool -- it's a ubiquitous cultural force with little of the underdog feel it had when it was the hip alternative to IBM or Microsoft.

Brand-wise, Apple is these days too often understood as the rebel brand that defined itself against the grim reality of Microsoft products. When it came to music and especially mobile, things changed. Apple didn't position itself against then-dominant BlackBerry, but rather the nonexistence of a beautifully designed, wonderfully functional small computer that's open to a constellation of brilliant software developers and happens to make phone calls. Now Samsung, while hilariously criticizing Apple's stuck-up rep, has rebelled against a reality where the only option for this miraculous sort of device is made by Apple.

Unlike, say, the market for jeans or sneakers or even cars, the world of smartphones seems almost post-cool. Absent a BlackBerry comeback or a Microsoft surge, there are two options right now if you want to carry a wholly modern phone. What we're talking about in the Apple-Samsung showdown is two multinational companies with gigantic marketing budgets effectively waging a market-share battle. Together they own 70% of the U.S. smartphone market.

In this sort of Coke-Pepsi contest, traditional notions of cool go out the window.

Cool, in a marketing context, has historically meant something like a big corporation borrowing -- or preying on -- some sort of underground culture to enhance its appeal. The classic example is the late 1990s club-kid revitalization of Hush Puppies as chronicled by Malcolm Gladwell in "The Tipping Point." But Apple and Samsung aren't Hush Puppies; they're the big dogs.

Samsung ad pokes fun at rabid Apple fans lined up outside a store. 

 

Exclusivity, a big part of cool in the Gladwellian sense, is something Apple has been parting with. Mr. Enderle observes that following Mr. Jobs' death, Tim Cook "hasn't followed a number of rules that Jobs created to preserve the brand. Part of what makes it cool is exclusivity," he said. "You don't buy cool products at Walmart. High-volume products aren't cool because they're not exclusive. They're not the ones [consumers] lust after. At the very least, Apple's going to be less cool."
This is a common way of thinking about marketing cool, and for certain products, especially luxury goods, it makes all the sense in the world. For phones, not so much. If it did, Samsung would already be uncool and all of us who struggle for coolness would be carrying BlackBerry Torches or Windows phones. Take one of those into your next agency meeting and imagine just how cool you'll look in your co-workers' eyes.

What will true ubiquity mean for Apple? Truly global availability would necessarily be a drag on Apple's profit margins since it would need to appeal to some less-than-affluent consumers in Asia. But it's hard to imagine U.S. consumers getting turned off to the iPhone because there's a cheaper version of it available to consumers here or abroad. If they were that fickle, then Samsung, with its mix of mobile phones that appeal to all rungs on the economic ladder, wouldn't have a chance among the uber-cool consumers.

In the long run, when retention is key, then continuous hardware and software innovation and maintenance of the ecosystem is crucial. As the sides firm up, it may be loyalty that's the most important factor. Late last year, Strategy Analytics found that iPhone loyalty dropped for the first time since the launch of the phone. Eighty-eight percent of owners said they would definitely or probably buy another Apple phone, down from 93% the year before. Most companies would sell their soul for these numbers, but for Apple the drop is worth noting.

Ultimately, missteps like the company's attempt to force its own inferior maps product down its users' throats last year might end up being more important than abstract notions of cool.
Cool?

Banksy's Take

Banksy is a world renowned street artist, whose political and social commentary has led to his art being banned and praised all over the world.

Pepsi marks 25th Anniversary of Michael Jackson's 'Bad'

Name of Company/Competitor: Pepsi

Name of Campaign/Spot: Bad25

Date Launched: 9/18/12

Description: Pepsi marks 25th anniversary of Michael Jackson's 'Bad' with an Afrojack remix and smooth moves by the late King of Pop.

Media Details: TV

 

New Coke Zero TV Spot - Unlock the Coke Zero in You

Name of Company/Competitor: Coke Zero

Name of Campaign/Spot: Unlock the 007 in You

Date Launched: 9/12/12

Description: The hero of our new Coke Zero campaign has a mission, to get the girl of his dreams against all odds, fired on by Coke Zero and one of the most emblematic of the James Bond icons, 'The James Bond Theme' music. When he drinks Coke Zero, he unlocks the 007 in himself and immediately hums the 'James Bond Theme'. It inspires him to push the boundaries and live with the confidence and drive like 007, demonstrating the belief that there is a little Bond in all of us. This new commercial showcases the exciting partnership between Coca-Cola Zero and SKYFALL.

Media Details: TV

Coca-Cola woos James Bond Fans with Coke Zero "Skyfall" tie-in

Forget martinis and even Heineken if you want to Be Bond. Coca-Cola would like you to think, and drink, Coke Zero to get your 007 on.

When the twenty-third James Bond film, Skyfall, hits screens worldwide on October 26, Bond and brand watchers will paying close attention. The upcoming movie got an unprecedented plug from the monarch atop Her Majesty's Secret Service during the opening ceremonies for the London 2012 Olympics. The film also created a bit of stir to fans of the series because beer giant Heineken struck a deal to get some product-placement within the film, even though Bond has long been known as a fan of mixed drinks, particularly the martini.

You might say fans were shaken, not stirred, by the news — and now, thanks to the marketers at Coke, they have a non-alcoholic way to imbibe Bond.



They can channel him by just sipping a little Coke Zero. At least that’s what’s suggested in a new ad for the cola that that contains 0.75 calories per liter. The come-on for the new Coke Zero TV commercial: "Unlock the 007 in you." The spot features a regular Joe drinking his Coke Zero at a bar and noticing a beautiful woman who's clearly eager to shirk off the baddies at her table.

Summoning his courage by humming the iconic Bond music theme, our hero steps to the table, which sets off a wild chase scene, featuring a hulking thug, a motorbike ride down some steep steps, a massive transportation collision, and a long leap from a bridge by the ersatz Bond while he holds hands with his new flame. (She’s likely a double agent, of course, but we’ll let him enjoy his fun for now.) He no doubt splashed on some 007 cologne, too.

Heineken, by the way, has been involved with the last five Bond films but this is the first time that the actor playing the secret agent, Daniel Craig, will be directly involved. "Brand, James Brand." And Coke Zero was also on-board with 2008's Quantum of Solace Craig-as-Bond outing.

That tie-in marked the first global promotional partnership for Coke Zero since its successful launch in 2005. The Coca-Cola Company rolled out a fully integrated marketing campaign across 40 markets, centered around a Coca-Cola Zero commercial that began with a nod to the familiar gun barrel sequence that traditionally opens every James Bond film — and also incorporated a chase, a girl and Bond's theme music:



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Super Bowl ad slots already 90% sold out

Even with the National Football League's regular Sunday schedule just kicking off this weekend, there's another high-stakes football event already down to the two-minute warning: Super Bowl ad sales.

CBS will announce Friday that its Super Bowl ad slots are more than 90% sold out. The announcement comes five months before the game's broadcast on Feb. 3, 2013. The 30-second slots are going for a record $3.7 million to $3.8 million vs. an average $3.5 million during the 2012 broadcast on NBC. If CBS sells 60 slots, revenue could exceed $225 million.

Never mind that the economy is still in the doldrums and unemployment hovers at 8.3% nationally. When it comes to Super Bowl ad sales, there's no slowdown.

"We have a handful of units left," says John Bogusz, executive vice president of sports sales at CBS. "We're pacing well ahead of last time we had the game." (That was 2010, when it was 80% sold out at this point.)

Among the biggest repeat advertisers: Anheuser-Busch, PepsiCo, Frito-Lay and Hyundai.
In a tough economy, why are Super Bowl ads hot? "Put quite simply, it works," says David Campanelli, director of national TV at Horizon Media.

A "significant number" of automakers will be in the game, Bogusz says. But one of the biggest, GM, said months ago that it would not return. Some automakers that were not in the 2012 game will be in this go-round, Bogusz says. He declined to name them. There also will be new advertisers in the beverage and technology categories, he says.

Other recent Super Bowl advertiser news:

•Kia's back. The South Korean carmaker will be in the Super Bowl for the fourth consecutive year. "The game has proven to be a powerful tool in our efforts to raise awareness and perception for the Kia brand," says Michael Sprague, executive vice president of marketing.

•Pepsi's got halftime. It will sponsor the halftime show.

•Coke's in. It will be in the game "with a new approach," says spokeswoman Lauren Thompson. Sorry, polar bear fans: no bears.

•Cars.com returns. The online car seller will be back in the game with one 30-second spot. "There is no better platform," says Linda Bartman, vice president of marketing.

•Go Daddy tones down. The Web domain name seller, known for its racy spots, has said it will tone down the content a bit to focus on its products.

American Idol judge drama! Coke and Pepsi rumored to be at war over Nicki Minaj

As the next phase of "American Idol" auditions draws near -- specifically, the part we see on television where pop star hopefuls perform for a panel of celebrity judges -- some behind-the-scenes drama is brewing among the top brass at the FOX show. You could even say it's fizzing over.

According to a source with close ties to the show, longtime rivals Coke and Pepsi are at war again, but not about market share. The fight is over hit-maker Nicki Minaj. The rapper and singer, whose colorful, cartoon-like style has made her among the most successful new acts of the past three years, is at the top of the list for the open seat on Season 12 of "Idol." But as the new face of Pepsi, an endorsement deal that includes commercials along with touring and album promotion, "Idol" sponsor Coke is none too thrilled at the prospect. The leading soda company has been an "Idol" partner since Season 1, at a cost of $26 million per year, according to reports. The show ran into a similar problem when longtime sponsor Ford got wind of judge Jennifer Lopez's commercial deal with Fiat.

If FOX and FremantleMedia execs have their way, this year's panel would consist of Minaj, previously announced judge Mariah Carey, a country star (the leading candidate is Keith Urban, says an insider) and a Latin artist (Enrique Iglesias is believed to be the No. 1 choice). In March, Minaj showed genuine empathy toward those who compete on "Idol," telling The Hollywood Reporter special correspondent and "Idol" alumna Didi Benami, "It's very difficult to be picked apart. That rejection thing is heavy."

With the show's many production partners, "Idol" has been prone to insider squabbling and indecision. A source tells The Hollywood Reporter the latest judge shuffle is no different, only this time, it's 19 Entertainment's Marc Graboff, former West Coast head of NBC and now president of CORE Media (launched in May as a newly branded version of the former CKx), who's being shut out. Mike Darnell and Cecile Frot-Coutaz "are not consulting Graboff," an insider says of the FOX alternative programming chief and CEO of FremantleMedia.

Curiously, the big unknown is the show's longest-sitting judge, Randy Jackson. As Carey's co-manager and longtime collaborator, he's not going anywhere, but his role could be diminished, as others have reported. In fact, The Hollywood Reporter has learned that he might step into a mentor role instead of Jimmy Iovine. But mainly, he'll be around to serve as a sort of "comfort blanket" for Carey. A source close to production says reports of an Iovine exit are "not accurate."

Reps for Jackson and Iovine have not responded to THR's request for comment. FOX and FremantleMedia declined comment.

Source

Pepsi, NFL, team up for hometown team anthems

"Only Texas has it all," Kelly Clarkson bellows in her punchy new tune. "You know we're coming when you see the star."

She's proudly referring to the royal blue logo of the Dallas Cowboys, her fixation since childhood.

"When you're born in Fort Worth, you come out of the womb loving the Cowboys," she says. "In Texas, people love football more than anything. Once they find out about this, I'll be golden."

The 2002 American Idol winner is one of four platinum pop stars drafted by Pepsi and the National Football League to craft anthems for their hometown teams. The Pepsi NFL Anthems campaign launches today with the release of Clarkson's Get Up (A Cowboys Anthem), a free download at PepsiAnthems.com.

Coming up are Ice Cube's not-yet-titled ode to the Oakland Raiders and Kid Rock's In Detroit for the Detroit Lions. Starting today, Travie McCoy's All In, a New York Giants anthem, will be offered exclusively through download redemption codes on specially marked 24-pack Pepsi products at Wal-Mart. After Sept. 3, it's a free download without the code. The songs will be available on the site until Feb. 28.

The program also touts a remix of Wiz Khalifa's Black and Yellow, the 2010 hit that boosted Pittsburgh teams and spawned remakes.

The anthems quest "was born from this insight that sports and music are intersecting in more ways than ever," says Todd Kaplan, Pepsi Sports Marketing director. "We wanted to partner with top artists, and a critical piece in the process was authenticity. We chose artists with a true passion for their favorite NFL teams and their hometowns.

"Few can match the pep of Clarkson, who wrote Get Up hours after the Pepsi/NFL proposal.

"I'm stoked," she says. "It's a really cool thing, and I've never done anything like this in my career. What a cool way to reach another audience. I can't wait to hear it in the stadium."

Clarkson catches the Cowboys on TV, in bars and live when possible. If she misses a game, she relies on detailed accounts from older brother Jason, "who's way more hardcore."

The team is simply iconic, she says. "People overseas know the Dallas Cowboys. They don't know the Denver Broncos or the Philadelphia Eagles. The Dallas cheerleaders are more famous than some of the NFL teams. I know I sound biased."

She's determined to sing Get Up at Cowboys Stadium this season: "That'll be awesome. The 10-year-old in me is flipping out."

Source

Coke and Will.I.Am collaborate to Create Ekocycle

Coca-Cola has teamed with rapper-entertainer Will. I. Am. to create Ekocycle- a new e-commerce site devoted to offering sustainable products created from recycled material. The site differentiates itself among other green-retailers by selling high-end goods, with style that most sustainable products lack. Will I. Am. spoke to the Associated Press expressing his concern that recycled goods in the market carry a reputation for being more functional than fashionable.  He claims that when thinking about “[recycled] products now, none of them are cool” (Hollywood Reporter). The new partners hope to expel this stigma by creating Ekocycle, a store that sells goods that are not only green, but also “bring some art and fashion sensibility into this technology” (HR).   Shoppers can browse current merchandise, including EkoCycle Beats by Dre headphones, and while also having the option to suggest products they hope to see among future offerings.

Coca-Cola is invested in increasing the low rates of national recycling, as today only “30 percent of people recycle in the U.S.” Coke’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Bea Perez believes that educating the public and changing sustainability into an easy and accessible process will help to raise this number. Coke also sees Will as having the potential to inspire a “youth movement” and ease shoppers into spending the extra few dollars- associated with recycled goods (MNN). The beverage brand is furthering its devotion to the cause by donating at least $1 million from its licensing products to other organizations committed to recycling and social change.

Coke has integrated its bottle into the first TV spot for Ekocycle . The commercial showcases how a little creativity can transform a bottle- and other recyclable goods- into innovative, artistic consumer styles. Coke Ekocycle provides users with the opportunity to “wear their consciousness” and make purchases that have an impact beyond just superior style (HR).

Blog post written by Deutsch Intern: Olivia Lassoff

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Hugo Chavez Tells Venezuelans to Drink Juice, Not Coca-Cola

President Hugo Chávez has urged Venezuelans to drink fruit juice produced by a state-run company rather than Coca-Cola or Pepsi.

He says people should buy Uvita, a grape juice made by Corpozulia as a means of increasing the consumption of Venezuelan-made products instead of buying sugary sodas made by foreign companies.

Chávez often dispenses advice to supporters during his marathon televised speeches, calling on them to eat healthy foods, exercise and avoid drugs and alcohol.

During Sunday's speech, he said Venezuela was trying to boost consumption of domestic goods as a means of reducing imports. Chávez is also promoting a Venezuelan wine. The South American nation imports most of the food and drinks Venezuelans consume.

The president also vowed not to stop using the country's airwaves for his addresses, despite complaints from his challenger that it gives him an unfair advantage during the election campaign.

Opposition candidate Henrique Capriles has demanded that election officials prevent Chávez from taking political advantage of the special broadcasts, which all networks are required by law to air, before Venezuela's election on 7 October.

Directors of the National Electoral Council have approved campaign regulations that prohibit TV and radio messages that favour a presidential candidate to run longer than three minutes. But it is unclear whether the president's frequent and lengthy special broadcasts, known as "cadenas", will be affected.

"The cadenas are part of the national government's information strategy," said Chávez, speaking during one of the special broadcasts. "The bourgeoisie wants me to give up something that's the faculty of the president of the republic. I'm not going to do it."

Chávez, a former paratroop commander, argued that most of Venezuela's privately owned TV channels, radio stations and newspapers are biased in favour of Capriles and he accused the independent media of ignoring his government's achievements. "The major part of the radios, television channels and newspapers are in the hands of the bourgeoisie," said Chávez, who is seeking re-election to a fresh six-year term.

When Chávez took office in 1999, he referred to four major TV channels – RCTV, Venevision, Globovision and Televen – as the "four horsemen of the apocalypse". He accused the channels supporting a short-lived 2002 coup by broadcasting cartoons and films instead of the protests that aided his return to power.

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Mountain Dew - Green Mountain Project

Name of Company/Competitor: Mountain Dew
Name of Campaign/Spot:  Green Mountain Project

Date Launched: 2/10/12
Description: Let's face it, we all consume a lot of stuff, but there are ways we can reduce our impact -- recycling is one of them. The Green Mountain Project, brought to you by Burton Snowboards and Mountain Dew, reclaims plastic soda bottles to create materials that reduce our collective impact. Our new generation fabric is made by transforming recycled bottles into pellets that are spun into the yarns that are woven into fabric to make the Green Mountain Project outwear collection. Learn more about the project from Danny Davis and his fellow Frends Crew member Jack Mitrani in the video below and do your part to close the loop -- Drink it. Recycle it. Wear it.

Media Details: Online

Mountain Dew Launches First-Ever Global Campaign with "The Dark Knight Rises"

Mountain Dew® today announced that its partnership with Warner Bros.' and Legendary Pictures' summer blockbuster "The Dark Knight Rises," which opens in theaters on July 20, is extending beyond the United States with activations to engage DEW and Dark Knight fans in nearly 20 countries across the Americas, Europe, Asia and the Middle East this summer as part of Mountain Dew's first-ever global campaign.

"DEW fans in the U.S. and around the world have incredible passion for the Dark Knight franchise. With DEW's first-ever global campaign we are giving fans the exclusive opportunity to experience Gotham City like never before," said Brad Jakeman, president, Global Beverages Group, PepsiCo. "Mountain Dew is a tremendously successful brand, and we are excited about continuing to find unique and authentic ways to connect with DEW fans and fuel the growth of the brand around the world."

Promotions in all participating markets will invite eager fans to "Go Inside Gotham City." Program activations will vary by market, enabling DEW fans to experience "The Dark Knight Rises" campaign in a variety of ways, including for example:

• A new limited-time-only flavor, Mtn Dew Dark Berry, inspired by "The Dark Knight Rises"
• More than 800 million bottles and cans featuring on-pack campaign graphics
• In-store point-of-purchase retail displays in retailers
• Robust TV, cinema, radio and digital advertising will drive mass campaign awareness
• Digital access to exclusive, never before seen Dark Knight movie content
• Consumer engagement programs offering fans opportunities to collect gear and win prizes.

With a one-of-a-kind citrus taste, Mountain Dew is PepsiCo's second-largest beverage brand and generates more than $5 billion in annual retail sales. It is the No. 1 flavored carbonated soft drink in the United States, and the fourth largest flavored carbonated soft drink worldwide.

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Pepsi Brings Back Michael Jackson Promotion

PepsiCo Inc. is going on a reunion tour with The King of Pop.

The Purchase, N.Y.-based company on Thursday announced its deal with the estate of Michael Jackson to use the late pop star's image for its new global marketing push. The nature of the promotion will vary by country, but will include special edition cans bearing Jackson's image, a TV ad in some markets and chances to download remixes of some of Jackson's most famous songs.
Pepsi, which first partnered with Jackson in 1983, did not disclose the terms of its deal with the singer's estate.

The promotion is part of a global marketing blitz planned for the year ahead by Pepsi, which is looking to revive its brand and win back market share from The Coca-Cola Co. Next week, Pepsi is also launching a TV ad featuring singer Nicki Minaj and announcing details of its partnership with Twitter to stream concerts online.

The broader "Live For Now" campaign is intended to amplify the company's longstanding ties with pop culture, said Brad Jakeman, who oversees the creative strategy for Pepsi's carbonated drinks around the world.

Pepsi has a lot riding on its new push. Although the company has a diverse portfolio of brands including Frito-Lay, Quaker Oats and Tropicana, it's often judged by the performance of its namesake cola. And in 2010, Pepsi was knocked out of the No. 2 spot among sodas in the U.S. by Diet Coke, with Coke remaining in the No. 1 position, according to the industry tracker Beverage Digest.

Last month, Pepsi also reported that volume in its key Americas beverages unit slipped by 1 percent in the first three months of the year.

The Jackson promotion is one aspect of Pepsi's strategy to reverse that slide. Consumers in the U.S. and China will be the first to get a taste of the campaign in coming weeks, which is timed to coincide with the 25th anniversary of "Bad," the singer's multiplatinum album. The campaign will spread to about two dozen countries by fall.

In the U.S., the company is rolling out collectible 16-ounce blue cans that bear an image of Jackson striking one of his iconic poses. Consumers will be able to scan codes on the cans with their phones to download remixed tracks from "Bad."

In the Chinese market, consumers will also see a TV ad featuring Jackson's music. Contests will also let consumers win tickets to a Michael Jackson-inspired show by Cirque du Soleil and leather jackets inspired by the singer's style. The global campaign builds on Pepsi's deal with the singer's estate last year to use his image in a commercial that premiered during the "The X Factor" TV show last year.
Although Pepsi is banking on the nostalgia Jackson can evoke, the partnership also resurrects painful memories.

In 1984, Jackson's hair famously caught fire while filming a commercial for Pepsi at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles. The blaze happened after a spark from a pyrotechnics display landed on the singer's head. Jackson suffered severe burns and many trace his addiction to painkillers to the incident. Pepsi gave Jackson $1.5 million as a result.

Other music partnerships have led to controversy for Pepsi as well. In 2002, conservative commentator Bill O'Reilly ran a segment criticizing Pepsi for an ad featuring the rapper Ludacris. The company pulled the ad the next day, but ran into trouble a few months later when it ran ads featuring Ozzy Osbourne, who is known for peppering his speech with swear words. Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons urged a boycott and the issue was resolved after Pepsi agreed to donate $3 million to charity.

The partnership with Nicki Minaj hasn't yet raised many eyebrows, even though her lyrics also contain profanity and sexual content. Jakeman noted that Minaj's song "Moment for Life" was selected for the ad because of specific lyrics that perfectly captured the Pepsi ethos of living in the moment.

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Chicago Bears strike deal with Dr Pepper!

(Crain's) — The Chicago Bears have signed an exclusive sponsorship deal with Dr Pepper Snapple Group, ending a longtime relationship with Coca-Cola Co. at Soldier Field.

The seven-year deal, which sources say is worth $3 million annually, will make RC Cola, 7UP and Dr Pepper among the primary brands served at Bears games and give the Plano, Texas-based distributor lone beverage branding rights with the team.

As a part of the agreement, which will make Dr Pepper one of the team's nine top-tier "Hall of Fame" corporate sponsors, the Bears plan to open a new "Dr Pepper Patio" this season in the south stands of Soldier Field. The new area will include live entertainment, new food and beverage options and a lounge area among other amenities.

"We were very attracted to (Dr Pepper's) marketing acumen," said Chris Hibbs, the Bears' vice president of sales and marketing.

Mr. Hibbs said the team had no intention of leaving Coca-Cola after its most recent contract with the beverage giant ended in February, but Dr Pepper's strong demographic impact in Chicago made it a good fit.

"They really wanted this partnership, and they're going to activate around it. They're going to integrate the Bears with everything they do," said Mr. Hibbs. "You don't see every sports marketer doing it that way."

The deal, which will be announced on Tuesday, will also extend beyond Soldier Field. The soda company also will own sponsorship of the Bears' training camp program in Bourbonnais, where the brand "aligned well demographically" with those who attend each year, Mr. Hibbs said.

It also marks the first exclusive beverage deal with an NFL team for Dr Pepper, which is better known for its collegiate sports sponsorships.

The company has been the official sponsor of the NCAA Football Coaches' Trophy as well as ESPN college football programming, while its only other NFL sponsorship deal is with the Dallas Cowboys, which it shares with Pepsi.

"It's a great opportunity for us to put our brands in front of the huge audience that follows the Bears, both in the stadium and beyond Soldier Field," said Chris Barnes, corporate affairs manager at Dr Pepper Snapple Group.

Mr. Barnes said detailed advertising plans are still in the works.

The Bears are one of only a handful of NFL teams that miss out on potential revenue from naming rights to its stadium, forcing the team to find new ways to generate more non-football revenue through various sponsorship deals.

Soldier Field is owned and managed by the Chicago Park District, but the franchise owns the marketing rights and other revenue opportunities, including suites, ticket sales and advertising in and around the building.

Other Dr Pepper products include A&W Root Beer, Sunkist, Canada Dry, Deja Blue bottled water and Mott's apple juice.

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