Marketing Bentley

Nostalgia is a powerful tool. Seniors miss their youth, youths miss the golden glow of childhood, the painful slow existence of the now melting into the warm embrace of memory. A couple of weeks ago, one of my colleagues wrote about Swiffer bringing back an old star from their commercials . Recently, the New York Times released a short piece on Super Bowl Ads featuring "Comeback Kids" like Lindsay Lohan and Jim Carrey. Most of these are from the early 2000s, widely regarded as the peak of media - but how much of that is influenced by the memories of the thrill of a new millenium? How much is influenced by the way American culture shrinkwrapped itself to nationalism post-9/11, itself an exploration of nostalgia for a supposed time of peace?  As the ardent nationalism of the 2000's fades into the more overt fascism of the 2020's, people are beginning to be more cognizant and critical of institutions, and brands begin to face new identities foisted upon them as faceless...

On February 19th, the New York Times published an interview with Barry McCarthy , who was recently appointed CEO of Peloton. Peloton, known for it's massive boom in sales in the early days of the pandemic, has seen a drop in sales so severe that it's share price has, at times, dipped below it's initial public offering (I.P.O.) price. McCarthy was brought out of retirement after a successful career as CFO for Netflix (1999-2010) and Spotify (2015-2022), where he had developed Netflix's streaming model and taken it public, and had developed Spotify's advertising strategy and helped push it into podcasts. Getting a glimpse into the mind of a high-profile, high-impact marketer is fascinating, especially as he's not stepping in a the captain of a calm cruise: Peloton is in crisis mode. It comes as no surprise, given his work history, that McCarthy is planning a subscription model for Peloton. High entry points made it profitable upfront, but now that everyone who cou...

Slate has been tenacious in the world of online publishing for over 20 years, a staple of online reporting. In the New York Times this Friday, the article " Slate, the Pioneering Web Magazine, Struggles to Find Identity and Profit " discusses the roadblocks facing Slate as their top editor stepped down and were told that the publication was not profitable. Most recently, Slate has had to begin asking the question of who their core identity is, especially after being sold to the Washington Post, which may have contributed to the decline of their distinction in the online space of housing intellectual debate and contrarian takes. Long term staff members seem to be leaving en masse because of the restrictions being placed on them in order to drive up profitability. This is an issue facing the internet at large: news and media are becoming increasingly sanitized in order to appeal to advertisers, but the advertising revenue just isn't cutting it anymore. Without a distinction...

The fight for women's sports to be recognized as an equal of men's sports has been ongoing since the advent of women's sports leagues. Many teams and leagues to this day continue to fight long histories of pay disparities and assumptions about the marketability of women's sports. In an article released Thursday, February 4th 2021, ( W.N.B.A. Raises $75 Million With Hopes of Business Model Revamp ) the New York Times reveals that the Women's National Basketball Association (W.N.B.A.) "has raised $75 million  from more than two dozen investors in a bid to revamp its business model as players call for expansion, higher salaries and better benefits." W.N.B.A. Commissioner Cathy Engelbert is quoted as wanting to “market players into household names” both in the United States and abroad, hoping that more eyes on product will translate into more sustainable funding both for the athletes, teams, and league overall. Many businesses are currently in the midst of a ...