Cristiano Ronaldo cuts billions off Coca-Cola market value
Cristiano Ronaldo wiped billions off Coca-Cola’s share price after snubbing the brand during a press conference during the Euro 2020 football tournament.
The Portugal captain is a known advocate of health and was videoed moving two bottles of Coca-Cola away from his table, held up a bottle of water and said “agua” (water in Portuguese).
Coca-Cola sees its share price decrease from $56.10 to $55.22 after Ronaldo’s gesture, shaving $4bn off the beverage giant’s market value to $238bn.
Coca-Cola is an official sponsor of Euro 2020 and says in a statement “everyone is entitled to their drink preferences” with different “tastes and needs”.
A spokesperson from the tournament adds: “Players are offered water, alongside Coca-Cola and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar, on arrival at our press conferences.”
Ronaldo has starred in an advert for KFC and lists over 300 million followers on Instagram.
Kopparberg, Grolsch and Nivea have pulled their advertisement from news broadcast channel GB News.
Also pulling out is The Open University and insurance brand LV will be reviewing its advertising.
The boycott was instigated by a social media campaign group Stop Funding Hate which urged brands to snub news organisations that promote divisive views.
In an attempt to cut the channel’s advertising revenue Stop Funding Hate posted a list of advertisers on the channel.
Kopparberg UK says its ads were ran without its knowledge and consent, Grolsch is pledging to not appear on the channel in the future and other platforms that go against “inclusion and openness”.
Skincare brand Nivea pointed the finger at algorithms for placing its adverts in GB News and will review its suspension of ads in three months’ time.
GB News began broadcasting on 13 June, opening to a debut of more than a quarter of a million viewers.
Unilever ramps up commitments against stereotypes
Unilever has warned the advertising industry could be the next victim of ‘cancel culture’ after research reveals people are increasingly feeling disconnected from advertising, which could result in brands being boycotted in future.
In a study commissioned through Kantar, Unilever found one in two people from marginalised communities feel they have been stereotyped in some way through advertising.
Almost three-quarters (71%) believe stereotypes in media is currently harming younger generations.
Less than one in five believe that ads are representative of wider society, those from under-represented communities are impacted the most and are up to 30% more likely to be stereotyped than the general population.
Over half (55%) of Asian women believe stereotypes in advertising don’t represent them, 46% of men with a disability say they often see negative portrayals of people like them in ads, and 66% of LGBTQ+ aged 18-34 believe people from diverse backgrounds feature in ads ‘just to make up the numbers’.
To address this concern Unilever is broadening its 2016 ‘Unstereotype’ and challenging itself to create marketing as well as advertising that will influence the next generation to be free from prejudice.
‘Act 2 Unstereotype’ “goes even deeper” by encouraging inclusive thinking across end-to-end marketing process, ensuring an Unstereotype charter is present for every Unilever brand, work with more diverse and under-represented groups on screen and behind the camera, eradicate any digital alterations to photography – a 100% ban on changing models’ body shape, size, proportion or skin colour.
Unilever chief brand, diversity and inclusion officer Aline Santos says: “If we want to see systemic change in society, we need to see systemic change in our industry. Act 2 Unstereotype helps brands create a generation free from prejudice. Inclusive marketing is not a choice anymore; we must act now.”
Mars Pet Nutrition Europe appoints chief growth officer
Mars Pet Nutrition has promoted veteran marketer Helen Warren-Piper to chief growth officer of its Pet Nutrition Europe division effective immediately.
Warren-Piper started her career at P&G, where she spent 15 years in marketing and sales roles across laundry, cleaning and paper brands, diapers and P&G PetCare.
Warren-Piper will continue to sit on the company’s European leadership team and lead demand strategy for the pet nutrition Europe division.
She was previously general manager for Mars Pet Nutrition UK for two years during which she has driven category growth for customers and consumers while increasing Mars Petcare’s market share.
Warren-Piper is credited for introducing equal parental leave in the UK and navigated Mars UK through the challenges of COVID-19.
Mars Pet Nutrition UK sales director Kim Smet will take over Warren-Piper’s previous responsibilities as interim general manager.
Commenting on her new role, Warren-Piper says: “I want to thank our Pet Nutrition UK Associates for their hard work, adaptability and pioneering spirit and our customers for their partnership over such an unusual period in the last year.”
Mars Pet Nutrition Europe regional manager Deri Watkins said: “We are delighted to announce Helen’s appointment to this important new role. I want to thank Helen for her significant contribution in building our UK business and legacy of the inclusive, development-focused culture that she has created.”
Decision-makers hail marketing effectiveness
Business leaders appear to have increased confidence in their marketing teams and marketing’s ability to create value and showcase its effectiveness.
In a survey from the CMO Council of business leaders, 80% say revenue and sales growth is the top deliverable from marketing, with customer acquisition and profitability in second (71%).
Business executives are extremely or moderately confident in marketing’s ability to lead growth recovery in 2021, with 69% stating so.
Interaction with marketing teams is increasing with 84% saying they are marking more of a regular effort. Under half (46%) say their marketing team’s performance was very good or exceptional in 2020, a further 45% say it was moderate.
Over a quarter of respondents (37%) say collaboration between functional areas of business and marketing is viewed as “close, balanced, effective and well-integrated”, and is constantly improving.
CMO Council executive director Donovan Neale-May says: “Business leaders appear to have more confidence in marketing leadership with 62 percent of survey respondents considering the essential role of the CMO as ‘customer experience advocate and champion’ in their organization.
“The fact that the secondary view of CMOs is ‘digital transformation/marketing automation leader’ is also a real plus give the modernization mandate in a digitally connected world.”
However business leaders are looking for marketing to step up in five key areas of performance and value creation: demand generation and sales pipeline development; campaign ideation, execution and impact; customer journey, acquisition and conversion; marketing planning to support digital growth strategies; actioning on customer data insight.
Unilever strengthens premium skincare offer with DTC brand acquisition
Unilever has acquired direct to consumer skincare brand Paula’s Choice, which it describes as a “true pioneer in the digital space” as it looks to expand its premium skincare offer and accelerate ecommerce.
Paula’s Choice, which it is buying from TA Associates, develops products using high performing, cruelty-free ingredients in an open and transparent way.
Through its content and digital tools it looks to demystify the science behind skincare and features an extensive ‘ingredients dictionary’, which breaks down the research behind nearly 4,000 ingredients.
The fact the brand, which was founded by Paula Begoun in 1995, has a strong ecommerce presence and is mission-led, is of particular interest to Unilever.
Vasiliki Petrou, Unilever executive vice-president and CEO Prestige, says: “Paula’s Choice is a true pioneer in the digital space for beauty and has created a mission-based brand rooted in truth and transparency. We can’t wait to introduce the brand and its iconic products to an even bigger audience.”
Sunny Jain, Unilever beauty & personal care president, adds: “Developing Unilever’s portfolio in the high growth premium skin care segment is one of our strategic priorities and I’m excited that Paula’s Choice is joining us on this journey.”
Rolls Royce boss slammed for calling workforce ‘too old’
The chief executive of Rolls Royce has been criticised for saying its workforce is “frankly a bit too old”.
Warren East made the comment at an industry event in London in response to a question about inspiring young engineers and ensuring it created an “exciting” atmosphere for people to work.
He said it is the responsibility of any leader to “get the people on side” and when he took over as CEO in 2015, he said “one of the challenges I saw was our workforce was frankly a bit too old”.
“We’ve done a lot of recruitment and even through Covid we have kept up some, not all, but some of our graduate recruitment. You need to get the younger people engaged,” he added.
His comments have been branded “immoral” and “disgraceful” by Bruce Daisley, Twitter UK’s former CEO and now a consultant on workplace culture.
A Rolls Royce spokesperson has apologised, telling The Telegraph East’s comments have been misinterpreted.
“[He] didn’t mean to suggest that getting older members of the workforce engaged with our increasing focus on net zero solutions has somehow been hard and he’s not blaming them,” the spokesperson said.
“Sorry if that’s how it came across. What he is clear on is that we need to do better at attracting and retaining the next generation of talent.”
YouTube is banning ads for gambling, alcohol and prescription drugs, as well as political and election-focused ads from the top of its homepage.
This includes ads for online and offline gambling as well as social casino games, and those that promote the sale of alcohol as well as brand-focused ads for alcohol. However ads that support a political issue may still be allowed to appear in the slot – these will be reviewed on a case by case basis.
Last year YouTube said it would stop selling full-day reservations for the prominent slot on its homepage, instead offering more targeted ads that are bought on a per-impression basis.
On the latest move to ban ads from certain sectors, a Google spokesperson told Axios: “We believe this update will build on changes we made last year to the masthead reservation process and will lead to a better experience for users.”
Premier League clubs post biggest collective pre-tax loss
The biggest clubs in English football have collectively recorded a pre-tax loss of just under £1bn for the 2019/2020 season as a result of the pandemic. This is the biggest collective loss in the history of the Premier League and almost five times higher than the previous season, according to Deloitte.
Revenue for the top 20 clubs in English football was also significantly down, dropping 13% to £4.5bn compared to the previous season – the first ever collective fall.
The loss comes from the fact Premier League clubs were forced to defer or return revenue from broadcasters and sponsors when the season was halted for three months at the height of the pandemic in 2020.
Clubs in the Premier League have only posted a pre-tax profit four times in the past two decades, all since 2013. Fewer than a quarter of the clubs posted a profit last season.
Google updates Workspace offer as shift to remote working becomes more embedded
Google has introduced a series of updates, offering anyone with a Google account access to the same integrated experience as its education and enterprise customers via Google Workspace. This includes access to products including Gmail, Chat, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Meet and others.
As part of the move, Google is also replacing Rooms in Chat with Spaces, to encourage better collaboration across teams by offering a “dedicated place for organising people, topics and projects”.
It is also rolling out a subscription offer for individual business owners, enhancing its Meet app to allow for better collaboration and introducing new security and privacy features across the portfolio.
Javier Soltero, vice-president and general manager of Google Workspace, says: “Our focus is on delivering consumers, workers, teachers and students alike an equitable approach to collaboration, while still providing flexibility that allows these different subsets of users to take their own approach to communication and collaboration.”
JD Sports under fire for bonus payments
JD Sports has been heavily criticised for paying bonuses to its executive chairman, despite taking hundreds of millions in government support during lockdown.
A report by advisory firm Glass Lewis has recommended investors should vote against the retailer’s current pay policy and oppose the potential re-election of Peter Cowgill, who was awarded £4.3m in bonuses last year.
JD Sports was given £86.1m through the furlough scheme and received a further £38m in business rates relief. It was also granted a £300m loan via the Bank of England’s Covid Corporate Financing Facility Scheme.
Cowgill has run the company for 17 years, though shareholders are said to be unhappy with his joint role as both executive chairman and chief executive ahead of an annual general meeting scheduled to take place on 1 July.
Huawei sales hit hard by 5G ban
Chinese telecoms brand Huawei has revealed the British government’s decision to ban it from the country’s 5G network prompted a 27.5% drop in turnover for the company’s UK subsidiary during the year to the end of December.
The ban was introduced due to national security concerns, following the lead of successive governments in the US.
Huawei plans to cut its UK workforce, amid predictions that the ban would continue to impact its revenue and operations over the coming years.
The company says: “Political decisions have not only had a real impact on our UK business, the people we employ, and our customers, they will delay the 5G rollout and put Britain into the digital slow lane.
“Huawei’s global business has shown resilience and our priority in the UK remains working with our customers and partners to make sure the country’s networks remain reliable.”
BT slot promotes Enterprise business halo
BT is promoting its Enterprise platform with a multichannel campaign, as part of the telecoms brand’s increased focus on its business-minded hero propositions, including improved WiFi and fibre.
Inspired by classic Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin slapstick, ‘All Business. No Drama’, by agency Now, showcases BT’s business offerings, following the misadventures of the owner of a glassblowing studio as he narrowly avoids a series of potential everyday dramas taking place all around him.
A series of print ads accompany the 30-second slot, which will also run across video-on-demand, digital and social channels.
“We know that SMEs are currently living in a world of uncertainty, so this clever campaign aims to show how BT Halo for business offers them reliability, value for money, and expert support when they need it,” says managing director, commercial and marketing for BT’s Enterprise Business, Chris Sims.
City Pantry rebranded as Just Eat for Business
Just Eat has revamped and rebranded its corporate ordering arm City Pantry as Just Eat for Business, aiming to breathe new life into the troubled office catering sector as it looks to emerge from lockdown.
The rebrand is centred around a Just Eat for Business logo and signals further integrations with the main Just Eat platform planned for the coming months, as the online food brand looks to create a more seamless experience, with companies able to access business orders via the Just Eat website and app.
On average, the service handles orders for more than 30,000 people at 600 companies every week.
Matt Ephgrave, managing director of Just Eat for Business says: “City Pantry and Just Eats’ values have always aligned, and this rebrand felt like the natural next step, offering huge opportunities and exposure for our independent vendors,” explains Just Eat for Business MD Matt Ephgrave.
“Our focus will continue to remain the same, delivering the best food to businesses and their teams and even though our name has changed, our ethos has not.”
St John Ambulance’s brand campaign aims to ‘spark conversation’
St John Ambulance’s first campaign for a decade has been devised with the aim of reminding the public of the first aid and health charity’s role in everyday life.
‘Ask Me’ features true stories told by St John Ambulance volunteers and patients and will be released across OOH, radio, digital and social, directing viewers to the charity’s website.
The campaign, starting today, was developed by the Come the Glorious Day agency. Radio ads will appear on and Heart FM, Capital FM, Smooth and Kiss FM, with the digital ads running on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube and the out of home seen in most major cities and towns in England.
“We are really excited about how the Ask Me campaign provides a brilliant platform for all of our amazing people to tell their incredible stories,” says St John Ambulance’s director of strategy and communications, James Radford.
“By inviting the public to ask us what we do and why, we will build understanding of our everyday impact and relevance to their lives and their families.
“Sharing those stories, backed up with our biggest single investment in our brand for more than a decade, starts to reframe our relationship with the public in a refreshing and simple new way, to reposition St John in people’s hearts and minds – and this is just the beginning.”
credit: Marketing week
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