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New Media / Sports Illustrated: The truth is that football is a game: a silly war simulation for children invented for times of peace back in the late 1800s. People hurdle one another and sometimes hit each other in the groin with errant passes. Was it ever intended to become what it has, and might it be valuable to take a step back and view it from the eyes of a child every once in a while?
Editor's Note: Nickelodeon's broadcast of the game was a fascinating tie-in that took social media by storm and addressed a problem that the NFL has been working to solve: attracting younger viewers to a newer, more innocent, and entertaining version of the NFL.
Hours before the Brownsâ beatdown, the Chicago Bears and the New Orleans Saints faced off in a playoff game, which aired simultaneously on CBS and Nickelodeon, the kidsâ network better known for Spongebob cartoons and 30-minute teen sitcoms than football.
It was the first time parent company ViacomCBS, the merger of CBS and Viacom that formalized in late 2019, flexed NFL muscles on an unexpected network (others in the portfolio include MTV, VH1, Comedy Central and BET). Such corporate media muscling could easily have come off as forced, but somehow, the Nickelodeon stream worked. Former wide receiver Nate Burlesonâs commentary throughout the game was tailored for kids and graphics overlaid during game play added a touch of reverence not typically found during football playoffs. Slime cannons went off after touchdowns, first down markers were replaced with Nickelodeon colors and players off field were seen on the stream with giant hamburgers on their heads.
An all around hit, the Nickelodeon stream was well-received by sports reporters and bloggers online, suggesting more such crossovers are to come. NFL rights have been hot commodities on streaming platforms, with Amazon, Hulu and others bartering over the ability to air live games. ViacomCBS made an internal flex to promote one of its own with the Nickelodeon stream, signaling how powerful a merger can be today.
"One Year Later": NFL 2020 season interest compared to previous season
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eCommerce / Fortune: On Singles Day 2019, Taobaoâs sales event featured an eight-hour livestream with popular influencer Viya that attracted more than 43 million customers. In 2020, livestream shopping was projected to generate about $136 billion in revenue in China. Nonetheless, the financial viability of Chinaâs approach remains a question mark, in part because of its reliance on celebrities to attract audiences, a costly approach that doesnât always translate into brand loyalty and repeat purchasing.
Editor's Note: the author of this President and CEO of QVC's parent company. He's also the Chairman of the National Retail Federation. He doesn't seem happy about the shift from traditional live shopping to newer formats.
In a 2018 report by Deloitte [1], the consulting firm noted that while traditional television has declined for viewers aged 18-24, live video consumption across streaming services and alternative hardware devices stayed relatively stable. In some cases, consumption rose. Television hasnât died, the medium has changed. Generation Z isnât consuming less television. No longer 42âł flat screens, itâs Appleâs 5.8âł screen that has revolutionized content, commerce, and the intersection of the two.
Read More (đ): As Seen On IG
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International eCommerce / International Business Times: The suggestions are that the plan to nationalize Alibaba has come from the very top of the ruling Communist Party structure. A few days ago, the People's Daily, the official mouthpiece of the CCP, said the government's "anti-monopoly work" will lead to "better development." The paper said the party Politburo thought 'anti-monopoly work' should be strengthened to prevent the disorderly expansion of capital.
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International eCommerce / Economist: Yet however safe and siloed Western e-retailing may appear to be, it is now unlikely that it will become the worldâs dominant mode of shopping. Already, outside rich countries, the Chinese approach is gaining steam. Many leading e-commerce firms in South-East Asia (Grab and Sea), India (Jio), and Latin America (Mercado Libre) are influenced by the Chinese strategy of offering a âsuper-appâ with a cornucopia of services from noodle delivery to financial services. The giant consumer-goods firms that straddle the Western and Chinese markets may transmit Chinese ideas and business tactics, too. Multinationals such as Unilever, LâOrĂ©al and Adidas make more revenue in Asia than in America and their bosses turn to there, not to California or Paris, to see the latest in digital marketing, branding and logistics.
Editor's Note: there were no lies found.
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Retail Real Estate / The Columbus Dispatch: Abercrombie & Fitch is another brand that was in the throes of a massive turnaround when the pandemic hit, speeding up a shift away from flagship stores and toward smaller spaces. âI think the expression goes, 'Crisis accelerates change,' â CEO Fran Horowitz said during an earnings call, âand thatâs certainly what weâve seen throughout this whole year. Weâve really been able to lean into our omni capabilities and build on the strength of our digital business to over $1 billion, a growth of 47% just in the third quarter.â
Editor: look to Columbus as a leading indicator for the entirety of the mall specialty retail industry. A number of mall retailers are headquartered in the Ohio city.
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A. eCommerce / Quartz: There are now more than 1 million merchants in 175 countries using Shopify, including big brands such as Heinz, Allbirds, and Rebecca Minkoff. (While its basic subscription plan is $29 a month, a premium service, Shopify Plus, starts at $2,000 a month.) Most merchants, however, are on the smaller side. Just over half are located in the US, where Shopify is often held up as a potential check on Amazonâs ever-growing power. Rather than default to selling on Amazon, the thinking goes, entrepreneurs can just create their own online stores.
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B. eCommerce / Modern Retail: Most eCommerce platforms have acceptable use policies that ban people who use their service to promote hate and/or violence â but they arenât called out as frequently as social media platforms when they donât enforce these policies. But with Shopifyâs recent actions, that may start to change.
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Brand / Glossy: When Gildan bought American Apparel after its second bankruptcy filing, it had plans to revive the storied brand, including at least a portion of its U.S.-made ethos. But American Apparelâs new âMade in USAâ shop, which launched on its website in 2017 with a selection of the brandâs most popular items, quietly began to vanish in 2019.
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Opinion / Scott Galloway: As our institutions have retreated, private capital has emerged as a shadow government. Banks command our economy, the shareholder class commands the politicians, and big tech reigns over it all. Our idolatry of innovators equates wealth with virtue, and does not hold the innovator class, or their firms, to the same standards as old economy firms (or the general population). Twenty-four hours after a failed coup, the lead story on Twitter is Elon Musk becoming the wealthiest man in the world.
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Data / Vogue Business: Deepfakes have the potential to help brands reach customers with highly targeted and personalised messaging. For influencers and celebrities, deepfakes help them to easily broaden their reach by agreeing to front a fashion ad campaign and model clothes without even turning up for a photo shoot. Millions of different deepfake ads can instantly run across platforms like Facebook, while up to 100 different influencer ads targeted at various audiences could run, says Simon Lejeune, a growth marketing consultant.
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Trends / McKinsey: As consumer confidence returns, so will spending, with ârevenge shoppingâ sweeping through sectors as pent-up demand is unleashed. That has been the experience of all previous economic downturns. One difference, however, is that services have been particularly hard hit this time. The bounce back will therefore likely emphasize those businesses, particularly the ones that have a communal element, such as restaurants and entertainment venues.
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It was customary for major brands and advertising agencies to play active roles in advocating for democracy and the virtues of the west. During World War II, nearly all major brands played a logistical, manufacturing, or an advertising role within the U.S. Government's defeat of global tyranny. But when the war turned inward and we finally began to question our own shortcomings, major advertisers began to lean towards a different strategy: neutrality. This is a perspective on the role of brands, big business, their workforces, and the advertising efforts that can shape opinion and build consensus around renewed ideals.
Intro of "The Great War": Robert Vann, publisher and editor of the Pittsburgh Courier, wrote in awe about the newly minted international sports icon Jesse Owens in 1936. Owen had just won four gold medals at that yearâs Olympics, held in Berlin.
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