PepsiCo’s Mug brand finds Gen Z sweet spot: Fragrance, dogs and TikTok

The quickly growing brand leans into its recent social media successes by launching Daddy’s Home cologne on TikTok Shop.

By Aaron Baar • Dec. 3, 2025

Columbia challenges flat-earthers as part of bolder marketing revamp

In an open letter and social videos, CEO Tim Boyle tasks conspiracy theorists with proving their beliefs for a chance at winning the company’s assets.

By Peter Adams • Dec. 2, 2025

Explore the Trendline➔

Top 5 stories from Marketing Dive

From the continued rise of artificial intelligence to the emergence of new digital channels, here's a look at key trends driving marketing in 2026.

By Marketing Dive staff

Boss, Lancôme open virtual boutiques with Snapchat’s shoppable AR

Chopard and other luxury brands are featured in the Snapchat Winter Village, a digital activation meant to mimic the in-person shopping experience.

By Jessica Hammers • Dec. 2, 2025

Burger King’s CMO on how a ‘SpongeBob’ collab cuts across generations

The partnership spans new ads, a special menu, toys, packaging, an app takeover, experiential activations and more.

By Chris Kelly • Dec. 1, 2025

Maybelline taps into microdrama trend with holiday content series

The five-part “Maybe This Christmas” reunites the co-stars of Netflix’s “Hot Frosty” with a twisty story promoting Instant Eraser Concealer.

By Peter Adams • Nov. 26, 2025

Why American Eagle tapped Martha Stewart to extend beyond Gen Z

After making headlines with its fall campaign, the retailer is targeting gift givers and recipients alike for the next chapter of its “Give Great Jeans” holiday push. 

By Jessica Hammers • Nov. 25, 2025

Why Kraft Mac & Cheese went hypercontextual for ‘Best Thing Ever’ push

The brand will make its largest media investment to date with a campaign that seeks to reach consumers in unexpected and disruptive ways.

By Chris Kelly • Nov. 24, 2025

Creator ad spend to reach $37B as marketers turn to AI for scale: IAB

While nearly three-quarters of advertisers already use or are planning to use AI in the next year to boost efficiency in the creator space, concerns remain.

By Aaron Baar • Nov. 20, 2025

Carnival combats screen-induced ‘fun deficit’ with new brand platform

New ads starring Nick Offerman tackle doomscrolling while showing the actor enjoying cruise activities like waterslides and bungee jumping.

By Peter Adams • Nov. 20, 2025

How Danone optimizes creator-driven ads as investment surges

CreativeX has developed creator content benchmarks to help advertisers bridge the gap between authenticity and measurable effects.

By Chris Kelly • Nov. 20, 2025

How Unilever is pushing sports marketing beyond broadcast convention

Set to nearly double its spend on U.S. sports marketing, the CPG giant sees the category as emblematic of a shift to “many-to-many” marketing.

By Peter Adams • Nov. 19, 2025

How Gen Z is reshaping holiday marketing — and what brands can do about it

The cohort’s reliance on social media and influencers for product discovery remains, while new levels of comfort with retail media and AI take shape.

By Jessica Hammers • Nov. 19, 2025

E.l.f. bets on power of sound for kinder social media algorithms

A campaign timed to World Kindness Day includes audiovisual stories designed to interrupt consumers’ feeds and combat doomscrolling.

By Jessica Hammers • Nov. 13, 2025

Disney, Snapchat blur the lines between AR and IRL for ‘Zootopia 2’

The multichannel campaign includes activations in popular Los Angeles spots and a Snapchat cameo within the film that reimagines the app as “Snapcat.”

By Aaron Baar • Nov. 13, 2025

Instacart’s animated holiday ads aim to ease pressure amid seasonal chaos

Spots that take a page from Rankin/Bass stop-motion classics were created with Starburns Industries, RadicalMedia and internal shop Local Produce.

By Peter Adams • Nov. 13, 2025

Why marketers like Unilever, State Farm are headed to NBCU’s BravoCon

Bravo’s fan convention for its reality shows led to double-digit lifts in brand recall, purchase intent and emotional engagement for participants in 2023.

By Chris Kelly • Nov. 13, 2025

How McDonald’s turned K-pop fandom into a mass-market cultural play

An experiential activation crafted by the IW Group helped the fast food giant benefit from buzz around the return of BTS.

By Chris Kelly • Nov. 12, 2025

Home Depot’s heartfelt holiday ads showcase Christmas tree farmers

“The Right Tree” tells the story of how the home improvement retailer helps families find their perfect tree and is accompanied by a series of social videos.

By Jessica Hammers • Nov. 10, 2025

Sociable: Documents show Meta earns billions from scam ads, Reuters reports

Meta is aware of the situation and penalizes some scammers with higher ad rates, according to internal documents reviewed by Reuters.

By Andrew Hutchinson • Nov. 6, 2025

Chewy ramps up creator storefronts ahead of holiday season

More than 600 creators have signed up for the Chewy Storefronts platform, enabling them to curate shoppable product lists relevant to their audiences.

By Sara Karlovitch • Nov. 6, 2025

Sociable: Snapchat brings Perplexity AI to inboxes

Early next year, Snapchatters will be able to pose questions to the conversational chatbot directly in the Chat interface. 

By Andrew Hutchinson • Nov. 6, 2025

5 Gum asks Gen Z creators to envision ‘How It Feels to Chew’ for social

The brand’s signature piece of marketing is becoming a 12-part social series developed with Energy BBDO that showcases overstimulating flavor.

By Peter Adams • Nov. 5, 2025

Best Buy bets on sports, creators to serve up holiday gifting inspiration

The tech retailer will feature creators in its CTV ads for the first time and will advertise during 30 different NFL games throughout the season. 

By Jessica Hammers • Nov. 3, 2025

Meta’s AI bets supercharge marketing efficiency — and costs

The annual revenue run rate for Meta’s AI ad infrastructure, including Advantage+, is now over $60 billion, speaking to increased uptake. 

By Peter Adams • Oct. 30, 2025

Target brings back ‘Hot Santa,’ adds new characters to holiday push

Americans are prioritizing small moments of joy to combat a tough economic climate, according to internal research that informed Target’s holiday push.

By Jessica Hammers • Oct. 30, 2025