Celsius Holdings, the company that owns the fast-growing energy drink brand Celsius, is going through a time of big growth. The company is no longer just about selling drinks; it is now positioning itself as a brand-building powerhouse that wants to make itself culturally relevant and build strong consumer communities. Celsius is trying to turn its drinks into lifestyle brands that appeal to modern consumers by making changes to its marketing strategy, adding to its portfolio, and building new creative teams within the company. Fast Growth and Market Momentum In the last few years, Celsius's finances have grown by a lot. In 2025, the company made $2.5 billion, which is more than 85% more than the year before. By the fourth quarter of 2025, the company had grown so quickly that it had taken about 20% of the U.S. energy drink market. This shows that it is becoming a major player in a market that has been dominated by brands like Monster and Red Bull for a long time. Some of this growth is due to the company's strategic investments and partnerships. In 2025, PepsiCo, a big drink company, bought more shares in Celsius. This made it easier for the brand to grow and made it easier to get its products to more people. The partnership also gave Celsius more power in retail channels and around the world. But executives say that product sales alone are not the main thing that will lead to long-term success. The company is instead focusing on making its brands strong enough to become cultural touchstones instead of just energy drinks. Moving the Focus From Goods to Brands The leaders of Celsius say that the company is purposefully moving away from only thinking about drinks and toward building well-known brands. This change is in line with a bigger marketing idea: businesses that want to be successful need to connect with customers on an emotional level, not just through product features. Kyle Watson, the company's Chief Brand Officer, is a key person in charge of this strategy. Watson used to be in charge of marketing the Celsius brand in North America. Now, he is in charge of brand equity for the whole Celsius portfolio. He said that the goal is to make sure that each brand in the company's lineup has a clear identity and personality. Celsius doesn't want to show a single corporate image. Instead, they want each brand to connect with its own audience and cultural niche. A simple phrase sums up this way of thinking: "building brands, not beverages." Adding to the Brand Portfolio Adding more products to Celsius's portfolio has been another important part of its brand-building strategy. The company bought Alani Nu, a wellness-focused beverage and nutrition brand that has become popular with younger customers, in 2025. The acquisition gave Celsius a new angle in the health and fitness market. PepsiCo also gave Celsius control of the Rockstar Energy brand as part of its larger investment in the company. Along with the main Celsius product line, these brands make up a larger portfolio that aims to reach different types of customers. Each brand in the portfolio is aimed at a different group of people. For instance, Alani Nu has built a strong fan base among women and health-conscious customers, while Rockstar has long been linked to the traditional energy drink culture. Celsius wants to reach more people without watering down its message by keeping each brand's identity separate. This method lets the business reach a lot of different types of customers while still being real in each one. Making a Creative Studio Inside the Company Celsius has also set up a new internal creative structure to help its brand-focused strategy. The company recently opened a full-service in-house agency, also known as a brand studio, to make campaigns, packaging ideas, and digital content more quickly and easily. The company wants the new studio to help it have more control over its creative work. Celsius can now come up with ideas on its own and move quickly to keep up with cultural trends instead of relying heavily on outside agencies. The people in charge of the company think this method has a lot of benefits. Internal teams have a better understanding of the brand's identity, which helps them make content that fits with the brand's vision. The studio structure also makes it possible to make things faster and have more freedom in marketing campaigns. The in-house studio lets Celsius move quickly and keep a consistent brand voice across platforms, even though the company will still work with outside partners when it needs to. Making Content for People Who Use Digital First Making content is now a big part of Celsius' marketing plan. Brands need to have strong digital and social media presences in addition to traditional advertising. This is because modern beverage marketing goes beyond traditional advertising. The in-house studio is a big part of making this content. The studio has teams that work on specific brands in the company's portfolio. They make everything from social media posts and digital campaigns to commercial videos. Celsius can stay flexible and responsive because of this structure. The brand can quickly make new content that fits with what people are interested in as trends change on sites like TikTok, Instagram, and YouTube. This ability to respond quickly to cultural events is especially useful for a company that wants to reach younger people and fitness-focused groups. Strengthening the "Live. Fit. Go." Platform The "Live. Fit. Go." brand platform is another important part of Celsius' marketing plan. Instead of just focusing on gym culture, the campaign focuses on energy, movement, and active lifestyles. The brand first became popular with fitness fans, but the company has since changed its message to appeal to a wider range of customers. The "Live. Fit. Go." idea says that energy can help with many parts of daily life, like work, socializing, exercising, and traveling. The platform also links to partnerships and sponsorships that help the brand's image. One example is Celsius's role as the Aston Martin team's global energy drink partner in Formula 1 racing. This partnership helps the brand get more exposure and connects the company with high-performance sports and people all over the world. These kinds of partnerships let Celsius put its brand into cultural experiences instead of just relying on ads for its products. Using Cultural Relevance as a Marketing Tool Cultural relevance is a big part of Celsius' approach. Instead of just focusing on functional benefits like caffeine or vitamins, the company wants to make its brands a part of lifestyle trends. This includes working with sports teams, social media influencers, and entertainment platforms. Celsius strengthens its identity as more than just a drink brand by showing up in places where its target audiences spend time. The company's marketing leaders think that building communities around brands is the key to long-term growth. People are more likely to become loyal advocates for a brand when they can relate to its lifestyle message. The Competitive Energy Drink Market There is still a lot of competition in the energy drink market. Red Bull and Monster are still the most popular brands around the world, and new companies are always entering the "better-for-you" beverage market. Celsius has set itself apart by focusing on health-focused ingredients, functional benefits, and a lifestyle-oriented identity. This position is especially appealing to younger customers who want energy drinks that fit in with health and fitness trends. The company's quick growth shows that this plan is working. Celsius has found a unique spot in the crowded energy drink category by combining new products with strong brand stories. Thinking About the Future As Celsius moves into the next stage of its growth, it plans to keep putting money into building its brand, improving its creative skills, and working with other cultures. Executives think that the company's ability to give each of its brands a unique identity will be very important for keeping its growth going. Instead of just coming up with new products, Celsius is focusing on building emotional connections, getting people involved in the community, and being culturally relevant. Strong branding may be the most important thing in an industry where new drinks come out all the time. Marketers are starting to believe that a company's long-term success depends not only on what it sells but also on the story it tells and the identity it builds. Celsius wants its drinks to be more than just something people drink for a quick boost of energy. They want them to be a part of people's lives. To do this, they focus on building their brand instead of just promoting their products.

Zevia, a soda brand that promotes drinks that are naturally sweetened, has started a new ad campaign that makes fun of both artificial intelligence and artificial ingredients. The campaign features a strange and creepy robot coworker who asks a human employee what they want to drink before breaking down after tasting Zevia. The company wants to use satire and silly humor to make its brand stand out as a healthier alternative to regular soft drinks. It also wants to comment on the growing excitement around AI in marketing. A Funny and AI-Satirical Campaign The new ad campaign, called "Real Soda for Real Humans," is based on a funny office scene. A worker in the ad walks up to a vending machine and picks a can of Zevia over a regular soda. At that point, a robotic coworker in the office confronts the employee and criticizes their choice, saying that they should drink something with "artificial sludge" and chemicals that are supposedly better for machines instead. Things quickly get ridiculous. The robot makes fun of the human worker for choosing Zevia, then it decides to try it itself. When it drinks the soda, it starts to break down and short-circuit, and its mechanical parts fall apart as if it can't handle something made for people. The scene makes the difference between natural and artificial ingredients seem even bigger, and it does this with humor to get the brand's message across. Zevia strengthens its image as a drink for real people, not something fake, by showing a robot that literally breaks down after drinking it. The campaign gets people's attention with over-the-top images and satire while also getting across a clear brand message. Keeping Up With a Strategy That Criticizes Fake Trends This isn't the first time Zevia has tried to stand out in the crowded soft drink market by using humor and satire. The brand has spoken out against the use of fake ingredients by big soda companies in the past and even made fun of how much more AI is being used in ads. In the past, marketing efforts included a campaign that targeted a competitor's use of generative AI in its holiday ads. The brand called the "uncanny" feel of artificial creations, and the earlier effort used purposely weird AI-generated images to show this. Zevia's new robot coworker campaign is another way for the company to connect two ideas: the use of fake ingredients in food and the growing use of AI in marketing. By connecting these ideas, the brand positions itself as a "anti-artificial" choice in both its messaging and the way its products are made. Going After People Who Are Sick of Fake Things The strategy shows that people are changing how they shop in general. A lot of people who shop these days are more interested in healthy foods and drinks with natural ingredients, especially in the beverage industry. At the same time, people are getting tired of how quickly AI-generated content is spreading through advertising and media. Zevia seems to be using this feeling to its advantage. The campaign is meant to connect with people who don't trust artificial ingredients and who might also be tired of hearing about AI technology all the time. The company uses both trends by making a robot the bad guy in the story. The robot stands for fake things, while the human worker who chooses Zevia stands for real things and healthier choices. Multi-Platform Advertising Launch There is more than one ad in the campaign. Zevia is instead using multiple platforms to show the creative to a larger audience. The marketing campaign includes 15- and 30-second ads made for connected TVs, which lets the brand reach viewers through streaming services. The campaign also includes digital channels, such as social media sites like Meta and YouTube. Zevia wants to reach as many people as possible by putting ads on both traditional and digital channels. This way, people can see them no matter where they are. This multi-channel approach is similar to how modern brands use TV, streaming services, and social media to promote their products. The campaign has interactive parts in addition to video ads that get people to interact with the brand outside of the screen. Experiential Marketing at SXSW As part of the campaign, Zevia set up a special activation at the South by Southwest (SXSW) festival, which is a big cultural event that focuses on new ideas, technology, and creative marketing. People who want to get into the activation space must first pass a CAPTCHA-style test, which is like the online prompts that check to see if users are real people and not automated bots. This interactive part of the campaign brings the theme to life in the real world. The activation playfully reinforces the campaign's main message that Zevia is "real soda for real humans" by asking participants to prove they are human. The brand also started a digital contest called "Prove You're Human," which linked the campaign's humor with online participation even more. Making a Name for Yourself in a Competitive Soda Market Zevia is stepping up its marketing at a time when the "better-for-you" drink market is getting more competitive. More and more people are looking for drinks that aren't sugary sodas, which gives brands that focus on natural ingredients, low sugar content, or functional benefits a chance to stand out. Zevia is different from other drinks because it uses stevia leaf extract to sweeten instead of sugar or fake sweeteners. This position puts the brand in a group of healthier soft drinks that is getting bigger. The company does, however, have to compete with other new beverage brands that also market themselves as healthier options. Probiotic sodas and functional drinks are becoming more popular, so it's more important than ever to have strong branding and memorable ads. So, the funny robot campaign is part of a bigger effort to keep Zevia in the public eye and strengthen its brand in a fast-changing beverage market. Brand Growth and Marketing Investment As Zevia tries to reach more people and raise consumer awareness, marketing has become a big part of the company's plans. Recent financial reports show that the brand's net sales reached about $161.3 million, which is a steady increase as the company expanded its distribution through big stores like Walmart. To help its growth continue, Zevia plans to put more of its money into marketing. The company thinks that marketing costs will make up about 12% to 13% of its revenue in 2026, which is a little more than in the past. Executives think that campaigns that are creative and relevant to the culture will be very important for building the brand's identity and bringing in new customers. A Bigger Marketing Trend There is a bigger trend in advertising where brands use humor or satire to make fun of technology and digital culture. Zevia's campaign is part of this trend. A number of companies have put out marketing campaigns in the last few months that either support or make fun of the rise of AI. Some brands promote AI as a cutting-edge technology, while others make it seem strange, too much, or even silly. Zevia takes the latter approach by making AI a funny enemy. The creepy robot coworker stands for artificiality, which lets the brand stress its dedication to using real ingredients and being real. Mixing Entertainment With Brand Messages In the end, Zevia's campaign will only be successful if it can make people laugh while also getting the brand's message across clearly. The idea of a robot coworker has a funny and memorable story that can grab people's attention in a crowded advertising space. The story is clear about the campaign's message about natural ingredients at the same time. As advertising gets more competitive and people are bombarded with content all the time, brands are relying more and more on bold and creative storytelling to get noticed. The Zevia AI satire campaign shows how you can mix humor, cultural commentary, and product messaging to make a unique marketing plan. The brand not only shows off the natural ingredients in its product by making artificial intelligence a funny foil, but it also gets people talking about technology, authenticity, and how much people trust modern marketing.

With younger audiences shifting away from legacy broadcast channels to social media platforms for news and entertainment, brands must rethink their customer engagement strategies. Specsavers has successfully implemented this pivot by employing a social-first storytelling strategy and creator partnerships, resulting in strengthened engagement with younger audiences and millions of views on YouTube. The campaign demonstrates how, with the right use of storytelling, influencer collaborations, and long-form digital content, brands can achieve and maintain relevance in a competitive digital landscape. The Goal: Reaching Gen Z While Retaining the Existing Customer Base “Should've gone to Specsavers” has been the company's advertising tagline for decades. Popular culture is familiar with the saying, and it is frequently referenced to ridicule a blunder caused by a lack of vision. While the brand was certainly well known, the increasing social media use by younger audiences in search of entertainment rather than advertising created a growing challenge for the company. When selecting a strategy, the company had to ensure they did not lose loyal customers, particularly older ones, who’ve become accustomed to the brand. This posed the most basic, yet difficult, problem: how did the brand keep its long-standing identity while appealing to a more youthful, socially aware audience? The answer, inexplicably, came from the world of football. Using Football Culture to Tell Brand Stories The game has a long-standing history of being popular in the UK, becoming a fundamental part of online community culture. The phrase “Should’ve gone to Specsavers” has become a popular way to describe poor referee decisions or missed opportunities in a game. Rather than joining in with the mocking of referee calls, the brand decided to reframe the narrative. An example of this brand reframing is the campaign to find “Britain’s Best Worst Team,” a collaboration between Specsavers and agency Tangerine. There were over 1,500 entrants, and from those nominations, Swansea-based amateur club Cwm Albion was selected, who had a difficult season with poor results. The brand sponsored the team as well, and they turned the story into an engaging digital narrative. YouTube Documentary Series Creator The campaign's centerpiece was an eight-part YouTube documentary series following the club for an entire season. The series showed the club's struggles, the team's achievements, and other relevant stories, which helped the audience develop empathy for the players. The brand's documentary approach allowed them to advertise in a unique way, without the audience feeling like they were being marketed to. The series was narrated by former Lionesses footballer Jill Scott, which added to the appeal and legitimacy for the audience. The story received an added boost with the participation of former Premier League coach Harry Redknapp as the team's coach. One of the episodes featuring Redknapp received media attention when it was included in the ITV This Morning show, which increased the scope and reach of the campaign. The campaign was able to engage the audience by following a storytelling format and dividing the team's story into episodes rather than presenting a single advertisement Expanding the Campaign's Exposure through Social Media Even though the main focus of the campaign was the YouTube documentary series, the campaign was designed to target multiple social media platforms. Episode highlights, teasers, and short clips were posted to social media to drive traffic to the series. Specsavers extended their social media reach by partnering with well-known influencers, such as YouTube celebrity Chunkz. His TikTok and YouTube campaign videos received over a million views, and the average watch time was over five minutes. The brand collaboration with Copa90, a football media YouTube channel, helped promote the series and reach an additional 1.4 million people. These collaborations gave the campaign authenticity and helped target younger adults who are used to creator promotional videos rather than traditional brand marketing. Excellent Results Across Multiple Channels The campaign generated significant interest and engagement within a short time span. The series reached over 32 million views, demonstrating the value of combining storytelling with a social-first distribution strategy. The campaign also changed perception of the brand: 10% increase in brand awareness among the 16–34 age demographic 9% increase in brand awareness among the 55–64 age demographic 17% increase in brand consideration compared to competitors 105,000 additional eye-care appointments generated The greatest change was in perception of the brand among the younger demographic. Gen Z scored the brand as being as likable as entertainment competitors like Netflix and Amazon. This indicates strong likeability and the success of the content-driven approach for the brand. The campaign also won an industry award from Marketing Week for Best Use of Social Media, further emphasizing its success. Why Social-First Marketing Was Successful Here’s what made the campaign successful. 1. Fun Over Ads Instead of a traditional commercial, Specsavers created a sports documentary-style video. Most viewers perceived the content as entertainment rather than advertising. 2. Cultural Significance The brand engaged naturally with audiences by focusing on football, a sport deeply embedded in British culture. 3. Partnerships with Influencers Collaborating with influencers and football media channels helped accelerate distribution and reach audiences beyond the brand’s own platforms. 4. Multi-Platform Distribution The primary series was hosted on YouTube, while supplementary content across other social platforms generated additional interest and exposure. What Contemporary Marketers Can Learn The social-first approach adopted by Specsavers proved effective, and several key lessons can be drawn for modern marketers. First, content should compete with entertainment rather than simply functioning as advertising. Audiences prefer engaging stories over promotional messaging. Second, understanding platform behavior is essential. Younger audiences spend more time on YouTube, TikTok, and creator-led media compared with traditional TV commercials. Third, collaborations with creators and cultural communities can significantly enhance reach and authenticity. Finally, long-form storytelling can help build emotional connections between brands and audiences. The Evolution of Brand Building on Social Platforms With the continuous evolution of digital channels, brands will increasingly need to focus on narrative strategies, community engagement, and creator partnerships. The campaign from Specsavers demonstrates that even long-established brands can remain relevant when they treat social media as content platforms rather than just advertising platforms. Through cultural insight, compelling storytelling, and strategic distribution, the brand transformed the struggles of an amateur football team into a highly successful digital series. It demonstrates that when brands begin to think like media companies, they can capture audience attention in powerful ways. In a world where consumers are constantly scrolling and attention spans are limited, the brands that succeed will be those that entertain, inspire, and engage, rather than simply advertise.

The rapid expansion of AI continues to evolve both the technology and marketing sectors. The most recent innovations exemplify the ways AI is transforming both the digital economy and tools for productivity. Marketing writing assistants and self-authoring autonomous agents are examples of writing assistants and autonomous agents that are able to make purchasing decisions. New technology recently examined two critical trends shaping the industry: the growing influence of AI resources like Grammarly and the ambiguous prospects for agentic shopping. These trends exemplify the breadth and depth of impact AI is having on the roles of marketers, the way consumers shop, and the types of digital products companies perform. Grammarly and the Growth of AI-Powered Knowledge One of the most highly publicized phenomena in the technology industry has been the increased sophistication of AI writing tools like Grammarly. These tools have evolved considerably from the days when they served as simple grammar checkers. Today, they offer a broad range of writing assistance tools, including advanced writing suggestions, tone adjustments, and content generation. These tools are designed to assist employees who need to communicate frequently. These tools in marketing claim to replicate the writing techniques and ideas of seasoned strategists. Now, generative AI provides the ability to receive expert-level assistance for writing LinkedIn posts, marketing articles, and thought-leadership pieces. These AI systems are trained on massive amounts of professional, marketing, and editorial writing and therefore are capable of writing effective marketing copy, developing improved communication frameworks, and enhancing clarity and quality across a wide variety of formats. In the marketing industry, AI's increasing presence in content creation has raised concerns. Critics argue the reliance on AI insights can lead to a homogenization of content. Critics of automating creativity express concern it will diminish the necessity of experienced marketers. Despite these concerns, writing AI is still being adopted because of its ability to increase output. For many, these tools are more collaborative than competitive. Changes in Technology in Action A new type of technology is emerging as a result of AI productivity improvements: agentic technology systems. Agentic systems are autonomous AI systems that can set and achieve goals without human intervention. Agentic technology has unique characteristics that set it apart from traditional AI systems. Whereas traditional AI technology can only provide outputs in response to a prompt or create content, agentic systems have the ability to think, act, and complete goals on their own with little to no human input. A clear example of agentic technology is what is being called automatic agentic shopping. In this shopping model, AI shopping agents prioritize products, evaluate alternatives, and even purchase products on a shopper's behalf. This means that shoppers no longer have to engage in product discovery and comparison. Instead, they are able to rely on agentic AI shopping assistants to understand their needs and locate the ideal products. Agentic shopping assistants have the ability to evaluate price, product characteristics, product availability, and shopper preferences to determine recommendations or purchasing actions. This represents a major transformation in the shopping process. The Significance of Agentic Shopping Agentic shopping has the potential to revolutionize both digital marketing and e-commerce. AI shopping technology will provide new convenience to customers. Instead of browsing through dozens of websites, users can simply describe their needs to an AI assistant, which will then search the web and identify the best option. However, while this offers convenience for customers, it introduces new challenges for businesses. Traditionally, marketing strategies have relied on capturing consumer attention through search engine rankings, advertising placements, and brand visibility. In a future where AI shopping agents make purchasing decisions for consumers, businesses will need to compete not only for consumer attention but also for algorithmic purchasing decisions. In such a marketplace, pricing and product availability will become increasingly important signals for AI agents. Retailers will need to improve their information systems so that AI shopping assistants can easily access, analyze, and compare product information across multiple platforms. Limitations of Agentic Commerce Although agentic shopping is an innovative concept, the technology is still in its early stages. One of the biggest challenges is trust. Consumers must trust that AI agents are acting in their best interests and not prioritizing sponsored placements or biased product recommendations. Transparency will be critical for ensuring that users feel comfortable allowing AI systems to make purchasing decisions on their behalf. Another challenge involves product data quality and consistency. Inconsistent or incomplete product information across different retailers could make it difficult for AI systems to accurately compare products. Without standardized and well-structured data, AI agents may struggle to evaluate competing options effectively. There are also concerns related to market concentration. If a small number of companies control the AI systems responsible for product recommendations, they could gain significant influence over which brands receive visibility in digital marketplaces. This could reshape advertising strategies and competition across the retail industry. What It Means for Advertisers As new technologies emerge, the marketing industry is undergoing rapid transformation. AI writing tools are helping marketers create content more efficiently, while agentic technologies are changing how consumers discover products and interact with digital platforms. As AI systems continue to evolve, marketers will need to adapt their strategies to remain competitive. This includes placing greater emphasis on data quality, improving the structure of product information, and ensuring that marketing messages maintain authenticity even when assisted by AI systems. Marketers may also need to invest more heavily in content differentiation. As AI-generated content becomes more widespread, originality and storytelling will become increasingly important for brands seeking to stand out. Human creativity, emotional intelligence, and cultural awareness will continue to play critical roles in successful marketing strategies. The Future of AI in Business and Marketing The latest developments in AI highlight the rapid evolution of the digital ecosystem. Tools like Grammarly demonstrate the powerful productivity benefits that AI can bring to professionals. Meanwhile, agentic technologies illustrate how autonomous systems may reshape consumer behavior and digital commerce. Together, these developments suggest that AI will become even more deeply integrated into both marketing and business operations. Rather than eliminating human decision-making entirely, the most effective uses of AI will likely combine automation with human judgment. Marketers will need to learn how to collaborate with these technologies while continuing to apply creativity, strategy, and critical thinking. As AI technologies continue to advance, the relationship between technology, marketing, and human behavior will grow increasingly interconnected. This shift may mark the beginning of a new era in which both humans and intelligent systems work together to shape the future of digital commerce.

Unleashed Brands, a franchise platform for kids, is beginning to change their approach to marketing by focusing more on social media. To help achieve this change, Unleashed Brands has partnered with VaynerX, a marketing and media holding company founded by Gary Vaynerchuk. In this partnership, Unleashed Brands hopes to move away from advertising based on performance metrics and instead focus on building relationships with families and children. The new Chief Marketing Officer, Pat O'Toole, who previously worked at Burger King, is the person who came up with this idea. O'Toole wants to shift the marketing of the company to focus not only on immediate purchases but also on creating a long-term emotional connection with the brand. The first major project for this new partnership is working with Urban Air Adventure Park, one of the largest brands in the Unleashed Brands portfolio. Moving Beyond Lower-Funnel Marketing Unleashed Brands began emerging from lower-funnel marketing as they started utilizing social media. Lower-funnel marketing refers to the direct response side of the advertising funnel. This includes things like search ads and paid social ads that are meant to drive an immediate conversion. However, the more direct response ads they ran, the more difficult it became for the company to build a brand. As O'Toole explained, the marketing team focused much more on conversion than on storytelling or inspiring an emotional connection to the brand. O'Toole also pointed out that the majority of their marketing budget went to performance advertising as opposed to building brand awareness. While these ads are effective, they often miss the value of the brand to 'gatekeeper' parents. Understanding this, the company shifted its marketing efforts to brand building through social media. This approach enables the brand to experiment with a multitude of storytelling techniques so they can identify what resonates with the audience and use paid advertising to amplify those concepts. Beginning a Campaign That Emphasizes Social Media The videos created by our partner VaynerX show the fun activities that people can do at the Urban Air Adventure Park and create a big buzz. They created an adventure park theme in a style that mimics video trends and social media platforms like TikTok and Instagram Reels. In one video, a dad freaks out over the pizza at the park, and a clip includes a kid and mom in a laser tag game putting their dinner plans on the line. The campaign aims to engage both children and parents and capture their attention by using fun and comedic formats that are popular on social media. O'Toole mentions that before growing the business, they want to test different creative concepts on social media, analyze the audience response and identified which concepts are worth investing the business's resources to advertise. Developing a More Comprehensive Marketing Strategy Social media marketing is just one piece of the puzzle. There is a more extensive marketing strategy that includes the use of other media in addition to social media marketing. The wider strategy for Urban Air Adventure Park began earlier this year and utilizes various channels. This includes 15 seconds ads on internet connected TVs, social media ads, programmatic interactive videos, and digital billboards. The ads showcase Urban Air parks as ideal places for kid's birthday parties and family outings. The playful and creative messages solict family interest in bringing their kids to Urban Air locations for a birthday party instead of a clown party which is all the rage now. As the brand's customers grow older, the campaign aims to attract new families to the brand's core older demographic. Making Decisions with Customer Data Unleashed Brands collects feedback from customers to help refine their marketing strategies. For example, after each visit to an Urban Air location, customers are asked to provide feedback by responding to an NPS (Net Promoter Score) survey. The company states that a considerable number of customers submit NPS surveys, which provide valuable data on customer sentiments. The company surveys data from review sites www.google.com and www.yelp.com to obtain feedback from customers. For marketing purposes, data from surveys and reviews are analyzed to understand the motivations and behaviors that compel families to visit the parks. Using feedback from customers, survey reviews, and data from social media, marketers can refine their messaging and develop more effective campaigns. Integrating Other Brands Unleashed Brands has made Urban Air Adventure Park one of its many brands. Other franchises under Unleashed Brands offer children various educational activities and skills development from playing. After implementing the new marketing strategy for Urban Air, the company intends to apply similar strategies for brand development to the rest of its businesses in its portfolio. Of the many brands expected to capture consumer interest, Sylvan Learning is where we see the most potential. While Urban Air offers exciting opportunities for visual storytelling, Sylvan presents unique challenges. Urban Air is easy because the energy and excitement around the space provide a lot of great content in a relaxed environment. Sylvan presents challenges because the content needs to be intentional and focused. Despite the challenges, the marketing team believes the difference in content should be added to the brand on the social storytelling and creative experimentation that is hallmark to most of the tutoring space. A Shift to More Contemporary Marketing The partnership with VaynerX is an indicator of the change in the marketing space. With increased consumption of social media and short-form videos, brands are beginning to allocate more budget to content-focused strategies. Instead of relying on traditional advertising, they are social-first campaigns that blend brand messaging and entertainment. Unleashed Brands has the opportunity to develop connections with families on a more personal and cultural level. The target audience is the contemporary parent and child. The goal is for families to appreciate the efforts being made and the connections being formed by the brands. Social media is a catalyst for creativity and humor. This is why it is important to develop content that is trendy and relatable to end users. The partnership with VaynerX further underlines the role of contemporary creative agencies focused on digital and social media. These agencies focus on audience engagement, platform-specific story-telling, and content creation. Unleashed Brands' changing marketing strategy demonstrates the shift that many companies are making in response to a digital-first environment with social media being one of the primary methods of discovery and engagement with a brand. The goal of the company is to shift from purely performance-based advertising to advertising that incorporates a more storytelling approach within brand messaging that provides clearly defined performance metrics. To accomplish this goal, the company is partnering with VaynerX and emphasizing the need for creative social content. As the campaign expands and more brands implement similar strategies, Unleashed Brands seeks to increase its market presence in youth enrichment. The company aims to continue attracting families searching for enjoyable, educational, and engaging activities for their children.

NPR is initiating a new brand campaign to bring value to both curiosity and the role of journalism in democracy. "For Your Right to Be Curious" positions NPR as a thoughtful and reliable media source that entertains and stimulates curiosity about the world and the issues that surround it. This project is timely considering the current climate of public media, and the constant funding and political supply restrictions affecting the operational capacity of nonprofit journalism organizations. This campaign, created by Mischief @ No Fixed Address, is centered around the idea that "everyone has questions." Mischief also focuses the campaign on the NPR brand, bold outdoor advertising, and digital ads to promote the campaign and address the fundamental issues at hand. This includes, but is not limited to, everyday issues and issues surrounding economics, politics, technology, and society. Curiosity as a Campaign Strategy The campaign's centerpiece is an innovative interpretation of NPR's popular logo. Instead of the abbreviation "NPR," the team replaced it with the words "Who," "How," and "Why," which all represent curiosity. The question prompts utilize the same tri-color branding as NPR. This simple change is effective at establishing the campaign's core belief that "curiosity fosters understanding." NPR makes use of the common words to show a lack of brand presence to demonstrate how journalists assist the public in navigating the complex challenges they face each day. The campaign includes actual questions that the public may have, such as how AI may influence the costs of running a home and why grocery prices remain high in a fluctuating economy. NPR aims to illustrate that journalism can tackle complex issues by addressing relevant everyday challenges. NPR's Chief Marketing Officer, Mishka Pitter-Armand, notes that the campaign's concept is born out of the organization's overarching mission. She reiterated that informing the public is a vital component of NPR's mission, and fostering curiosity is a key component of that mission. Campaigns to Solidify the Importance of Public Media Public media entities are experiencing severe budgetary and political pressure, making this campaign even more relevant. With Corporation of Public Broadcasting (CPB), the federal government’s largest public media funding source, NPR’s and PBS’s primary funder, having to revise funding projections, the situation is serious. While NPR has not described the campaign as such, the funder gap has been framed as NPR’s need to deepen audience engagement and attract a relationship-focused audience. NPR is responding to the reality that funders are less dependable while increasing audience engagement. Public media bodies, Pitter-Armand explains, face more urgent challenges in needing to promote information access, which is a fundamental democratic need. Access to information is a primary democratic need that Pitter-Armand explains is a challenge with increased funding cuts. Public media bodies, Pitter-Armand explains, face more urgent challenges in needing to promote information access, which is a fundamental democratic need. Access to information is a primary democratic need that Pitter-Armand explains is a challenge with increased funding cuts. Public media entities aim to get news that is more than just surface information to the public. The campaign is primarily focused on the importance of informing people and, more so, the value of curiosity. An Example of Bold Creativity to Promote Your Brand One of the most prominent pieces of the campaign is the large installation on top of NPR's headquarters in Washington, DC. They have transformed the usual NPR logo to read "Why?", which makes a strong visual case for the campaign and quite literally puts a question mark on NPR. Outdoor advertising is also a major campaign component. Large billboards that pose questions as the main text have been placed in major markets such as New York, Washington, and Chicago. Most of the billboards have a QR code that directs the viewer to a relevant story, podcast, or news report on NPR's digital platforms. A New York Times print ad campaign also ran a curiosity manifesto of sorts, explaining why consideration of the "why" is important in understanding complex issues. These examples of creativity are, in themselves, a multi-channel campaign that spans online and offline. A Collective Accomplishment It’s remarkable that the campaign was developed with a relatively small budget. The creative agency Mischief @ No Fixed Address did the creative work pro bono, and a number of media partners donated ad space. Such a collaboration shows the solidarity that many media and organizational partners have demonstrated in support of public media. With no other resources other than their creative and distribution support, partners enabled NPR to initiate a national campaign. The approach also reflects how mission-oriented organizations resourcefully utilize collaboration to advance advocacy, even in the absence of funding. Using Digital Media to Grow the Campaign At the moment, the campaign primarily relies on digital and outdoor ads, but additional elements are already in the works. NPR is going to produce a video to convey the “right to be curious” message across all digital channels. The new video content, in all likelihood, will include some paid promotion and will appear on NPR’s own platforms as well. The team is also seeking additional partnerships that could help the campaign to be more widely disseminated. The advertisement strategy that NPR has chosen is intended to reach both existing customers and individuals who are becoming acquainted with the services of NPR by joining conventional advertisement routes and sponsoring digital narratives. A Stronger Statement About News Reporting The advertisement tells us that brand marketing is secondary to the importance of journalism in today's world, where division and misinformation are rampant, and marketing a brand becomes secondary to the importance of encouraging people to think. At NPR, the advertisement places a value on curiosity by stating that it is a right, and that right is protected by good journalism. The advertisement portrays that meaningful storytelling by journalism is desirable and justifies the control of the value by the media company. NPR does not just control a message that promotes a person or a show; it controls the message of the value of a question. What We See The ad portrays NPR has value that is worth controlling in a brand campaign, which in this case is a response to the marketing need of a public broadcaster in the ever-changing media landscape. NPR is reinforcing the notion that democracy thrives on informed citizens by launching a campaign that encourages people to ask questions. In addition to marketing the merchandise, the campaign also highlights the role journalism plays in explaining and clarifying the world around us. NPR’s message is elementary yet profound. In a world of rapidly changing technologies and information systems, it is a particularly salient and timely message.

Adidas has become one of the biggest sportswear companies in the world. Selling products in hundreds of markets and millions of customers across all continents. Adidas has started using marketing strategies focused on local marketing first. Adidas has decided to give the power of local culture, local trends, and local customer behaviors to regional teams instead of making brand experience decisions from the global top-down approach. Company executives like to call this approach a \"global brand with a local mindset.\" This has become a central aspect to Adidas’s marketing and expansion strategy. It also matches the global business environment right now. Businesses must be uniform across the globe, but also allow for local personalization for diverse regional markets. Adidas has ensured that they remain relevant in the rapidly evolving sportswear industry by integrating the local market knowledge and creativity with local branding. The Concept "Global Brand, Local Mindset" Bjørn Gulden, CEO of Adidas, has repeatedly spoken about how larger companies, particularly Adidas, should “start getting closer” to their consumers. Gulden mentions that the complexity of the market, and the increasingly diverse cultural market, cannot be managed from one central point regarding the brands global strategy. Adidas is consequently giving more autonomy to regional teams regarding how to portray the brand in their markets. This autonomy extends to the design of retail stores, how marketing is done, and the overall customer journey in digital stores. The general premise is straightforward: Employ a consistent global brand identity. Tailor messages, offerings, and experiences to the local context. This approach enables Adidas to balance the strong equity of a global brand with the need to be locally relevant. Empowering Local Teams The decentralization of decision-making is one of the most significant things Adidas is doing at present. It has resulted in local market teams being able to exercise far greater control over the marketing initiatives, digital stores, and retail designs. For example, the Adidas stores located in various countries will look in different ways due to local consumers' preferences and the architecture style of the area. Because of this, storefront construction, interior design, and visual merchandising will be redesigned to be appropriate in the local area. In terms of digital marketing, local advertising can target audience constituents by using regional celebrities, influencers, or other cultural icons. This level of flexibility makes sure that the brand feels local and integrated into the culture of each market, rather than too cookie-cutter or uniform. This large amount of money also relates to Adidas' marketing strategy in offering a global-local strategy. The company spent €3.07 billion on marketing and point-of-sale activities in 2025, which was 12.4% of total sales. This was one of the most money the brand has spent on marketing. These money flows stimulate global brand campaigns and local events at the same time. The company focuses on the long-term marketing investments to keep the brand visible and engaged marketing activities worldwide. Adidas utilizes the following marketing techniques: Creating brand stories and platforms that connect with people across the globe Marketing products in more localized ways Sport sponsorships and partnerships Collaboration with culturally diverse athletes and artists All of these contribute to the brand's success in both global and local markets. Localized execution of global campaigns Adidas tends to initiate large global campaigns that are localized for specific target audiences. An instance of this is the 'You Got This' brand campaign, which is intended to inspire consumers and athletes around the world for several years. Despite the consistent theme across all the regions, the execution is influenced by the dominant sport of the region and the existing influencers and consumers' preferences. 'The Original' campaign, which features Adidas's classic styles of sneakers, also utilizes culturally relevant content to connect with the young audience across different regions. This approach enables Adidas to achieve consistent brand messaging while adapting to different target audiences. Combining sports, culture, and entertainment Through the integration of sports, music, and street culture, Adidas is able to reach more audience. The company frequently collaborates with athletes, entertainers, and cultural icons, in order to communicate and promote the message in various different sectors. For example, collaborating with celebrities and sports figures aids promotion in different regions while also maintaining relevance to the fans in those regions. Major sports tournaments are also very important in this regard. Adidas frequently undertakes various localized marketing initiatives in connection with global sports tournaments such as the FIFA World Cup. The presence of national teams and fans, as well as the regional patriotic sentiments, provide opportunities for focused marketing. These relationships strengthen the brand at the intersection of sports and of culture. Product Strategy: Local Trends and Global Icons Another of Adidas's strategies is to achieve a harmonious blend of global product offerings and localized, regional, or area specific offerings. Their stylish and fashionable designs enable classic shoes such as the Samba and Superstar to fit into various local fashions and to become more popular as a result of local fashion trends and community engagement. In addition, Adidas launches products that are exclusive to specific markets or cultural activities. This localized product strategy amplifies the connection the brand has with its consumers, thereby creating more enthusiasm for the products. By blending global iconic brands with local creativity, Adidas strengthens its brand identity and consistency, as well as the relevance of its offerings. Understanding the Importance of a Local Market The top decision-makers at Adidas demonstrate their confidence in the leadership of their regional divisions by allowing them to gain a firsthand understanding of customer decision-making. Numerous shops in the region have an improved understanding of trends, cultural changes, and customer needs. These shops can regularly update their marketing strategies. Regional teams can achieve the following: Determine the most effective celebrities and athletes to endorse the brand. Identify the sports and civil rights movements to cover. Identify the most effective retail strategies for the region. This illustrates the local knowledge required regarding customer relational database marketing. Key Component of Adidas's Repeat Business The ‘global brand, local mindset’ approach for Adidas played a critical role in the brand’s business transformation. The brand experienced declining sales and the end of the collaboration with Yeezy. Effective marketing and area customer relationship management enabled the brand to achieve a positive business turnaround. The brand experienced positive business results as evidenced by the record sales of €24.8 billion last year, confirming the effective business transformation. The business has once again regained customers' interest and boosted its worldwide standings by making markets more liberal and investing heavily in brand building. Why Global Brands Need to Localize Adidas' strategy reflects a broader phenomenon in global marketing: brands should be global and local at the same time. Today's consumers expect brands to understand their culture, values, and lifestyle. Campaigns viewed as culturally relevant are typically more successful than the generic global messaging. When businesses localize, they can: Strengthen emotional connections with consumers Respond to local trends in a timely manner Better align the product with the market Enhance the perceived authenticity of the brand Global brands increasingly rely on their ability to integrate local insights with a robust global positioning. Adidas' Future Marketing Strategy Adidas intends to continue consolidating its global-local strategy as it expands into new markets and as it prepares for major global sports events. The company aims to achieve a high single-digit sales growth rate for the next few years and operating margins above 10% by 2028. Adidas will continue to invest in marketing, empower regional teams, and engage with consumers through sports, culture, and community to achieve these objectives. Adidas’s strategy illustrates how global brands can successfully tailor their approach and branding, rather than deploy unifying marketing strategies everywhere. This is critical, as consumer tastes and preferences differ markedly across disparate regions.

When a video of a baby macaque holding a stuffed animal went viral earlier this year, brands didn't just watch. They jumped in to take advantage of a cultural moment that was happening all over the world. When Punch, a young macaque at Ichikawa Zoo in Japan, hugged a stuffed orangutan, it made people all over the world feel good. This caused millions of posts on social media and a lot of branded responses. Punch's story wasn't just another video of a cute animal. It became a moment that people of all ages and backgrounds could relate to. This was an invitation for marketers to get involved in "moment marketing," which means using current cultural events to make brand messages that are funny, relevant, or make sense. But the craziness around Punch showed that not every brand response works, and some can even make things worse. To help brands get through these fast-paced times, advertising and strategy experts have come up with five rules that can turn participation into impact without falling into the trap of blind FOMO (fear of missing out) marketing. 1. Act quickly, but don't change who you are as a brand. Timing is the most important part of moment marketing. You might not have much time to respond when something big happens in the news, like a viral video, a trending hashtag, or a cultural flashpoint. People couldn't stop talking about Punch. The #Punch hashtag got millions of posts in just a few days as people reacted emotionally to his situation and strength. Ashish Bhasin, who used to be the CEO of Dentsu Asia Pacific and now runs The Bhasin Consulting Group, says that the main idea behind moment marketing is to use an event that has already gotten a lot of attention. But being quick doesn't mean being careless. It's important to act quickly, but only if it fits with what your brand stands for. For example, if a brand that is known for serious, trust-based positioning suddenly posts funny jokes that don't fit, it might seem out of place. Timing and brand alignment have to work together; just because you're quick doesn't mean you have to be. 2. Know the Culture: Context Is Important You can't just react. Brands need to understand the cultural context of a moment, including why it matters, who it affects, and how it makes people feel. People from all over the world not only liked Punch's story, but they also cared about him. People shared the videos not because Punch was cute, but because they could all relate to how he held on to a toy for comfort. Brands that got this emotional level and didn't just slap a logo or slogan on it did better. Some people used themes of comfort, friendship, and strength to make content that showed how people felt at the time. These brands went from being opportunistic to really being a part of the culture by understanding why people were interested in Punch's story. 3. Don't use FOMO marketing for no good reason It's normal for brands to want to be part of something that goes viral, but there's a fine line between being relevant and being desperate. Santosh Padhi, the founder and chief creative officer of INTO Creative, says that the need to be there can make people less clear-headed and hurt their reputation. Padhi says that clients sometimes want people to get involved even when it doesn't make sense for their brand or message. This can make content seem fake and forced, and people can tell right away. It's not against the law to ignore a viral moment. If a brand can't add anything useful, it might be better to skip it on purpose. A brand should be able to win by taking part, either by making its identity stronger, connecting with its audience, or bringing something new to the conversation. If it doesn't, the best thing to do might be to stay quiet. 4. Use what you've learned from past successes and failures The Punch phenomenon isn't the first time that moment marketing has changed how people talk about brands. There are good examples in marketing from 2025. For instance, Instamart worked with a well-known Bhojpuri dance maker. This worked because the brand got involved when the creator's meme was at its most popular, which meant that its creative fit the cultural pulse of that trend. Instamart didn't try to make a story that didn't fit; instead, they used the meme in a funny and relevant way. On the other hand, food delivery service A lot of people didn't like Swiggy's invite-only service campaign because it used suggestive language that some people found offensive. Some parts of Swiggy's edgy moment marketing didn't work, which shows that even when you do things smartly, you still need to pay attention to tone and how people feel. Both examples show that you don't automatically know how to be culturally fluent; you have to learn how to do it. Brands that look at what worked and what didn't have a better idea of where they should be when the next trend comes along. 5. Don't freak out; make your company more flexible. The Punch trend may have taught us more than just how to be creative. It may have also shown us how brands think about marketing in the moment. You need teams and processes that can move quickly without losing their ability to make good decisions in order to be truly agile. This means keeping an eye on things in real time, giving creative teams more freedom, and giving decision-makers who know both brand values and cultural trends more power. Marketers should be careful not to act out of fear. FOMO can be a strong motivator, but it's not always the best way to make plans. When teams feel like they have to "show up" at every trending moment, their work may not be as good. A well-thought-out, measured response based on how relevant the brand is usually leads to more long-term engagement than a post that is meant to go viral right away. How Moment Marketing Will Change in the Future The Punch moment shows how fast internet culture changes and how fast people pay attention. Memes and viral videos can change the conversation in minutes, not hours. This means that moment marketing is no longer just something brands do on the side; it's becoming a big part of their digital strategy. But the rules are changing: people are getting smarter, more sensitive, and angrier about things that aren't real. To win, you have to be right, not just first. Brands that mix speed with purpose, cultural understanding with authenticity, and creativity with empathy will not only get people's attention, but they will also build long-lasting relationships. When FOMO can make brands make quick marketing decisions, they can leave a lasting impression by following these five moment marketing rules: act quickly but carefully, stay culturally aware, don't just go along with the crowd, learn from real outcomes, and build true agility.

Gap Inc. has unveiled a bold new loyalty program designed to redefine how customers interact with its stable of brands — and the launch arrives at a moment when apparel retailers are increasingly betting that loyalty and cultural relevance go hand in hand. The program, called Encore, combines traditional rewards with exclusive experiences and cultural content in an effort to deepen customer engagement and help the company regain fashion relevance after years of fluctuating performance. The overarching idea behind Encore is simple yet ambitious: fashion is no longer just about clothing — it’s an element of entertainment and culture. Customers today want something more than discounts; they want connection, access, and opportunities to participate in brand stories that feel meaningful. Executives at Gap Inc. see Encore as a way to deliver not only savings, but memorable moments and lifestyle content that resonate with a broader, more culturally engaged audience. What Encore Is — and Why It Matters Encore represents one of the most significant loyalty efforts in U.S. apparel retail, partly because it unifies rewards across Gap Inc.’s portfolio — including Old Navy, Gap, Banana Republic and Athleta — and partly because it extends into areas beyond traditional points and discounts. The program was built on insights from customer research showing that shoppers increasingly value early access, meaningful experiences, and rewards that feel purposeful and easy to redeem. This shift reflects a broader trend in loyalty marketing: brands are moving beyond transactional relationships toward experiential engagement. Instead of only incentivizing purchases with points and coupons, leading retailers are experimenting with rewards that elevate the shopping experience and create cultural relevance, such as exclusive content, behind-the-scenes access, or limited-edition product drops. The positioning of Encore as part fashion loyalty and part lifestyle enrichment signals Gap Inc.’s intent to compete not just with other retailers, but with entertainment platforms and cultural brands that increasingly capture consumer attention. In other words, the company is trying to make loyalty feel like a broader brand experience rather than a simple transactional program. How the Program Works Encore is structured into three distinct membership tiers — each with its own benefits and rewards — giving customers a clear path to deeper engagement: 1. Core Membership: Open to anyone, with no minimum spend requirement. Members earn five points for every $1 spent at Gap Inc. brands. Free shipping on orders above $50 and a special birthday bonus. Points can be redeemed on purchases, including “exclusive products, offers, and experiences” in a proprietary Encore Market. The Encore Market features a rotating mix of member-only offerings, including limited-edition items and access to exclusive experiences — such as tours of designer studios or curated brand events. 2. Premier Membership: Requires $350 in annual spend across Gap Inc. brands. In addition to Core benefits, Premier members earn the ability to create their own personal sale day with 15% off purchases. They also receive extended return windows and birthday bonuses for themselves and a family member. 3. All Access Membership: This tier is unlocked by holding an Encore credit card, co-issued with partner bank Barclays. All Access members get 25 points per $1 spent at Gap Inc. brands, and 15 points per $1 spent at eligible partner apparel brands outside the Gap portfolio. They also enjoy lower free-shipping thresholds, plus all Premier tier benefits and priority access to select experiences. Across all tiers, the program brings a level of flexibility and experience-based value that goes beyond traditional loyalty. Members can even choose to donate their rewards to charitable organizations, adding a social purpose dimension to the program. Experiences, Partnerships, and Cultural Moments Where Encore sets itself apart from many retail loyalty programs is in its emphasis on fashion and entertainment convergence. Rather than just rewarding purchases, the program offers early access to exclusive drops, curated content, and cultural moments tied to Gap Inc.’s partnerships with major entertainment brands and media players. At launch, some of the curated rewards include unique items not sold elsewhere, limited-edition pieces, and experiences that blur the lines between consumer rewards and cultural engagement. For example, members have a chance to visit a designer’s studio in New York City — providing a rare look inside the creative process behind the clothes they buy. These features reflect Gap Inc.’s belief that customers today want connection and access around the stories and personalities behind the brands — not just discounts. In this sense, the program is less about saving money and more about belonging to a cultural community of style, design and shared experiences. A Broader Industry Context Gap Inc.’s shift toward an experience-driven loyalty program tracks with broader industry trends. As competition for customer attention intensifies, brands are investing more in loyalty initiatives that combine personalization, cultural relevance, and lifestyle perks. Many successful retail loyalty programs today increasingly emphasize early access to products, exclusive branded content, and collaborations that elevate perception beyond simple savings. By positioning Encore as much a cultural platform as a rewards program, Gap Inc. isn’t merely offering another discount initiative — it is betting on loyalty as a lifestyle engagement tool. Whether this approach will help the company regain cultural cachet and strengthen customer relationships over the long term remains to be seen, but the ambition behind Encore reflects a clear shift in how retail brands think about loyalty in the age of experience-driven consumption.

The story of BrewDog — the Scottish craft brewer that burst onto the global scene with a fiercely loyal tribe of fans and street-level marketing savvy — is often framed as a classic rise-and-fall narrative. Once valued at over £2bn and boasting more than 200,000 small investor “punks,” the company now finds itself struggling, reportedly exploring a sale at a valuation far below its peak. But amidst the headlines and scrutiny, there’s a deeper and more nuanced marketing lesson: the extraordinary power — and peril — of building a genuine brand community. At its core, BrewDog succeeded by turning casual beer drinkers into something far more invested: believers, advocates, and even shareholders. In 2009, the company launched its pioneering crowdfunding initiative, Equity for Punks, offering fans the chance to buy shares and be part of its journey. This wasn’t just an investor base — it was a brand community in the truest academic sense, one where devotees shared habits, attitudes and a “consciousness of kind” that transcended mere commercial transactions. Brand community theory, first articulated by researchers Albert Muniz and Thomas O’Guinn, describes how consumers can coalesce around shared values and identities associated with a brand. Examples historically include passionate followings behind Harley-Davidson or Apple, where devotees not only buy products but advocate, defend and spread the ethos of the brand. BrewDog’s early years embodied this dynamic perfectly. The Equity for Punks scheme created a structural anchor for this community. For a modest investment — often around £100 — fans received lifetime discounts, exclusive invites to events and a sense of ownership in the brand’s success. These perks cultivated enthusiasm and belonging. In 2018, over 8,000 of these investor-fans attended BrewDog’s annual general meeting, turning it into one of the largest shareholder turnouts anywhere in the world. That community translated into tangible growth. Punk investors didn’t just drink the beer — they helped finance expansion, bars and breweries around the world. They became vocal advocates, organically driving word-of-mouth and helping the brand penetrate markets. That buzz made BrewDog a true challenger in a complacent beer market dominated by multinational lagers and uninspired products. The lesson for marketers is clear: a thriving brand community can amplify reach and credibility in ways paid advertising often can’t match. When customers feel genuinely connected to a mission or identity, they become collaborators in growth rather than passive consumers. In the early BrewDog story, community wasn’t just advertising — it was the engine of expansion. However, there’s an important caveat. As BrewDog’s recent turbulence illustrates, community enthusiasm is not immune to strategic missteps or reputational damage. Critics have raised concerns about management decisions that appeared to sideline the interests of smaller investors in favor of private equity, undermining the trust that fuelled much of the brand’s goodwill. Many of the original Equity for Punks holders saw their potential upside diluted or diminished in the face of corporate reshuffling — a reality that has major implications for brand loyalty and advocacy. Wider controversies haven’t helped. The brand’s provocative marketing style — including stunts that spanned from cheeky slogans to intentionally provocative campaigns — drew attention, but not always positive attention. Some recent ads were condemned as insensitive or inappropriate, triggering backlash and cancellation. These episodes have fed a broader narrative of a once-edgy brand losing its way, with some commentators questioning whether its punk ethos has been supplanted by corporate priorities. This evolution reflects a core tension in community-centric marketing: how do you maintain authenticity as a brand grows? A close-knit community thrives on shared values and perception of integrity. When actions — whether strategic deals with external investors or tone-deaf messaging — appear to betray those values, the community’s emotional investment can quickly erode. Another relevant point for marketers is how BrewDog’s community built buzz — and how it evolved. The brewer didn’t just rely on annual share offers. It leveraged social media, experiential events like tastings and tours, and encouraged peer-to-peer engagement that turned ordinary consumers into storytellers for the brand. This reflects broader trends in modern brand building: communities flourish when brands actively facilitate connection, participation, and shared identity. Yet, it’s also worth noting that community alone wasn’t enough to sustain BrewDog through changing consumer sentiments and market challenges. Brand health metrics have reportedly declined in recent years, indicating that enthusiasm doesn’t automatically convert to sustained preference, especially when external factors — such as evolving tastes, competition or economic pressures — shift. For marketers, the BrewDog case provides a rich study with dual lessons: first, invest authentically in building communities that share your brand’s purpose; second, protect that relationship with transparency and consistency. Emotional loyalty is a powerful asset, but it’s fragile when undermined by perceptions of inequity or inconsistency. In the end, BrewDog’s story is not just about provocation or rapid growth — it’s about the potential and pitfalls of making customers feel like stakeholders. Long after headlines fade, the true marketing takeaway is this: a community that feels seen, valued and aligned with a brand’s mission can be the greatest advocate of all — provided that mission stays credible.

A growing body of research is shedding new light on a challenge that many organizations quietly know exists but seldom address: the confidence gap among marketers. Despite increased investments in tools, training and certification programs, a significant number of marketers still report feeling underprepared or lacking confidence in core areas of their work — especially when it comes to analytics, strategy, and emerging technologies. This isn’t simply a matter of missing skills; it reflects deeper issues around training quality, workplace support, and career development pathways. The findings should serve as a wake-up call for marketing leaders, HR teams, and C-suite executives alike: investing in skills training is necessary but not sufficient. If marketers don’t feel confident applying what they’ve learned, the organization loses value — even when budgets for upskilling are substantial. Bridging this confidence gap will require not only training, but a cultural shift toward experiential learning, psychological safety and strategic clarity. The Confidence Deficit: What the Research Shows Recent studies into marketing workforce trends identify a recurring theme: marketers often don’t feel confident in the very areas they are expected to lead on. Whether it’s interpreting analytics dashboards, defining customer journeys, or leveraging AI tools for campaign optimization, many practitioners rate their comfort levels lower than their employers might expect given current investment in training programs. For example, a significant proportion of marketers place high importance on analytics skills, yet fewer rate themselves as highly capable. Similarly, confidence in areas such as performance measurement, strategic planning, and emerging digital technologies remains uneven across teams. These findings hold even among professionals with formal qualifications or years of experience, suggesting that exposure to training doesn’t automatically translate into applied confidence. Skills vs. Confidence: Why They’re Not the Same It’s easy to conflate skills and confidence, but the two are distinct. A marketer may understand the theory of multi-channel attribution yet still hesitate to implement it because of uncertainty about the right approach or fear of failure. Likewise, many are trained in new tools — especially AI platforms — but lack the experience to judge when and how to use them effectively. This distinction matters because marketing isn’t just about knowing what to do; it’s about doing it with conviction. Without confidence, even skilled marketers may defer decisions, under-communicate value to stakeholders, or fail to innovate. Confidence, in this context, is a combination of: practical experience feedback loops that reinforce success psychological safety to experiment supportive leadership Without these elements, training can feel theoretical rather than actionable. The Role of Workplace Culture Work environment plays a major role in shaping marketer confidence. Teams that reward curiosity, encourage experimentation, and tolerate intelligent failure tend to cultivate higher confidence levels. Conversely, environments that harshly penalize missteps — even small ones — or overemphasize short-term performance can stifle initiative. Leaders often underestimate the impact of culture on confidence. They may assume that training alone will solve capability gaps, ignoring the fact that confidence thrives where people feel supported to apply skills in real business contexts. This includes regular feedback, coaching, mentorship, and opportunities to apply new tools and frameworks in low-risk settings. Strategic Clarity and Confidence Alignment Another factor contributing to the confidence gap is the absence of clear strategic direction. Even skilled marketers can feel unsure of themselves if they lack clarity on organizational priorities, audience insights, or performance expectations. Marketers thrive when they understand why a strategy matters as much as how to execute it. When leadership teams define specific growth objectives, articulate customer segments clearly, and tie marketing KPIs to business outcomes, marketers report higher confidence — not just because they know their skills but because they understand how to apply them in context. Emerging Technologies: Confidence in the AI Era The rise of tools such as generative AI has amplified both excitement and anxiety among marketers. On one hand, these tools promise efficiency gains and creative augmentation. On the other, they introduce new workflows, require new heuristics, and demand judgment calls that many marketers feel unprepared for. A marketer may have completed an AI certification, but without real-world application, they can lack the confidence to use tools like LLM-driven content generators responsibly, assess AI output quality, or integrate AI into customer journeys without introducing risk. This is a critical issue because technology skills alone are insufficient without experience and judgment. Confidence grows through iteration, feedback, and contextual use — not merely through completing a course or watching a demo. How Organizations Can Close the Confidence Gap Addressing the confidence gap requires a multi-pronged approach: 1. Shift From Training to ApplicationHeavy investments in skills programs without corresponding opportunities to apply those skills lead to stagnation. Companies should create structured spaces for experimentation — pilot projects, cross-functional problem solving, and real campaigns under mentorship. 2. Foster Psychological SafetyWhen marketers feel safe to take calculated risks, iterate, and learn from mistakes, confidence naturally increases. Leaders can build this by normalizing learning curves and celebrating thoughtful experimentation. 3. Align Strategy With SkillsClearly communicated marketing goals and frameworks help marketers see the why behind their work. When people understand the impact, they feel more confident making decisions aligned with business outcomes. 4. Coaching and MentorshipIndividualized support accelerates confidence more than generic training. Mentors can help marketers bridge the gap between knowledge and execution, offering insight, feedback, and shared experience. 5. Real-Time Feedback and MetricsConfidence grows when marketers see the impact of their work. Timely performance data, reflective reviews, and constructive feedback loops help teams understand what’s working and where to refine their approach. The Bigger Picture Bridging the confidence gap isn’t just a human-resources issue — it’s a strategic imperative. In an era where marketing must deliver measurable business impact while navigating rapid change, teams that combine capability with conviction gain an important competitive edge. Organizations that invest in skills without building environments where marketers feel empowered to use those skills risk leaving true potential untapped. In contrast, companies that support confidence as a core competence — by fostering culture, clarity and constructive experience — unlock sustained performance, innovation and resilience. Ultimately, the confidence gap isn’t about what marketers don’t know. It’s about what they don’t feel prepared to do. Closing that gap will require not just lessons and tools, but environments where learning is rooted in doing — and where marketers are encouraged to grow both their skillset and their self-belief.

For years, marketers have lamented the steady decline of organic reach on LinkedIn. Posts that once generated tens of thousands of views now barely crack a few hundred. Marketers blame shifting algorithms, shadow-banning, or even a broken platform. But according to recent thinking from industry experts, LinkedIn’s reach decline isn’t a malfunction — it’s a sign that the rules of visibility and value have fundamentally changed. Rather than accept reach dips as a fault, savvy practitioners are starting to see them as a signal: generic posting and vanity metrics no longer equate to business results. Instead, true content success on LinkedIn in 2026 is rooted in purposeful marketing that drives meaningful interaction and business outcomes. The Myth of “Broken” Reach Many content creators presume that a drop in impressions means LinkedIn is broken or unfairly de-prioritizing organic posts. This perception gained traction amid widespread reports of declines in feed distribution and engagement over the past year. But industry observers argue that reach hasn’t disappeared — it’s been recalibrated to prioritize quality over quantity. Algorithms today emphasize relevance, user experience, and engagement quality, not simple eyeballs on a screen. In effect, LinkedIn is filtering out noise and rewarding content that prompts real interaction — especially professional conversations that extend beyond likes. This shift mirrors broader trends in social media: platforms no longer reward “broadcast” content that tries to reach as many people as possible. Instead, they reward contextual relevance and genuine engagement. Why Generic Reach Strategies Have Stopped Working In the early years of LinkedIn content marketing, a simple strategy reigned supreme: post often, use broad hashtags, and sprinkle in motivational quotes or recycled slides. That drove visibility. But as the platform’s feed became more crowded and competitive, these tactics lost effectiveness. The reality is that algorithm updates increasingly suppress low-value signals — such as shallow engagement, recycled content, or broad motivational posts — in favor of original insights with clear relevance to a defined audience. Low-value content may still appear in feeds, but it no longer gets the same amplification it once did. LinkedIn’s algorithm now closely evaluates early engagement — particularly within the first 60–90 minutes — to determine whether a post has relevance for extended distribution. Comments, saves, and meaningful interactions are weighted far more heavily than passive likes, and this has shifted what kinds of content get surfaced. Reach Isn’t Dead — It’s Evolving For marketers, this evolution is both a challenge and an opportunity. Reach isn’t gone — it’s just harder to earn, and no longer the key metric it once was. Instead of chasing vanity numbers, successful creators focus on how content helps them achieve strategic outcomes: building authority, triggering conversations, and converting engagement into real professional connections. Take, for example, the algorithm’s current emphasis on comments and conversation. A post that generates a few dozen thoughtful comments from the right audience is far more valuable than one that racked up thousands of passive views but no interaction. This is not simply “engagement bait” — it’s genuine professional dialogue. Similarly, formats that keep users on the platform — such as PDF carousels, LinkedIn documents, or native content — tend to outperform posts that redirect to external sites. LinkedIn increasingly wants users to stay within its ecosystem, meaning external links now often suppress reach. What Real Marketing Looks Like on LinkedIn So if reach metrics aren’t the goal anymore, what should marketers optimize for? The answer lies in quality over quantity and conversations over impressions. 1. Targeted Insight Over Generic Content Instead of broad career advice or generic business quotes, focus on insights tailored to a specific professional audience. Specificity signals relevance and invites discussion. 2. Engagement As a Priority Content should prompt engagement that is genuine and valuable — not just likes. Thoughtful comments, return messages, and subsequent conversations with prospects or peers are the new gold standard. 3. Storytelling and Original Perspective Authentic, story-driven posts that reflect real experiences, challenges, and perspectives resonate far better than recycled slides or generic listicles. They humanize the author and build trust — a key currency on LinkedIn. 4. Strategic Use of Format and Timing Using formats that boost dwell time (like carousels and documents) and posting at times when specific audiences are active can help content surface. But more importantly, staying active through replies and follow-ups — especially early — signals relevance to the algorithm. The Bigger Picture: Human Connection Ultimately, LinkedIn’s changes reflect a broader shift in digital marketing: platforms are no longer engines for broadcast content. They are ecosystems built for professional connection and targeted conversation. Reach — in the traditional sense — has been replaced by relevance and resonance. For marketers who adapt, this shift offers a powerful opportunity. By investing in content that fosters genuine dialogue, reflects deep expertise, and aligns closely with audience needs, LinkedIn becomes less about fleeting views and more about meaningful connection and brand authority. Rather than lament shrinking reach, the most forward-thinking practitioners see it as LinkedIn’s way of pruning noise and prioritizing what actually matters: content that drives value, conversation, and professional outcomes — real marketing, not just visibility.