PNC Bank CMO on Leveraging Experiential to Rally Hockey Fans in a Growth Market
PNC Bank transformed its Dallas Stars arena plaza into a pop‑up barbershop, the “Mane St. Branch,” featuring a giant synthetic mullet and co‑branded hats. The two‑day activation distributed more than 20,000 hockey‑hair hats and sparked over 13 million earned social engagements, with one game televised nationally. The stunt supports PNC’s 2024 “Brilliantly Boring” rebrand and its strategy to grow market share in Dallas through bold experiential marketing. Executives say the campaign will feed a data‑driven test‑and‑learn agenda for future activations.
The Measurement Maturity Playbook: What CMOs Need at Every Stage of Growth
CMOs must align their measurement approach with the company’s growth stage, from basic CAC tracking at seed level to sophisticated, real‑time forecasting post‑IPO. Early‑stage firms rely on GA4 and channel‑level CPA to prove growth potential, while mid‑stage companies shift to...
Why CTV Is Becoming The First Real Test Of Agentic Advertising
Connected TV (CTV) ad inventory is expanding rapidly, but its highly customized deals clash with traditional real‑time bidding (RTB) workflows. Publishers must juggle premium placements, audience targeting, and guaranteed delivery across disparate systems, creating friction, slower cycles, and missed revenue....
Amid Crisis, Banana Ball Benefits From Uncharacteristic Serenity
Banana Ball’s nonprofit, Bananas Foster, was accused in September 2025 of spending 80% of its program budget on tickets and merchandise, prompting a potential credibility crisis. The league’s leaders responded with calm, providing detailed financial data, acknowledging filing errors, and...
Indie Agency Wpromote Dishes On How It’s Testing New Agentic SSP Tools
Wpromote is piloting Kargo’s Project Kera, a chat‑based, agentic SSP that translates campaign briefs into automated, cross‑channel media plans. The closed‑beta tool lets buyers upload assets, set goals, and receive a budget‑split recommendation across Meta, TikTok, CTV and the open...
Why X (Formerly Twitter) Remains the Ultimate Public Affairs Radar
X remains the premier upstream source for breaking policy and market news, delivering real‑time signals that can swing stock prices and regulatory landscapes. High‑profile examples include a deleted Energy Secretary tweet that moved oil prices over 10% and a Citrini...
Data Privacy At The Kitchen Table
Lawmakers are increasingly prioritizing data privacy as voters bring the issue to the kitchen table, highlighted by Delaware Rep. Krista Griffith at the IAB Public Policy & Legal Summit. The topic gained further traction at two Washington, DC privacy conferences,...
Mom App Peanut Aims to Legitimize Matrescence
Peanut, the social networking app serving 5.5 million active moms, launched a multi‑channel campaign to push the term “matrescence” into major dictionaries. The effort combined a New York Times full‑page ad, New York City out‑of‑home placements, and social media QR‑code petitions. Within a month...
How Samsung Ads And Crumbl Got Their CTV Campaign To Perform Like Social
Samsung Ads partnered with Crumbl for a seven‑week CTV acquisition push in Q4, delivering over 16,000 app installs and five‑figure revenue while achieving a 23% conversion rate that outperformed the brand’s social campaigns. The integration with AppsFlyer gave Crumbl transparent,...
The Agentic Marketplace Is Here. Where Does That Leave DSPs and SSPs?
Swivel and CTV platform Olyzon have teamed up to create an agentic marketplace that lets buy‑side and sell‑side AI agents negotiate ad placements through the open‑source AdCP protocol. The partnership enables advertisers like Pierre Fabre to run U.S. CTV campaigns...
DSW Aims to Acquire Young Customers Without Turning Away Large, Loyal Base
Designer Shoe Warehouse (DSW) is overhauling its merchandise and launching a new "Let Us Surprise You" campaign to attract younger, Gen Z shoppers while preserving its high‑spending, older loyalty base. The spring campaign, which began March 1, is already exceeding internal...
MLS CMO on Growing U.S. Soccer Fandom Ahead of World Cup
Major League Soccer’s chief marketing officer Radhika Duggal is using the 2026 FIFA World Cup, co‑hosted by the U.S., Canada and Mexico, to amplify the league’s 30‑club stories and fan culture worldwide. The league is rolling out a story‑first strategy...
Why Scripps Is All In On Women’s Sports
The E.W. Scripps Company is pivoting to make women’s sports a core part of its portfolio, broadcasting WNBA, NWSL and PWHL games on its ION network and a new FAST channel. By leveraging its mix of local stations, national cable...
How Sony Electronics’ Creative Space Tour Acts as a Continuous Feedback Loop
Sony Electronics answered community demand for the Alpha 7 V by launching a 10‑city Creative Space On the Road tour, running from Feb. 26 in San Diego to Apr. 30 in Boston. The pop‑up experience uses a customized Airstream trailer where creators can test...
Crocs CMO on Microdramas, TikTok and Gen Z at Shoptalk
Crocs’ chief marketing officer Carly Gomez highlighted the brand’s focus on Gen Z at Shoptalk, showcasing a new micro‑drama series called “Charmed To Meet You” launched on ReelShort. The five‑episode, snackable story has garnered over 10 million views since its February 2026 debut...
