Chipotle gives away burritos on Instagram

The QSR chain is offering free burritos to the first people who respond by text message to its short-lived Instagram posts.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 10, 2019

Walgreens and Neil Patrick Harris offer holiday advice in social content

The drugstore chain enlisted Harris and his husband, chef David Burtka, for videos, photos and tips on coping with holiday stress.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 10, 2019

Explore the Trendline➔

Retail Marketing

Top stories that underscore the leading influences on retail marketing, including the creator economy, '90s nostalgia and Gen Z. 

By Marketing Dive staff

TikTok's top 100 viral videos of 2019 showcase diversity of its content

A year-end campaign across social media highlights well-established creators as well as relative newcomers who have moved up the platform's ranks.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 10, 2019

Smirnoff dreams up fake home goods partnership for gag gift

Riffing on the "Icing" drinking game, the brand is spicing up holiday gift swaps by disguising what appears to be a boring gift but is actually a bottle of malt beverage.

By Dianna Christie • Dec. 10, 2019

Ryan Reynolds' Aviation Gin pokes fun at Peloton ad fail in new spot

The marketer moved quickly to capitalize on the exercise bike brand's misfire with its own ad starring the same actress gaining millions of views on social.

By Dianna Christie • Dec. 9, 2019

Snapchat 'deepfake-style' tool Cameo adds selfies to shareable videos

Still in testing, Cameo replaces the faces of people in videos with personal headshots.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 9, 2019

YouCam's holiday contest showcases updated photo-editing tools

The app's holiday photo challenge urges users to create and share photos for a chance to win a free subscription for a year.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 9, 2019

'Star Wars' footage will debut as 'Fortnite' in-game exclusive

The "Risky Reels" section of a game map will showcase a preview of the blockbuster on Dec. 14.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 9, 2019

Technology of the Year: Checkout on Instagram

Though just nine months old, Checkout appears to have set the stage for a slew of commerce-related features within the app and beyond.

By Natalie Koltun • Dec. 9, 2019

Disruptor of the Year: TikTok

The Chinese-owned social video app has been a hit with marketers thanks to its rapid growth, youthful user base and knack for virality.

By Chris Kelly • Dec. 9, 2019

Marketer of the Year: Burger King

The fast food giant drummed up loyalty by dunking on rivals, wedging into timely pop culture moments and driving app downloads through smartphone-centric campaigns.

By Natalie Koltun • Dec. 9, 2019

The Mobile Marketer Awards for 2019

From Burger King to TikTok, these are the companies and executives that shaped the mobile marketing industry this year.

Dec. 9, 2019

Campaign of the Year: Taco Bell's 'The Bell'

Reservations at the refurbished resort sold out in two minutes, solidifying the chain's cult-like status among ardent fans and its expertise in catering experiences to devotees.

By Peter Adams • Dec. 9, 2019

Will personalization's role in marketing shrink as challenges grow?

Gartner predicts 80% of marketers will drop personalization in five years while the ANA named "personalization" its marketing word of the year, highlighting the tactic's appeal and challenges.

By Barry Levine • Dec. 6, 2019

Instagram taps Celine Dion for shoppable video of retro fashion

Marc Jacobs, Michael Kors, Adidas and Oscar De La Renta are among the 18 brands offering products to buy directly through Instagram.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 6, 2019

Imgur debuts meme-sharing app for gamers

Melee lets gamers and esports fans watch gaming highlights, follow top gamers and is integrated with streaming platform Twitch.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 6, 2019

Spotify extends annual Wrapped campaign to entire decade, podcast content

The feature is for the first time accessible through the platform's mobile app, and outdoor ads spotlight newer bets like the acquisition of Gimlet Media.  

By Robert Williams • Dec. 6, 2019

Rent the Runway partners with W Hotels

The clothing rental company will supply a travel wardrobe to guests upon their arrival at the luxury hotels. 

By Kaarin Vembar • Dec. 5, 2019

NYT: Facebook incubates apps for travel, podcasts, enterprise services

The company's secretive New Product Experimentation Team is reportedly working on the future of the social platform.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 5, 2019

KFC brings back its fried chicken-scented Firelogs

The logs, made from recycled materials via a partnership with Enviro-Log, will be available exclusively on Walmart's website.

By Barry Levine • Dec. 5, 2019

Sprinklr acquires Nanigans' social ad business amid ad tech consolidation

The combined businesses will manage more than $1.5 billion of yearly ad spend among social channels including Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 4, 2019

Kool-Aid crashes onto TikTok with holiday video challenge

The Kraft Heinz brand's mascot and rapper Lil Jon encourage people to post social videos for a chance to win $10,000.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 4, 2019

Teleflora blooms on social media with combination CGI/live action ads

A toy elf comes to life and offers advice to a mom stressed out by her holiday to-do list in the 15- and 30-second humorous digital spots. 

By Robert Williams • Dec. 3, 2019

Retailers reap rewards from major bet on social ads during Cyber Weekend

From Thanksgiving through Dec. 1, retailers funneled 45% of their online media budgets into paid social ads and generated 33% of total holiday weekend revenue.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 3, 2019

WeChat tops 5-year growth in brand value with 1,540% surge

Fueling growth was the integration of complementary services into a single platform that would typically require dozens of individual apps.

By Robert Williams • Dec. 3, 2019