Johnson & Johnson, Jameson, McDonald’s…

uOur Sales Leads column discusses the latest brand and media agency initiatives. View past columns in the archives here.

• • • McDonald’s

      McDonald’s is celebrating the many ways Latinos refer to Dulce de Leche, e.g.  cajeta, manjar, manjar blanco, arequipe, milk candy, fanguito, doce de leite, leche quemada). McDonald’s invites its fans to enjoy the flavor that speaks their language uniquely sweetly, reminding them that no matter what you call it, it’s a Dulce de Leche Frappé at McDonald’s. McDonald’s and its Hispanic Integrated Agency Team (HIAT) collaborated to launch a multipronged campaign fueling cultural connection and trial for the limited-time frappé. Campaign elements outlined below include social, digital, TVC, and grassroots marketing.

      • CGI/FOOH larger-than-life frozen reader board spotlights the many names [Credit: BODEN Agency]: A flavor so meaningful deserves the spotlight, so McDonald’s dropped a larger-than-life frozen reader board highlighting some of the names Latinos call the flavor. It’s (literally) as cool as it gets, and has everybody asking, “Wait, is that real?!”. Fans can catch this on YouTube and on McDonald’s Time Square billboard.

      • TikTok Ranking Branded Effect [Credit: BODEN Agency]:  Collaboration with TikTok to launch McDonald’s first-ever Ranking Branded Effect, celebrating the diverse names Latinos use to describe Dulce de Leche. This interactive effect invites users to engage by reacting to and rating the various names.

      • “What’s My Name?” TVC with Iñaki Godoy [Credit: alma]: Partnership with Mexican rising star Iñaki Godoy, of Netflix’s One Piece, to invite fans to enjoy the flavor that speaks our language in a uniquely sweet way, and remind them that no matter what you call it, it’s a Dulce de Leche Frappé at McDonald’s!

      • Dulce de Leche sampling carritos [Credit: Loud & Live]: We’re serving up a special tasting experience with sampling “carritos” (cars), which will roam around Hispanic-dense locations in California and Miami, handing out free samples and McDonald’s Arch Cards to encourage trial.

      Diageo’s whisky brand Buchanan ‘s recently introduced a similar campaign; the #Comolodigas campaign, through which it co-created with the consumer the different ways the campaign pronunces the name  of the brand. Check  out out interview with  Linda Lagos Morales, Director of Buchanan’s Whisky.

    • Puma

      Sports company PUMA has opened Studio48, a new creative hub at its headquarters in Herzogenaurach, Germany, where its designers and creatives can come together to freely develop new ideas and create concepts for new performance and Sportstyle products as well as campaigns. Spanning more than 500 square metres (5,300 square feet), Studio48 will feature a 3D printing facility, leather and textile sewing machines, a set up for printing and embroidering, a product testing area, a photo studio and a meeting space to connect designers across different departments and welcome external creatives to work on new products and campaigns. As part of PUMA’s brand elevation strategy, the company will strengthen its sports performance credibility by developing products that perform at the highest level but also distill this sports DNA into its Sportstyle offering with a unique design language. Earlier this year, PUMA announced that it would also open a creative space in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles to inspire products and campaigns for the strategically important US market.

    • Duolingo

      Duolingo, the mobile learning platform, announced a new partnership with Netflix’s Squid Game to promote Korean language learning through an immersive, one-of-a-kind campaign, including an update to its Korean course. Titled “Learn Korean or Else”, the campaign combines Duolingo’s humorous approach to promoting learning with the high-stakes energy of Netflix’s Squid Game to motivate fans to do their Korean lessons, just in time for the premiere of Season 2 on December 26, 2024.

      Duolingo is adding over 40 keywords and phrases from Squid Game to its Korean course, enabling learners to connect even more closely with the series. By learning Korean, Squid Game fans can appreciate the renowned series on an entirely new level, experiencing dialogue, expressions, and cultural context in ways only possible through understanding the language. “We saw a 40% increase in Korean learners just after Squid Game Season 1, underscoring the powerful connection between entertainment, culture, and language learning,” said Manu Orssaud, CMO of Duolingo.

      Find out about Portada Live events planned for 2025. Portada Live events are highly curated; the agenda is designed to maximize knowledge-sharing and networking between top brand marketing, media agencies, and media executives. To find out about thought leadership and networking solutions at Portada Live and Portada digital media offerings, don’t hesitate to contact Sales Director Irma Gutierrez at [email protected].

       

• Inter & Co

  The Underline—Miami’s 10-mile linear park—and Inter&Co, a financial super app, announced a partnership with several community engagement elements including:

  -Three Inter&Co Cafés in Brickell, Coconut Grove, and Coral Gables, featuring coffee, food, and exclusive perks for Inter&Co’s Global Account holders.

  -A state-of-the-art LED community screen at the Brickell Stage, set to host movie nights, sporting event watch parties, and showcase digital art.

  -A bikeshare program with over 100 bicycles and strategically placed docking stations along The Underline’s 10 miles, promoting eco-friendly and accessible transportation.

• Johnson & Johnson

  WPP’s GroupM won Johnson and Johnson’s U.S. and Canada media accounts, worth around US $200m (J&J spends about  US $500m worldwide.) WPP reportedly beat Publicis Media and IPG in the final pitch. The business moves from IPG’s J3, which was formed to handle J&J’s global media business. IPG is currently the subject of a US $13 billion takeover bid from rival Omnicom.

• Universal Music Group 

WPP and Universal Music Group (UMG) announced a new partnership aimed at helping brands engage audiences through music. The collaboration brings together UMG’s artists, labels, and data expertise with WPP’s creative network and client relationships to develop music-based strategies for brand communication. Through this partnership, WPP clients will gain access to UMG’s music catalog and artist network, creating opportunities to align brands with music in meaningful ways. The two companies will also explore how AI can be used responsibly to help brands and artists collaborate and create cultural connections.

• Century Snacks – Tajin

Century Snacks’ Snak Club brand Tajín® are now available at select retailers nationwide and online. The offering includes Tajín® Chocolatey Coated Pretzels, Peanut & Corn Clusters, and Chocolatey Coated Gummy Bears, created in partnership with Chocolate Works. First showcased at Sweets & Snacks 2024, where two products, Tajín® Peanut & Corn Clusters and Tajín® Gummy Bears, were nominated as Most Innovative New Product Finalists. This marks the first time Tajín®, the No. 1 chile-lime seasoning in the U.S., has been added to chocolate items.
Each new product provides a different take on a chocolatey favorite. Tajín® chocolatey pretzels take a classic coated pretzel and add a dash of Tajín® Chile-Lime for a zesty flavor. Then,starting with a blend of peanuts and crunchy toasted corn, the Tajín Peanut & Corn Clusters dive in chocolate and are hit with a sprinkle of Tajín. “We know consumers are coming to us for a twist on candy, as we’ve seen with our Snak Club Tajín® gummy candy line. And now, this chocolatey line elevates us into a new aisle segment with something people have never tasted before,” said Katie Lilly, Chief Marketing Officer of Century Snacks. “After a team member tried a chile-lime chocolate cluster on a trip to Mexico, we just knew we had to find a way to bring that experience back to the US.”