Marketing

  • Kenny G from Audi's new campaign for Super Bowl XLV

    Not so long ago, Kenny G was a major threat to the civilized world. Sleepy, innocuous notes rolled out of his saxophone and onto the world's airwaves, lulling us all into a false sense of comfort and security. Things could've gone terribly wrong, but Kenny's unearthly talent was, in fact, his own undoing: his music was so relaxing that when Kenny finally got around to issuing orders for world domination, we were all too sleepy to obey. It took Ace of Base to wake us up again. A decade or so later, Kenny G has returned -- this time, thankfully, as a punch line. Audi has tapped Mr. G to play a...

  • Print ad for GM's Inside the Vault TV show
    Video: General Motors Launches A Manly New TV Show

    To the casual observer, it might seem that there are plenty of TV shows for Manly Men to watch. Need explosions? Try any of CSI's 31 flavors. Detective sleuthing? There's an entire Law and Order franchise waiting. Hunting and sports are featured on dozens of cable channels (plus the new The Drivers...

  • Tiger Woods
    Oprah, Tiger, Snookie, & The Donald: 2010's Best & Worst Celebrity Endorsements

    Once upon a time, hiring a celebrity to endorse a product was considered a magic bullet: run an ad with Cary Grant driving your sports car or Jack Benny buying your gasoline, and you could pack your bags for Easy Street. But does that still hold true? A new study from Ace Metrix shows that...

  • Bret Michaels parties with MyFord Touch
    Snoop Dogg, Bret Michaels, Now Answering Your Questions About...The Ford Explorer

    Last time we saw Snoop Dogg, he'd rented a battalion of Packards for his wife's 35th birthday party. Last time we saw Bret Michaels...well, we haven't actually seen BM around here, though we did catch him taking a spin at the Tonys. Apparently, both have recovered well enough to help shill the 2011...

  • Michael Vick commercial for Woodbury Nissan
    Unlikely Spokesperson Of The Week: Michael Vick For Nissan (Now, With Video)

    In the world of celebrity endorsements, matching personalities to products is tricky business. First, there's the matter of tone. Jennifer Aniston and bland bottled water? Perfect. Ozzy Osbourne and faux butter? Hmmm. There's also the tricky matter of the celeb's lifestyle. Does the celebrity's...

  • Fabio shills for Plug-In America
    Video: OMG Fabio Is Alive And He's Hawking Electric Cars

    The life of a model/actor is hard. "Oh, right", you say, "lying on a sofa and staring vacantly into a bank of cameras is way tougher than military service or manual labor or having no job at all." But hey, we've seen All About Eve and Valley of the Dolls and America's Next Top Model. Like Gina...

  • Cadillac sponsors the PGA Tour

    Professional golf and luxury autos usually go hand in hand so it’s not surprising to hear that Cadillac has signed a multi-year agreement to become the title sponsor of the World Golf Championships-Cadillac Championship and an umbrella sponsor of the World Golf Championships. You may recall that GM had previously sponsored the PGA Tour up until 2008 when bankruptcy fears meant the automaker was forced to cut back on its spending. The latest deal provides GM--more specifically, Cadillac--time in the spotlight across a four-event global series, as well as opportunities to connect with...

  • Tony Stewart in Goody's vs. BC commercial
    Tony Stewart Flaunts College-Level Reading Skills In New Richard Petty/Trace Adkins Video

    Sometimes, we get press releases that make us die a little inside. We'll receive an email about new air-fresheners or nutria-trimmed seat covers or those seriously creepy car lashes, and it'll make us super-sad -- not because of the products themselves, but because some poor PR newbie, fresh out of...

  • AMG and Ducati announce partnership
    AMG And Ducati Announce Partnership At 2010 Los Angeles Auto Show

    AMG and Italian motorbike manufacturer Ducati have announced that they will work closely together going into the future. The initial aim of the cooperation between the two performance firms is to develop common marketing activities but further down the track we could see the relationship develop...

  • Jessica Biel and Eva Mendes
    Video: Hyundai Sonata Roams The Red Carpet With Jessica Biel, Eva Mendes, Rachel Weisz

    On Wednesday, we told you about Volkswagen's "See Film Differently" film project. Now Hyundai has decided to align itself with movie buffs by sponsoring three film screenings called Glamour Reel Moments. Glamour Reel Moments is an ongoing project of Glamour magazine, and over five years, it's given...

  • Victoria Beckham, aka Posh Spice
    Beyond Posh: Land Rover Taps More Celebs To Tout The New Evoque

    Over the next 12 months, Land Rover will launch an all-out offensive to get its new Range Rover Evoque front and center of the cool kids. Borrowing some marketing techniques from Land Rover's former parent company, Ford, as well as General Motors, the Evoque is being handed over to 30+ "global...

  • Adriana Lima
    Today In Precious Metals: Adriana Lima's Bra Costs More Than Her Rolls Royce

    Poor Adriana Lima. We mean that in the metaphorical sense, obviously. Lima is one of the top-earning supermodels in the world, outpaced only by such overachievers as the indominable Heidi Klum. Being poor isn't on Lima's to-do list. No, when we say "poor Adriana Lima" we mean, "that poor girl...

  • 2011_Kia_optima

    Dear Lindsay, Britney: Are you happy? Are you happy with yourselves? Have you gotten better, made it over the hump, cleaned up, dried out? We're thrilled. Sorry, that was mean. Seriously. We're happy that you've found some inner peace. We're happy that you've put the drink and drugs behind you so that you can focus on your careers. You know, such as they are. But would it kill you to have a little fender-bender? To chase a personal assistant down the freeway? To flash the world your naughty bits as you're stepping onto the red carpet? To go shopping for parakeets? Because while you're...

  • Ghost Hunters on Syfy
    Dodge Ramps Up The Halloween Hype On Syfy

    Chrysler's marketing team has had some hits and some misses over the past year. For a while, Olivier Francois & Co. ran nothing but quirky branding campaigns, featuring the likes of Mikhail Gorbachev and Nelson Mandela cruising in Chrysler vehicles. That made dealers confused and mad, but...

  • Mayer Hawthorne
    Mazda2 Drives Mayer Hawthorne's Nationwide Tour

    Mazda has always been a slightly quirky brand -- just offbeat enough to develop a community of rabid fans. So it's fitting that the automaker would choose to sponsor a nationwide tour for the equally quirky musician Mayer Hawthorne. If you don't know about Hawthorne (nee Andrew Mayer Cohen), you...

  • John Slattery in Mad Men
    Video: Mad Men's John Slattery Hawks Lincoln MKX, MKZ Hybrid

    Some actors have always seemed older than they really are. Bea Arthur, for example: she was born 40. Bob Hoskins, too. And then there's 48-year-old John Slattery, whose characters always seems at least a decade older than he is. Say what you will about Mad Men, but you can't deny Slattery's...

  • Thomas Keller
    Today In Odd Marriages: Chef Thomas Keller And The BMW ActiveHybrid 7

    If you know American cuisine, you know Thomas Keller. And if you know, Thomas Keller, you know his flagship restaurant, The French Laundry in Napa Valley. And if you know Napa Valley and California and the world's current fascination with all things seasonal and green, you will not be surprised to...

  • 2012 Infiniti M35h
    Emmy Awards Offer Infiniti Possibilities

    Something's up at Infiniti. We're just not sure what. Compared to its Asian luxury rivals, Lexus and Acura, Infiniti is usually pretty quiet. But over the past week or so, the brand has popped up in conversation several times -- notably, in rumors about more hybrid models and a new Essence sports...

  • Apolo Anton Ohno

    Here in the US, Olympic contenders depend heavily on corporate sponsorships. Between living expenses, equipment, coaching salaries, and the like, training for the biggest international sports competition requires not only time, energy, and talent, it also requires a lot of cash. Thankfully, BMW is planning to step up to the plate, and it's going to do so with Olympic speedskater (and Dancing With The Stars competitor) Apolo Anton Ohno at its side. Details about BMW's sponsorship of Team USA haven't been released, but the company did issue this statement: Announcement of a new, multi-year...

  • Alec Baldwin at the Turner Classic Movies Classic Film Festival with the 2011 Buick Regal
    Today In Celebrity Appearances: Buick Gets Desperate

    So let's pretend you're an auto brand -- one that used to project swanky, sexy sophistication, but now the average age of your customers is 72. Now let's pretend that you've finally booted your superstar golphilanderer to the curb, thus freeing up money for other promotions, which have slowly been...

  • Screencap from an ad for the Audi R8 spyder
    Audi Is Really Pumping This Whole IRON MAN 2 Thing

    Of all the ways that companies can advertise, product placement is by far the most hilarious. Print ads? Totally predictable. Radio, TV, billboards, web banners? Been there, done that. But product placement catches us by surprise because it's always "BTW". As in, "I am Lady Gaga and  I am...

  • Justin Timberlake in a video campaign for the Audi A1
    SAT Prep: Mark Wahlberg Is To The MINI Cooper As Justin Timberlake Is To The...?

    Justin Timberlake has led a charmed life. He started his career on The New Mickey Mouse Club, where he sang, danced, and generally acted a foo' alongside poptartlets like Brit-Brit and Xtina. Then came 'N SYNC and enough earnings to buy the state of Idaho, including its stock of potatoes. That was...

  • Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi
    In An Alternate Universe, Snooki Helps Car Dealership Help Haiti

    So here's the deal: everyone's least favorite pudgy munchkin (not to be confused with Tila Tequila, who is many things, but not pudgy) somehow landed an appearance at a used car dealership in Easton, Pennsylvania over the weekend. Yes, Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi was stationed at Star’s Pre-Owned...

  • Fiat's 'Cool Bikini' flash mob promotion for the 500C
    Today In Flash Mobs: Girls, Bikinis, And The Fiat 500

    Flash mobs have been around for decades (back in the day, they were called outlaw parties), but they've only recently been co-opted for marketing campaigns. Today's example: the surprise arrival of a dozen bikini-clad dancers and a DIY samba band on a chilly square in Amsterdam to shill the Fiat...

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