One of the more famous faces in advertising is set to change, as Dos Equis beer plans to retire the current version of the “Most Interesting Man In The World” and replace him with someone who is presumably of equal interest, globally speaking. [More]
advertising
Tobacco Companies Criticized For Lax Age-Verification On E-Cigarette Websites
By 3.7.16
Putting an age-verification gate on an adults-only website is arguably as helpful in keeping curious kids away as putting a cardboard cutout of a burly bouncer outside of a nightclub. But if a tobacco company is going to have a strict age-block on its cigarette site, shouldn’t its e-cigarette website have the same restrictions? [More]
FanDuel CEO Admits: Maybe They Might Have Overdone It A Bit With The TV Ads
By 2.19.16
For several weeks during the recently concluded NFL season, either FanDuel or DraftKings were the top spenders on TV advertising, interrupting seemingly every show to tout how easy it is for the average Joe to win big at daily fantasy sports (assuming that the “average Joe” is in the elite tier of DFS players). That doesn’t include official sponsorship deals with teams, TV networks, and pro sports leagues (or that shoehorned-in DraftKings-sponsored subplot during the final season of The League). Looking back on it now, the CEO of FanDuel confesses that maybe they should tone it down a bit with the advertising going forward. [More]
European Wireless Carriers Want To Block Customers From Seeing Ads On Smartphones
By 2.19.16
A growing number of people are choosing to use ad-blocking technology to prevent ads from loading on their smartphones, resulting in billions of dollars of unearned ad revenue by publishers. But what if the choice to block ads wasn’t yours, but was a network-wide ban on ads from your wireless carrier? [More]
Well, At Least Advertisers Like The Nudity-Free Version Of Playboy Better
By 2.16.16
A few months ago, Playboy magazine announced that it would be acknowledging that the Internet is a thing and getting rid of full-frontal nude pictures, going for more PG-rated content, wider availability in stores, and some nice free publicity. Is it working? The magazine’s most important customers are pleased with the change: advertisers. [More]
Want Wired.com Without Ads? That’ll Be $3.99/Month
By 2.8.16
With billions and billions of ad dollars going unearned by websites each year because of the increase use of ad-blocking technology, it’s no wonder that some publishers are fighting back. Last year, magazine giant Conde Nast started erecting virtual walls to prevent ad-block users from visiting some of its sites, and now the company is going to try to give these anti-ad readers the option of a monthly access model for Wired.com. [More]
Wendy’s Ditching “Now That’s Better” Motto For Something “Deliciously Different”
By 2.5.16
While McDonald’s and Burger King have dominated the fast food slogan wars over the years with memorable phrases like “You deserve a break today,” and “Have it your way,” Wendy’s hasn’t really had a hit since the “Where’s the beef?” mania of the 1980s. But that hasn’t stopped the company from trying, as it ditches “Now that’s better” for the new “Deliciously different.”
[More]
NBC To Get In On That Thursday Night Football Lovin’
By 2.1.16
For the last couple of seasons, CBS has been — with the exception of Thanksgiving night — the NFL’s sole dance partner on Thursday nights. But starting next season, CBS will have to get used to the idea of the league spending time romancing another “friend” — NBC. [More]
1/3 Of American Adults Use Online Ad-Blockers, Few Publishers Try To Stop Them
By 1.29.16
If you’re one of the approximately 1/3 of American Internet users who employ an ad-blocker in your web browser, we don’t mind, because Consumerist doesn’t accept advertising. Other websites that do depend on ads for their income definitely do mind that customers are using ad-blockers, but they don’t really do anything to stop users. Why is that? [More]
San Francisco Wants High-Rise Verizon And Visa Ads To Come Down Before Super Bowl
By 1.28.16
With visitors coming to town for a high-profile sporting event next week, two high-rise buildings in San Francisco sold exterior ad space to Verizon and to Visa. There’s a problem, though: the ads, which are 15 and seven stories high respectively, are illegal, and the city wants them to come down before the Super Bowl. [More]
Nearly 90% Of Millennials Can’t Stop Looking At Their Phones When Watching TV
By 1.28.16
When you watch TV, is your phone always within reach? More importantly, are you just listening to the TV while you fiddle around on your phone, tablet, laptop, smartwatch, web-connected crockpot? If so, then you’re like the 88% of millennials who are regularly using “second screens” while watching video. [More]
Nespresso Suing Coffee Competitor For Using George Clooney Doppelgänger In Ads
By 1.21.16
There is only one actor named George Clooney shilling for an espresso company, and Nespresso wants to make sure consumers know he’s only working for them: the company’s Israel arm is suing a rival for using an actor who looks somewhat like the salt-and-pepper Clooney in ads, claiming it’ll confuse customers. [More]
“Buy Here, Pay Here” Dealer To Return $700K To Consumers Over Deceptive Lending Practices
By 1.21.16
Federal regulators continued their crackdown on not-so-upfront “buy-here, pay-here” auto dealers today, ordering a Colorado-based dealer to pay nearly $1 million in restitution and fines for operating an abusive financing scheme. [More]
Taco Bell Will Reportedly Use Super Bowl To Announce Year-Old “Quesalupa” Idea
By 1.13.16
It’s been a year since we first got wind of the Taco Bell “Quesalupa” — or as Conan O’Brien put it, the “case of lupus” — and 11 months since the company began testing the vaguely taco-like object (complete with a soft, cheese-stuffed shell) in Dayton, Ohio. Now it looks like the Bell is set to unleash this menu item nationwide. [More]
Tiffany Reminds Consumers (And Costco) That Their Brand Isn’t Just A Setting Name
By 1.13.16
A few months ago, a federal judge found in favor of Tiffany in a years-long dispute between the jeweler and warehouse club Costco. At issue was the name “Tiffany,” which the warehouse club was using as a generic term to describe a style of ring, and the jeweler claims as its brand identity. Now a new ad campaign from Tiffany is nominally aimed at brides, but might as well be mailed straight to Costco’s lawyers. [More]
Twitter Reportedly Working On Platform That Turns Users’ Tweets Into Ads
By 1.12.16
Take a quick look at Twitter at any given time and you’re sure to see a slew of brands, or celebrities and other influencers, shilling products and services with short 140-character messages. While promotional Tweets might be easy to spot now, they could be more difficult in the future, as the social media platform is reportedly working on a new product that would turn everyday users’ Tweets into ads for brands. [More]
Wells Fargo Mocks Minnesota Vikings’ “Photo Bomb” Lawsuit
By 1.11.16
A few weeks back, the Minnesota Vikings sued Wells Fargo, accusing the bank of trying “photo bomb” the team’s new stadium. Wells has since fired back, calling the whole thing “far-fetched.” [More]
Report Finds That As E-Cigarette Ad Spending Increases So Does Teens’ Use Of The Devices
By 1.6.16
About 2.4 million teens smoked e-cigarettes last year, and that number is poised to rise, thanks in part to the tens of millions of dollars device manufactures have poured into advertisements for the products, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. [More]
