Moody’s November Marketing Round-Up
- Alisha
- Nov 24
- 3 min read
Buckle up babies! There was a lot of marketing news in late October, early November and we’ve got the tea! On or off the election trail, in print or online, and even in the area of sportsball, there’s been plenty of smart marketing going on. Read on to learn from others successes and mistakes and have a chuckle at the state of things.
Wear Your Witchy-ness!
In super cool design news, there’s a new tartan on the scene. Tartan has long been used to identify family names and legacies throughout Scottish history. The organization Witches of Scotland have developed a brand new tartan design and registered with the Scottish Register of Tartans earlier this year to commemorate the thousands of people - mostly women - who were persecuted and killed as witches between 1563 and 1736 in Scotland.
Here’s the rationale for the design:
Black and grey represent the dark times and the ashes of those who were persecuted.
Pink and red signify the legal tape that bound the fate of the accused — and reminds us of the systems that still need challenging.
The white check is formed of three threads, standing for the campaign’s three aims: Pardon. Apology. Memorial.
A large black section of 173 threads marks the 173 years during which the Witchcraft Act was in force (from 1563 to 1736) — both years are included in the thread count itself.
Keeping our eyes on European marketing, whatever agency created this ad for German company Böcker Maschinenwerke, deserves every marketing award forever. Böcker Maschinenwerke, which builds and sells the machinery used in the Louver robbery, posted a crime scene photo of the heist to advertise itself with the caption “when things need to be done quickly.” SLOW CLAP
Off and On the Campaign Trail
In local news, there was a municipal election during October and co-owner of Urban Market 1919 Ivy Hanley ran for the mayoral seat. While she didn’t win, she kept a sense of humour about the situation when she and her team made an adorable Reel about her returning to work after the campaign had ended. This is great work that really shows off the brand’s personality!
Speaking of iconic elections, New York Mayoral Elect Zohran Mamdani ran an eye-catching campaign with his WIFE helping to create the brand identity and typography with agency @designedbyforge.
This small design and development co-operative created the posters, banners, typography, and social media design that made his campaign instantly recognizable. It was a throwback, but thoroughly modern. Brilliant work!
The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall
When it comes to BIG brands, we have two interesting tidbits, both politically motivated. Spotify has been bashed this past month for allowing ICE recruitment ads to run between songs, pissing off musicians (even more than the low royalties they pay per play, among other issues) who have strong political opinions. Of course, these ads have also pissed off listeners.
Similarly, Conde Nast has landed in hot water after The Hollywood Reporter uncovered news that Teen Vogue would be rolling back the journalism focus of the online magazine in a restructuring. Not only has the company let go of essentially all of the BIPOC and trans people on the Teen Vogue team, they will take a new editorial direction focused on “career development, cultural leadership, and other issues that matter most to young people,” and there are currently no writers or editors covering politics. It’s a teen magazine, who cares, right? Well, the magazine had become an award-winning source of investigative news for youth on topics like the presidency, elections, and the war in Gaza. The media union, NewsGuild of New York has condemned the move, saying the decision is effectively political pandering. Yikes!
Toronto Beisbol Birds
Finally, a fun one for all of you who stayed up way too late to watch grown men hit balls with sticks and run around a field. Sticker You, a proudly-Canadian company, wanted to offer small businesses a way to support the Blue Jays … stickers! But the company was promptly hit with a cease and desist from the Blue Jays’ legal team. So they did what all marketers do best, PIVOT!
They brought in @saltandketchup to create some “alternate” baseball logos. They eventually went with this gem.
Wrapping Up the Wrap Up
Have you seen a killer campaign lately? We love to hear about that time you were swayed by great marketing to put your money on the line. Tell us all about it or get in touch to talk turkey and how we can help you develop an idea into reality!
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