"Woke" Advertising Lessons from Gillette, When 2 Brands Become 1 Website, & Amazon's New Win-Win Video Ads... This Is THE LATEST!

As a true New Englander, I enjoy the cold weather. I really do.

I love to drink hot chocolate and wear heavy sweaters and boots -- but the past few days have been a bit ridiculous.

It's -1 degrees here and frankly, it looks like a scene from Frozen outside.

The only thing that might be colder is the backlash Gillette has been facing because of its latest commercial.

How's that for a smooth transition?

✊ Mixed Reactions to Gillette's Controversial Ad Can Teach You A Lot About Taking a Social Stance

Last week, Gillette released a socially-charged ad that really got people talking. The nearly 2-minute long "short film," explores the topic of toxic masculinity and encourages men to truly be the "Best a Man Can Be," by supporting women and each other in this pursuit, but not everyone is happy about it. In this article, we take a look at the criticism the brand is facing and discuss why it (and other brands) would tackle a social issue with their marketing.

⬆️ Believe It or Not, David Meerman Scott Turned 2 Websites into 1, and Actually Improved His Performance

With all of the copy and redirect issues that can ensue, many marketers are rightfully wary of merging two brands or websites into one. However, renowned marketing speaker, best-selling author, and entrepreneur, David Meerman Scott just did and actually managed to see his traffic and search ranks improve. IMPACT's VP of Marketing Kathleen Booth gets all of the details in the latest episode of The Inbound Success Podcast.

📺 Amazon's IMDb FreeDive Gives Users Free Entertainment & Marketers A Valuable New Ad Opportunity

As inbound marketers, you and I both know the best campaigns/products are mutually beneficial, offering value to audiences while still working toward our business goals. Amazon's new ad-supported streaming service, IMBb FreeDive does just that, giving millions of users access to free movies and TV shows in exchange for watching a few video ads. Yours could be one of them. Here's what users and marketers can expect from the new platform.

📅 Save the Date

Let's HUG it out in Chicago TOMORROW! Join the Chicago HUG on tomorrow, January 23 at 6 p.m. as Dan Gingiss, speaker and author of Winning at Social Customer Care, shares how to identify what will get shared on social media. Register for this Chicago HUG meet up today.
How do you create brand loyalists out of your current customer base? This Thursday, January 24, Will Harris of Real Thread will show you in this interactive webinar. You'll learn how to retain your customers and what you need to do from first-touch to signed contract (and beyond) to transform those customers into lifelong brand loyalists. Register for this webinar today.

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Talk Soon!