The Daily Carnage

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Hitting the Nail on the Head

Bloomberg Media’s new campaign, “The Contextualist,” reexamines familiar idioms in a modern context.

Directed by the acclaimed director of “The Brutalist,” Brady Corbet, the campaign marks his commercial debut and lends his cinematic sensibility to three 30-second spots.

Each ad explores idioms like “a bird in the hand” and “the price of tea in China,” reinterpreting them through a business lens to highlight Bloomberg’s global reporting.

Created by Wieden+Kennedy New York, the campaign spans connected TV, digital out-of-home, audio, and social channels across key markets like the U.S., UK, and Singapore.

Coke Zero Goes Low Budget

Yes, Coke Zero! Serve us nothing!

The brand’s latest campaign from Ogilvy India omits the product altogether.

Committed local actors pantomime through the motions of enjoying a “zero-calorie” Coke Zero. No cans, no script, no jingle.

“We realized that the biggest inspiration lies within the name Coke Zero,” said CCO Sukesh Nayak. “We designed a campaign that simply and effectively shows the Zero impact—by not showing the product at all. Sometimes it’s the simplest ideas that bring out the most magic.”

Snapchat’s New Chatty Ad Format

Snapchat has teamed up with Wendy’s to test Sponsored Snaps, a new conversational ad format that delivers branded messages directly to users’ chat inboxes.

The idea is that Sponsored Snaps will engage users seamlessly within their chat feed, feeling more like a friend’s message than a traditional ad.

Wendy’s campaign—featuring a playful message, “Can we yap now?” and “Saw this and thought of you <3″—generated 52 million impressions in just one day, making it the highest-viewed U.S. takeover ad in Snap’s Q4 Alpha test.

The campaign also boosted Wendy’s organic Snapchat following by 55% and drove nearly 12,000 clicks, resulting in a 17% increase in brand awareness.

In Q4 2024, Sponsored Snaps were the platform’s largest single-day reach product.

Rest in Peach

Lovingly, we gotta say Lipton Ice Tea’s April Fools’ stunt was the loser this year.

On March 18, the brand announced it was discontinuing its beloved Peach flavor, to which the masses and media replied “wtf” and “summer is ruined” and “what else even is there.”

Then, on March 19, the brand clarified that the announcement was an early April Fools joke… in mysterious first-person (“I’ve got your back!”). Ok, narcissist?

In the words of a top user comment, “I cried when you took it away, and I cried when you brought it back.”

We’re too delicate for this, Lipton! But for real, the brand’s unhinged persona strategy on IG does seem to be paying off.

In Defense of Color

A mysterious creative collective called Ghost is behind a new billboard campaign to protect the local art scene in Charlotte, North Carolina from “beige.”

That’s the message that began appearing on cryptic billboards across the city—before revealing their true purpose: saving local arts nonprofits like ArtPop from financial ruin.

The campaign, backed by Adams Outdoor Advertising, drives people to saveartfromdeath.com, urging support for struggling creative organizations.

The message is simple but powerful: without art, Charlotte becomes a colorless void. It’s a bold move, but as ArtPop’s founder puts it, “It’s Hail Mary time.” The campaign runs through April.

CPK Takes Midlife

Lordy lordy, look who’s 40.

California Pizza Kitchen is faking a flashy, hypebeast-inspired rebrand to celebrate its 40th anniversary.

The temporary makeover, featuring a sleek chrome logo and edgy slogans like “DEVOUR THE DOUBTERS,” sparked some confusion and curiosity from everyone, including Little Caesars, which commented “Bestie what’s happening.”

The campaign is designed to parody the trend of extreme corporate rebrands, and so far it’s generated 21 million social impressions.

Bateman’s Batman

State Farm’s latest campaign, “Batman vs. Bateman,” stars Jason Bateman as a bumbling Batman alongside famous Gotham villains and cameos from SZA, Kai Cenat, and Jordan the Stallion.

The spot takes viewers on a wild ride through Gotham, where Bateman’s antics ensue.

Directed by Bryan Buckley and created by Highdive in collaboration with Warner Bros., no expense was spared for authentic visuals to capture Gotham’s dark mood.

Get a Whiff of This

Whole-body deodorant brand Sure is sure getting fresh in their latest campaign in the UK.

In partnership with AMV BBDO, they’ve rolled out a giant, scented billboard in Camden—where you can literally stop and smell the “naughty bits.”

They’re encouraging passersby to get up close and personal with a giant butt (among other body parts) to test out their new product.

The 48-sheet billboard is scented with oils and is, as you might expect, inspiring some amusing public reactions.

Ordinary Eggs

The Ordinary, the no-frills skincare brand, just entered the egg business.

With NYC egg prices cracking $10 a dozen due to a bird-flu outbreak, The Ordinary swooped in for one weekend, selling “ordinarily priced” eggs at its Manhattan stores for a couple of bucks less than Trader Joe’s.

Some called it genius marketing; others cried PR stunt, especially since they tagged MSCHF, the kings of viral chaos.

And let’s not forget—they’re a vegan brand. Was this a yolk or a true attempt to help? Either way, they got exactly what they wanted: everyone’s attention, sunny side up.

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