Waterloo Sparkling Water names Dentsu Creative social AOR as brand expands

The nearly 10-year-old beverage marketer is looking to social as a national awareness driver and prioritizing quality interaction over content volume.

By Peter Adams • Feb. 23, 2026

Axe addresses fragrance overuse with new campaign, spray tech

“The History of Overdoing It” uses humor — and a stuffy academic narrator — to implore young men to take a subtler approach to fragrance. 

By Peter Adams • Feb. 23, 2026

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

Gartner: CMOs want AI transformation, but few are upgrading their skills

By 2027, lack of AI literacy could be a top-three reason CMOs are replaced, yet a fifth of marketers don’t feel a need to meaningfully update their skills.

By Peter Adams • Feb. 23, 2026

Zillow links with World of Warcraft to showcase in-game homes

Zillow for Warcraft includes a custom microsite featuring a number of player-favorite housing creations and will be supported by a co-branded campaign.

By Aaron Baar • Feb. 19, 2026

PepsiCo’s first creator-led product launch reimagines chips for Gen Z

The CPG giant teamed with Madison Beer, iShowSpeed and Dude Perfect on products meant to shrink the distance between creators, culture and checkout.

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 18, 2026

Frosted Flakes remixes ‘90s jingle to reintroduce Tony the Tiger

The cereal brand partnered with rap artist JID for a fresh take on its “Hey Tony” jingle as it looks to grow loyalty with a new generation.

By Aaron Baar • Feb. 18, 2026

How Hefty is unifying its brand portfolio marketing with John Cena

Created with McCann, the “Strong Choice” campaign builds on a 10-year relationship with the actor and retired wrestler.

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 18, 2026

How QSRs are building on value marketing with pop culture, nostalgia

Fast food marketers including McDonald’s, Burger King and Wendy’s will have to move beyond price-point value to drive sales and traffic.

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 18, 2026

Folgers mixes iconic jingle with ‘wake up’ songs from across years, genres

The J.M. Smucker coffee brand is trying to reach new generations of consumers as it looks to change perceptions.

By Sara Karlovitch • Feb. 17, 2026

PepsiCo’s CMO on how its Super Bowl strategy informs 2026 growth plans

Chief Consumer and Marketing Officer Jane Wakely explains how efforts by Lay’s, Pepsi Zero Sugar and Poppi extend beyond the big game.

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 17, 2026

Campaign Trail: Squarespace turns domain names into a noir nightmare

The brand enlisted Hollywood duo Emma Stone and Yorgos Lanthimos to break out of the “sea of sameness” in Super Bowl ads.

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 13, 2026

Major League Soccer extends reach in substantial marketing push

“MLS Is Back” puts the league in the spotlight ahead of the World Cup, which is coming to the U.S. this year.

By Sara Karlovitch • Feb. 12, 2026

Sweetgreen names Wpromote paid media AOR as brand looks to reignite growth

Wpromote is tasked with balancing a cohesive national strategy with more market-specific opportunities as Sweetgreen combats a sales slump. 

By Peter Adams • Feb. 12, 2026

Marketers weigh in on Super Bowl 60 ads, from the weird to the audacious

Marketing Dive readers and adland experts assess five of the most talked about big game ads.

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 11, 2026

Kotex serves up brand platform, refreshed identity with ‘Own Your Flow’

The Kimberly-Clark brand uses tennis as a metaphor in a purpose-driven effort that remakes Tears For Fears’ “Everybody Wants To Rule The World.”

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 11, 2026

CeraVe dubs NBA’s Durant its ‘Face of Legs’ in social-first campaign

The global effort responds to viral posts mocking the Rockets star for his dry skin, including through a Mean Tweets-inspired video.

By Peter Adams • Updated Feb. 10, 2026

Dove lets Redditors do the talking in transparency-focused campaign

“Dove r/eal reviews” leverages Reddit’s growing beauty community and the platform’s reputation for honest product takes.

By Sara Karlovitch • Feb. 10, 2026

Ulta Beauty taps women athletes for marketing push

The retailer enlisted a group of professional female athletes to participate in omnichannel marketing, including digital trading cards.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • Feb. 10, 2026

‘Don Draper is rolling over in his grave’: Super Bowl 60 ads play it safe

Most brands returned to the same conceptual wells while emergent ad categories like AI and health and wellness offered a mixed bag.

By Peter Adams , Chris Kelly • Feb. 9, 2026

Super Bowl 2026: Viewership, engagement and ads analysis

Breaking down all the key stats from the big game’s ads, including cost, reach, social engagement and more.

By Sara Karlovitch • Feb. 9, 2026

Edward Jones’ brand chief on marketing wealth management via sports, ads

Chief Brand, Experience and Marketing Officer Hema Widhani discusses the firm’s recent ad campaign and college football partnership.

By Chris Kelly • Feb. 9, 2026

Ortega goes for younger consumers with brand refresh

The update comes as the brand looks to combat declining sales amid supply chain issues and increased competition.

By Sara Karlovitch • Feb. 9, 2026

Programmatic advertising in 2026: Proving performance while it still matters

What if programmatic’s biggest risk isn’t wasted spend, but delayed insight before budgets are gone.

Feb. 9, 2026

Uber Eats lets fans build their own Super Bowl ad with in-app integration

The delivery platform created a content library full of alternate scenes for its own commercial that include cameos from a handful of celebrities.

By Aaron Baar • Feb. 5, 2026

Chipotle pokes fun at AI Super Bowl ads to spotlight real ingredients

After another brand's AI-generated Super Bowl spot airs, the restaurant chain will post a video on Instagram Reels to dole out free entree codes. 

By Jessica Hammers • Feb. 5, 2026