This week, brands from Duolingo to Hugo Boss are focusing their efforts on the world’s most-visited social media platform: TikTok. Find out everything you need to know about the latest marketing campaigns in our Weekly Must Reads.

State Farm Skips the Super Bowl

One year after airing its first-ever Super Bowl ad, State Farm is changing its big game strategy once again. Instead of shelling out millions for a star-studded commercial, the brand has created their very own TikTok challenge. The campaign asks TikTok users to create their own videos showing off their best talent using the hashtag #TeamStateFarm for the chance to be chosen by “coach” Jake from State Farm and featured on his account on Super Bowl Sunday.

In just two months, the iconic Jake from State Farm character has earned more than 200,000 followers on TikTok. According to the brand’s VP of marketing, the company decided to advertise primarily on the social media platform to “extend engagement from the regular season into the postseason and beyond.” Learn more details about the campaign here: https://www.adweek.com/brand-marketing/state-farm-tiktok-challenge-super-bowl-ad/

Petco and Lowe’s New Partnership

Lowe’s is the latest retailer to add a shop-within-a-shop to 15 of its locations across the country. Starting in February, the home improvement brand will partner with Petco to offer pet products and select services at pop-up shops within its retail stores. The shops will also feature a pet photo station, inspired by the #DogsofLowes hashtag that has become a viral hit on Instagram. According to Lowe’s executives, the two brands complement each other well, particularly throughout the pandemic as homeowners adopt pets and take on home improvement projects.

The partnership was spurred by a recent Lowe’s survey, which found 60 percent of consumers would be more likely to shop at a home improvement store if they could purchase supplies for a pet at the same time. Check out initial concepts of the shop-within-a-shop here: https://adage.com/article/marketing-news-strategy/lowes-and-petco-team-shop-shop-concept/2395531

Duolingo’s Growing TikTok Presence

If you’ve read the comment section on a popular TikTok video recently, you may have been surprised to see a snarky comment from Duolingo garnering thousands of likes. Over the past few months, the language learning company has unexpectedly become a trendsetter on the world’s most-visited social media platform. The Duolingo account owes its success to its social media coordinator, Zaria Parvez, who creates funny, on-trend videos starring the brand’s gigantic owl mascot, as well as perfectly timed comments riddled with popular Internet references.

Thanks to Parvez’s audience-focused strategy, Duolingo’s following grew from 50,000 users in September 2021 to more than 2 million in a matter of months. Find out more about Duolingo’s recent TikTok success here: https://www.marketplace.org/2022/01/17/the-creative-force-behind-a-viral-corporate-tiktok-account/

A Boss Rebrand

Last week, luxury fashion company Hugo Boss kicked off its recent rebranding efforts with an updated logo and two global campaigns for the new “Hugo” and “Boss” brands. The first campaign, #BeYourOwnBOSS, is anchored with stars like Kendall Jenner and will run on podcasts, Instagram Stories and Reels. On the other hand, out-of-home ads and TikTok will be the primary platforms for #HowYouDoHUGO, as the brand plans to partner with video creators to promote a dance challenge and creative murals. The new strategy is clearly targeted at younger consumers, rather than the older, more professional audience Hugo Boss typically captures.

The rebranding efforts come off of a period of increased sales for Hugo Boss. Last year, the brand was able to nearly match 2019 sales, thanks to an increased focus on casualwear and influencer partnerships. Read more about the brand’s new direction here: https://www.marketingdive.com/news/hugo-boss-shifts-gears-with-major-rebranding/617793/