As we head straight into the holiday season, brands and social media platforms are facing big changes. Catch up on all the ever-changing marketing news you need to know in our Weekly Must Reads. 

Ben & Jerry’s and Colin Kaepernick Change the Whirled 

Ben & Jerry’s has always been one of the most socially active brands. Now, they’re continuing their activism by partnering with former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick on a new ice cream flavor – Change the Whirled. The new vegan flavor and its clever name help highlight Kaepernick’s work against systemic racism and oppression. Proceeds from ice cream will support Kaepernick’s Know Your Rights Camp, which holds events with minority communities to educate, mobilize and support the next generation of leaders. 

Of course, Ben & Jerry’s is not the first company to partner with Kaepernick following his controversy with the NFL. Nike made the athlete the face of their 2018 “Just Do It” campaign. Earlier this year, Ben & Jerry’s also collaborated with Nike on a “Chunky Dunky” shoe, with sales supporting COVID-19 relief efforts. Find out more about this new partnership here: https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl-colin-kaepernick-ben-jerrys-change-the-whirled-new-flavor-activism-rights-152458786.html 

Twitter Integrates with Snapchat and Instagram 

Our social media worlds are colliding. Last week, Twitter announced its iOS users are now able to share tweets directly to their Snapchat Stories. The selected tweet will show up as an interactive sticker on Snapchat. Viewers will then be able to simply tap the tweet and follow the rest of the thread on Twitter. This move follows a trend of Twitter users screenshotting their favorite tweets and sharing them on other platforms. Now, this sharing can happen seamlessly. Twitter also announced integration with Instagram Stories coming soon. 

This marks big news for social media platforms, which typically don’t work together unless they have the same parent company (like Facebook and Instagram). With this new feature, Twitter hopes to drive more Snapchat users back to their platform. Check out all the details of this partnership here: https://www.socialmediatoday.com/news/twitter-announces-new-integration-to-share-tweets-in-snapchat-stories-with/592015/ 

‘Tis the Season for New McDonald’s Themed Meals 

This year, McDonald’s has partnered with some of our favorite artists to create their own personalized meals. Now, they’re offering a new series of special meals with a heavy dose of Christmas spirit. Starting this week, McDonald’s is offering two weeks of free meals inspired by famous Christmas characters. Each day of the week will feature a different menu item inspired by a favorite character and will be available for free with a $1 purchase. Featured items include a McFlurry in honor of Frosty the Snowman, syrup-covered hotcakes for Buddy the Elf and a 2-pack of chocolate chip cookies for, of course, Santa Claus. 

The new campaign is meant to drive not only Christmas cheer, but also interest in McDonald’s mobile app. These offers will only be available on orders made through the app. Find out all the details of these daily deals and let us know which one you’ll take advantage of here: https://www.delish.com/food-news/a34930930/mcdonalds-daily-holiday-deals-2020/ 

Revamped Marketing for an Iconic Brand 

Coca-Cola, perhaps the most well-known brand in the world, has begun a full review of their media planning and buying strategies in order to “fundamentally transform” its marketing. Their goal is to improve effectiveness and efficiency in their agency investments, and particularly focus on their digital transformation efforts. The review process will take nearly a year and may significantly change how this iconic brand spends its $4 billion yearly marketing budget. 

Recently, similar marketing reviews have led other brands to move more of their marketing efforts in-house. Coca-Cola currently employs about 4,000 agency partners, as well as an in-house creative agency, which will take on more work in the brand’s new advertising network. Earlier this year, they also announced plans to eliminate unscalable brands that are only sold in one country. Learn more about Coca-Cola’s restructuring plans here: https://www.marketingdive.com/news/coca-cola-kicks-off-massive-agency-review-to-fundamentally-transform-its/591932/