America’s finest news source hasn’t been a print news source since the “Harlem Shake” was trending.

Over the last 11 years, the state of print media hasn’t exactly gotten stronger. But as of last month, the satirical publication The Onion, which G/O Media sold to a group of media executives and journalists earlier this year, began circulating hard copies once again.

Ben Collins, CEO of The Onion’s parent company, Global Tetrahedron, told the New York Times that the hope is for the paper to begin turning a profit later this year. To help achieve that, CMO Leila Brillson told Marketing Brew that the plan is to lean heavily into memberships, which begin at $99/year for print subscriptions. Those who pay less can still gain access to “member-exclusive emails and other periodic benefits,” some of which Brillson said the publication is still deciding on.

• In print, Brillson said the team is exploring everything from full-page to backpage ads—ideally funny ones, she said—and has also floated the idea of hosting events.
• While her team has received “a lot of inbounds” to date, she said, they’ve been “really picky” about the advertisers entertained.

“Print is a huge part of it, and it’s the primary product, but we want to be able to also do really fun, cool things with the archive, the digital edition, bizarre things you’ll find in your inbox, weird mailers, just really Onion stuff,” Brillson said.

Continue reading here.—KH

The link-in-bio company has a history of getting out of bios and onto billboards—and for one of its latest campaigns, it’s also linking up with a major athlete.

For a series of ads in Times Square this month, Linktree, the tool that lets users compile social media profiles and other links in one landing page, is working with Golden State Warriors point guard and Olympic gold medalist Stephen Curry.

Professional athletes might not be the first group of people that come to mind as major users of the link-in-bio landing page, but Curry’s various business and personal ventures make him a prime candidate for taking advantage of the tool, Lara Cohen, SVP of marketing, partnerships, and business development at Linktree, said.

“There’s a utility for creators of all size and scale,” Cohen told Marketing Brew. “Obviously, the ‘Get Ready With Me’ girlies see the value in having the link in bio for all the many things that they’re selling, doing, all their different social content, but for someone like Steph, who really is multifaceted…He really is just a best-in-class example of the benefits of Linktree.”

Read more here.—AM

As budget-conscious consumers seek to secure more bang for their buck, in many CPG categories, they’ll opt for a cheaper product or even a private label. But in beauty, shopping behaviors have been a bit different—and brands are taking note.

In the first half of 2024, US prestige beauty sales grew 8%, while mass sales flattened, according to Circana data. Larissa Jensen, global beauty industry advisor at Circana, told Retail Brew that premium-priced products within mass are also “growing at a much healthier rate,” while value-priced items have softened. Consumers are leaning into higher-priced items even in categories like hair care that mass has historically dominated, she said, as products with average prices of $30+ grew at three times the rate of lower-priced items.

At the same time, mass brands are making a premiumization push, with companies like L’Oréal, Unilever, and Not Your Mother’s seeing sales boosts after debuting elevated products at higher price points within skin care and hair care. Now, as consumer expectations and spending habits change and brands adjust, the gap between mass and prestige could be narrowing.

Mass reconstruction: Within hair care, a Circana consumer survey found that 42% of consumers who bought products in the prestige retail market believed that those products were more effective than those in mass, and were therefore “willing to invest,” Jensen noted.

Hair care brand Not Your Mother’s is among several brands taking note of this interest in results-oriented products, making its first foray into more premium offerings with its bond-building line last year. (Its Curl Talk shampoo retails at Ulta for $8.99 for 12 ounces, while its Tough Love Bonding Shampoo is $11.99 for 10 ounces.)

The move was aimed at delivering on a “result that our consumers have come to expect from us,” establishing a bit higher price due to elevated formulas and technology used, Gavyn Melgar, VP of marketing at Not Your Mother’s, told Retail Brew.

Continue reading on Retail Brew.—EC

Stories we’re jealous of.

• Business Insider wrote about why advertisers, employees, and creators aren’t panicking about a potential TikTok ban—yet.
• Digiday looked back at whether the Olympics were a success for advertisers and broadcasters this year.
• Fast Company wrote about how “nobody does publicity stunts quite like Cards Against Humanity.”