Brands like Neutrogena, Nike, & more go Hollywood

Welcome to September. And it’s kicking off with a short week, so let’s get into it.

Brands Spend $$ on Hollywood-style Storytelling

As more and more commercials are being skipped over or ignored, brands are pivoting to cinematic ad experiences. The list of brands embracing this new tactic include AB InBev, Coca-Cola, John Deere, Lego, Mattel, Neutrogena, Nike, PepsiCo, Procter & Gamble, REI, and more. Marketers and producers agree, “the more control a brand is willing to give up in the creative process, the less commercial the result—and the more satisfying for audiences as entertainment.”

BeReal Gets Real About Marketing

The French photo-sharing app BeReal plans to hire its first-ever marketing professional…despite launching in 2020. Social-media experts think this happened “too late for BeReal to turn itself around without a substantial pivot.”

Spotify Loses Another Exclusive Podcast

Jemele Hill and Spotify have decided to end their podcast deal. Notably, this comes after Spotify’s deal with Prince Harry and Meghan ended this summer and the end of the Obamas’ exclusive deal with Spotify last summer.

TikTok’s New Search Ads Toggle

Last week, TikTok’s ads manager took Search Ads Toggle out of beta and made it available for all advertisers. According to TikTok, the tool leverages advertisers' “existing In-Feed Ad creative” to serve ads relevant to user searches along with organic search results.

Around the Web

Just Can’t Get Enough

Cozy cardio. The TikTok trend speaks to our mutual desires to stay healthy and be comfortable.

Are you ready to explore TikTok’s new Search Ads Toggle and start implementing it for your strategy? More importantly, are you ready to explore cozy cardio as fall progresses? Reply and let us know!

Thanks for joining us, and we’ll see you Thursday!