This Week in Marketing: February 14, 2021
Are you feeling the love this week? Typically the week of Valentine’s Day is filled with warm and fuzzy brand campaigns, but in a strange twist of marketing fate, there has been a lot of roasting and trolling! This week, we’re delving into some epic trolling from Wheetabix and Wendy’s. Other notable stories include Instagram’s latest dig at TikTok, Elon Musk’s Twitter trouble with the SEC, a cat Zoom filter that made the internet smile, best-in-class Valentine’s Day campaigns, and more. Let’s jump in!
Everyone mocked Weetabix for this baked beans ‘twist’
Weetabix, a a whole-grain wheat breakfast cereal that comes packed in oval-like shapes, went viral on Twitter this week due to a controversal breakfast suggestion promoting Heinz baked beans on Weetabix.
In the UK, beans on toast are popular for breakfast…but beans on Weetabix? Much to Weetabix’s delight, Twitter went wild, with social media managers for big brands dropping into thread with their best banter. While it’s easy to think this was a brand fail from Weetabix, it’s quite the opposite. This tweet and initiative was planned by the brand, who knew the idea of baked beans on Weetabix would be a “marmite” like suggestion – some would love it, some would hate it. Here’s a few of my favorite brand reactions.
Wendy’s Celebrates National Roast Day By Roasting Companies And People Who Asked For It
https://www.boredpanda.com/national-roast-day-wendys/
Who knew that National Roast Day was a thing? Wendy’s, of course. Wendy’s had made a name for itself by savagely roasting companies on social media, so it seems fitting that they would celebrate the occasion by inviting people to be roasted on Twitter. The end result? Equal parts brutal and hilarious.
Here are a few of my favorite National Roast Day moments!
Instagram says its algorithm won’t promote Reels that have a TikTok watermark
Instagram is throwing down the guantlet on creators who double post TikTok videos on Reels. Any content that includes the TikTok watermark will be de-prioritized when posted on Reels. So…first Instagram rips off TikTok and then they won’t play nicely in the sandbox? File this one under…not surprising at all! But, good to know for brands and creators alike!
Oracle, Walmart bid for TikTok reportedly hits wall as Biden reassesses strategy on China
Things have become increasingly complicated for Oracle and Walmart to acquire TikTok. First and foremost, there’s uncertainty over Biden’s strategy on China. If pressure reduces, it may not make sense for ByteDance to sell. However, it seems that there could still be reasons to partner with Oracle for third party data management in the U.S., and Walmart for warehouse and sales support. File this one under…one to watch.
Bumble valued at $13bn as investors fall in love with dating app
https://www.ft.com/content/59b22880-22ea-4415-b9d6-8721301d44c9
Bumble had a wildly successful IPO this week. Shares debuted on NASDAQ 77% higher than expected at $76. However, what’s really exciting is to follow the story of Whitney Wolfe Herd, who has become the youngest woman to take a company public. Shockingly, only one in twenty female founders have ever taken the companies they founded public.
Lawyers Warn Tesla Billionaire Elon Musk Over Bitcoin Boosting Tweets
https://fortune.com/2021/02/13/elon-musk-tesla-bitcoin-bet-1-5-billion-alex-pickard/
This week, Elon Musk announced plans to invest $1.5 billion of Tesla’s cash into Bitcoin. Not only has this sparked debate over if this is a wise financial move for Tesla, but it’s also put Musk’s Twitter behavior in the spotlight. Why? His tweets move stocks – literally. A single tweet about investing in Bitcoin or Dogecoin – or even GameStop – has been known to generate spike’s in price.
Now, Musk isn’t the only person on Twitter talking about stock tips, nor do his tweets explicity say “you should buy XX stock.” Instead, they’re mostly cryptic, but they still influence people’s buying behavior. For example, in late January as bitcoin price dipped to under $30K, it then magically rose, 20% after Musk changed his Twitter bio to “#bitcoin” and posted: “In retrospect, it was inevitable.”
With Tesla’s recent investment and Musk’s ability to move markets with his Twitter behavior, expect to see more oversight around this. One to watch for sure.
‘I’m Not a Cat,’ Says Lawyer Having Zoom Difficulties
This was the feel-good story of the week! With many of us working from home, unfortunate yet hilarious technology mishaps are bound to happen. Case and point: An attorney in Texas became an internet sensation when he logged on to Zoom to appear before a judge, only to realize an adorable cat filter was stuck and he could not figure out how to remove it. While this video is best watched to fully enjoy it, I’ve enjoyed an in depth article on it below.
Valentine’s Day Campaign Roundup
As this newsletter is already long, I’m going to keep this short and sweet, but sharing a brief description with links to my favorite Valentine’s Day brand campaigns. Feel free to spread the love!
- Royal Mail UK celebrates the incredible story behind the town of Lover, UK, which sends love letters around the world leading into Valentine’s Day: https://lover.org.uk/the-story-of-the-lover-post/
- White Castle revamps Valentine’s Day event with drive-in, carhop service. This annual event, complete with kitschy decor, has been increasing YoY and offers great inspiration for other restaurants on how to pivot holiday celebrations amid COVID-19: https://www.marketingdive.com/news/white-castle-revamps-valentines-day-event-with-drive-in-carhop-service/593271/
- Dunkin’ drive-thru weddings & merch. Dunkin’ never disappoints on Valentine’s Day, between festive coffee beverages and heart-shaped donuts. But, drive-thru weddings? That’s pretty epic: https://news.dunkindonuts.com/news/love-dunkin-dunkin-makes-valentines-day-sweeter-than-ever-with-pink-velvet-and-mocha-macchiatos-paired-with-heart-shaped-donuts
- Hotels.com encourages scorned singles to book their former partners for an overnight stay in a DUMPSTER this Valentine’s Day! Bonus: thet get a chance to win a $300 gift card – the submitter not the trash-y partner. Quite savage: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-9215817/Hotels-com-let-book-ex-free-overnight-stay-DUMPSTER-Valentines-Day.html
Jessica Gioglio is the co-author of The Laws of Brand Storytelling and The Power of Visual Storytelling. Professionally, Jessica has led innovative marketing and public relations programs for Dunkin’ Donuts, TripAdvisor, Sprinklr, and more. Today, Jessica is the founder of With Savvy Media & Marketing, a strategic branding, storytelling, and content strategy consultancy.