In this issue of Sunday Strategy, we look at five stories to think about next week, including: TikTok’s US Legacy, Another Word for Rebrands, Media’s Search for America and AI’s Increasing Relationship Potential.
In addition, we have ads from: Young Capital, Uber, Google and Kia.
// Five Stories of the Week:
1.) TikTok Goes Away, But It’s Legacy Won’t ⏰
As of early Sunday morning, TikTok users across the US have found a new message when they log in – blocking access to the app and notifying them that it can’t be used for now. The outrage expected from the app’s 170m users has been surprisingly muted (though a funeral did occur for it in Washington Square park – bumping the space normally used for Timothee Chalamet look alike contests), perhaps due to a sense that it will be back soon. Even the app’s own dialogue ends with a message to ‘stay tuned’ as President-elect Trump has promised to work with the company to reinstate it. So TikTok’s departure may be short lived – but as it goes (even for a little while), what legacy does it leave behind?
The answer is varied, from ‘TikTok refugees’ searching for a similar experience on Chinese app Xiaohongshu or ‘Red Note’ and experiencing different content moderation standards – to shifts from Meta and others in functionality. The copying of TikTok’s functionality, first to compete and now to acquire users leaving the app is perhaps its biggest legacy. You can ban TikTok, but you can’t stop the dispersal of its features. As the Atlantic put it, ‘The Internet is TikTok now’, with even LinkedIn adopting some of its video style and UX. The question isn’t whether TikTok goes away for good in the US, but how much others can make it feel like it never left
2.) Don’t Call It a Rebrand, When You Can Call It a ‘Refresh’ 🥫
There are no easy ways to do a rebrand. Go too far and you risk a Jaguar-esque backlash (though the noise of that whole discussion has given way to a continued status quo – at least according to search), go too subtle and people ask ‘What’s Different?’
Walmart’s subtle rebrand this week, which featured shifts in the familiar logo and brand color of blue, has raised questions about how different a rebrand needs to be? The correct answer is indeed whatever works in the long term. However, while we wait for a more definitive rebrand result – a brand like Walmart may need to weather and make jokes of its own about it.
Perhaps the most important thing we can do is bring back another word when it comes to branding – the ‘refresh’. Not every brand needs to be a ‘re-brand’, especially if we have better words for aesthetic shifts.
3.) We’ve All Gone To Look For “America” 🇺🇸
The Washington Post has announced their new mission statement ‘Riveting Storytelling for All of America.’ While the US election has been a moment of re-evaluation for what Americans considered ‘America’, the media has delved into retrospection more than most. From social media’s unfolding ‘quarter life’ crisis to traditional media’s emerging narrative about reaching ‘more of America’, properties and platforms have taken a radical view on the need for realignment.
But what if the ‘America’ WaPo wants to reach isn’t universally available? Research has shown what we already know, that US politics is heavily polarized and with it, the media that covers the nation. Media trying to ‘reach the real America’ can at best seem naive in the face of an impossible task or at worst reactionary and opportunistic – shifting about to find continued or renewed commercial growth under the guise of media transparency. While many won’t get past ‘counting cars on the New Jersey turnpike’, it seems we are only at the beginning of media shifts in the name of ‘looking for America’.
4.) Don’t GP-Tear My Heart Up 💔
As one expert (in the NYT article below) predicts that it will be normal to have an AI partner in two years, the plot of the film ‘Her’ looks more likely to move from the big screen to real life. As the cognitive abilities of AI develop further, its ability to create an emotional connection is increasing with it – a risk that even OpenAI itself has raised.
In a survey from YouGov and the Institute For Family Studies (who must be particularly worried), 1 in 4 young adults say AI can replace traditional relationship partners. However, technology alone isn’t the only driver of this shift. Dating, especially for younger people, is increasingly described as toxic. Conversational media is increasingly shifting to text and modes similar to how AI communicates natively (neverending texting on dating apps sounds as or less engaging than AI chats). Most importantly, the need to be understood and feel connected to someone is as strong as ever. AI is designed well to handle Sternberg’s ‘Triarchic theory of love’.
As a woman found this week when she was scammed out of thousands through Generative AI which convinced her she was dating Brad Pitt – AI is only giving a new outlet to base human needs. AI relationships are less about technological innovation and more about our ongoing search for connection in a modern world. On a less serious note, Futurama called this decades before ChatGPT.
// Ads You Might Have Missed:
1.) ‘Boost Your Boomer’ – Young Capital:
Gen Z workers may often feel like workplaces are draining them of their enthusiasm and energy, but an employment firm in the Netherlands has formalized the feeling. Positioning itself as an ally of young workers, Young Capital has created an energy drink ‘distilled’ from the essence of young workers and an ad campaign to go with it. While ‘Booomer’ is actually just made with traditional ingredients, the campaign itself makes an attention grabbing statement about young workers and what they face.
2.) ‘Switch Like Sol’ – Google:
In advance of this week’s Arsenal vs. Tottenham ‘North London Derby’, Google created the most divisive ad to Tottenham fans since Nike’s ‘The Fastest Way to Europe’ ad. Both ads, ironically, feature play Sol Campbell, who famously transferred from Tottenham to Arsenal as a player. The ad, which features the virtue of ‘switching’ taps deftly into football culture while making a case for users of the ‘other phone’ to consider a switch.
3.) ‘Shh… It’s Zombie Proof’ – Kia Australia:
SUV ads and the apocalypse aren’t a new combination, but Kia Australia has taken a different tack when talking about surviving in their car. To promote their new electric SUV, Kia’s new ad showcases a driver going about her daily life amongst a zombie apocalypse. While other ads would talk about the ruggedness of the car, Kia highlights the silence of the electric SUV as it stealthily navigates the catastrophe.
4.) ‘You’re Almost There’ – Uber:
Uber, Gatwick Airport and Mother have created 2,500 ads to celebrate the multi-year partnership between the brand and airport. Their new campaign, “You’re almost there”, highlights the different trips and reasons for travel in a way that integrates destinations and the app’s route planning graphics.
// Sunday Snippets
// Marketing & Advertising //
// In advance of the ‘big game’, Coors Light has renamed itself ‘Mondays’ and revealed an error themed ‘case of the Mondays’ advertising campaign [Ads]
// Recognizing a sizable fanbase, KFC Mexico has temporarily opened two Pittsburgh Steelers themed locations in Mexico [Marketing]
// Zyn nicotine pouches have been authorized for marketing in the US by the FDA [Marketing]
// Amidst criticism of the insurance industry from the LA wildfires, State Farm cancels their Super Bowl ad [Ads]
// Has the famous US truck stop brand ‘Buc-ees’ found itself in a feud with a mascot called… ‘Piss Jug Man’? This timeline is getting increasingly odd. [Culture]
// Emirates is the world’s first Autism certified airline [Marketing]
// Arsenal FC and Adidas launch the fourth year of their ‘No More Red’ initiative to fight knife crime and promote youth safety [Ads]
// Walmart unexpectedly moves further into the luxury market partnering with a resale platform [Marketing]
// Technology & Media //
// Nintendo has announced the successor to its wildly popular Switch, but is light on details [Gaming]
// Instagram has announced a ‘Reels Tab’ section that shows videos your friends have liked [Social Media]
// For any ‘TikTok refugees’ still looking for new options, here’s a quick guide to Red Note / Xiaohongshu [Social Media]
// Inside a massive sports themed AI content mill [AI]
// In advance of his inauguration, President Elect Trump has launched his own $Trump memecoin, which inflates to $32 billion overnight [Cryptocurrency]
// Hinge unveils AI powered dating profile feedback, powered by ChatGPT4-o mini. [AI]
// Life & Culture //
// RIP David Lynch – extraordinary artist, director and unlikely weather man [Culture]
// Can the British Museum survive the “omni crisis” facing it? [Culture]
// Where does LA’s housing market rebuild? The fires are already pushing fundraising platform‘GoFundMe’ further into the spotlight. Additionally Airbnb is one of a number of companies offering help and taking donations
// U-Haul’s 2025 Growth List shows that Dallas TX, Charlotte NC and Phoenix, AZ are seeing the largest number of movers in the US, while Calgary AB, Edmonton AB and Belleville, ON lead growth amongst Canadian metros. [Culture]
// Leaning into greater pet ownership and pet tourism, select Italian museums are offering free dog-sitting services to visitors [Marketing]
// The New York Mets minor league baseball affiliate team, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies, have rebranded themselves as the ‘Bathtub Donkeys’ – seemingly raising awareness of an obscure NY law about bathing donkeys. The ‘Rocket City Trash Pandas’ are assumed to be unimpressed. [Sports]
// New research shows 1 in 5 job postings are ‘ghost jobs’ which don’t exist [Work]
// Under Armour and Equipo FC combine to release a Medieval themed capsule collection [Fashion]
// Goodbye ‘Duck Face’, hello ‘Gen Z Pout’? [Culture]
// Until Next Sunday
As always, let me know what you think by email (dubosecole@gmail.com), website or on LinkedIn.You can also listen to an audio summary and discussion of each week’s newsletter on Spotify.
