Nearly 2.5 million weddings are expected to take place by the end of 2022, according to market-research company The Wedding Report, the most since 1984. That’s good news for Zola, the wedding platform where users can set up registries, browse vendors, buy invitations, and more.

Since last November, CMO Victoria Vaynberg has helped spearhead a rebrand at Zola, its first influencer ambassador program, and its burgeoning TikTok strategy, all while keeping an eye on the trends that are shaping weddings today.

• “What we’re seeing out in the universe today is that there’s all kinds of weddings; there’s no rules,” she told us. “People are not bound to what we would say are the traditions of the past.”
• Zola does not share revenue figures publicly, but Vaynberg said more than 2 million couples have used Zola and that “2022 was our biggest year of weddings ever.”

#WeddingTok: In July, Zola debuted an updated logo as well as a new tagline, “For all the days along the way,” to better position the brand as a resource for all things wedding, from ordering save-the-dates to sending thank-you notes. According to Vaynberg, the brand’s previous messaging “didn’t quite capture all of the amazing things” that Zola offers.

Keep reading here.—MS

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

Merry Michael Smith is director of media at Big Communications, an agency based in Alabama.

How would you describe your job to someone who doesn’t work in marketing? Media, specifically, is hard for people outside of marketing to understand. I often compare myself to an attorney. If you think about it, there are many similarities! Representing your “clients,” coaching them on how to present their personal brands, making a case to consumers, contract negotiations, and being compensated for your time.

Favorite project you’ve worked on? I created an integrated partnership with the action sports collective Nitro Circus Tour, which included on-site branded elements as well as national TV and influencer promotions. This was before brands really had the whole influencer space figured out. It was new territory for everyone involved, but we knew our audience aligned with the interests and personalities at Nitro Circus. We not only engaged with the star of the show, Travis Pastrana, on a macro level to drive awareness, but [also] created custom integrations with the micro players in the space to really strengthen engagement and affinity with the brand.

What marketing trend are you most optimistic about? Least? Most: The rise of small agencies. Least: Digital plots in the metaverse.

What’s one marketing-related podcast/social account/series you’d recommend? There are so many! In the end, marketing is all about reliability. So I am a huge fan of Adam Grant’s WorkLife podcast. His organizational concepts can apply to leadership, client relationships, personal growth, etc.

Late last month, the FDA proposed an updated definition for use of the word “healthy” on food packaging and said it’s working on a “healthy” product seal, reports Erin Cabrey for Retail Brew:

Sarah Gallo, VP of policy at the Consumer Brand Association (CBA), told Retail Brew that the FDA’s new efforts are “a good first step” to giving consumers more info. Gallo said recent polling by the CBA and Food Marketing Institute found that 86% of consumers are familiar with the voluntary front-of-pack labeling program Facts Up Front, while 88% said it’s “clear to understand.” However, a March study by research platform Attest found that only 9% of the 2,000 consumers in the study could identify the healthiest cereal bars out of six varieties using just front-of-package labeling.

Do nutrition-focused labels change consumer behavior? Keep reading here.—EC

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

Call me: Here’s everything you need to know about writing a good CTA, plus 17 examples.

Quick! If you only have 45 minutes to devote to boosting engagement on Instagram, this infographic shows how to spend your time.

In the spirit: Get some inspiration from these Halloween-centric brand marketing stunts.

Ooh and ahh: We recently covered quite a bit on the ground at Advertising Week. Get the full roundup of new OOH trends in our latest article, sponsored by MNTN.*

^{*This is sponsored advertising content.}

Curious to know why GoPro would bring 40 creators to Switzerland? Jack Appleby is bringing you the inside scoop on this year’s GoPro Creator Summit. Sitting down with Kelly Baker, GoPro’s senior director of Community Marketing, Jack gets to know the impact and undertaking of such an event—and how the GoPro team throws this best-in-class influencer activation. It’s all going down on October 27. We hope to see you there!

McDonald’s is marketing its seasonal McRib sandwich this year as a “farewell tour.” In what decade did the pork sandwich first debut on menus at the fast-food giant?

1. 1960s
2. 1970s
3. 1980s
4. 1990s

Keep scrolling for the answer.

Catch up on a few Marketing Brew stories you might have missed.

• Oatly says you can put oat milk in stroganoff
• Podcast companies want to increase diverse content—but say they need better ad budgets to do so
• After a two-year wait, NBCUniversal brought its brand-tastic BravoCon back to New York