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Stuck between the end of the pandemic, the beginning of the recession and the crosshairs of inflation, 2022 has been no picnic for brands. The situation gets even darker when we consider
No wonder advertising spending fell for the fourth quarter in a row in September (although there was a slight increase this month). Overall, brands that have only kept their ad spend in the last 12 months have seen a boost in themselves.
But year after year, for companies in financial trouble, and some in PR trouble, pulling things together was an order of magnitude too high.
Adweek perused the failures of 2022, and here are five of the more colorful failures, in no particular order.
balenciaga
Bottom line: Sex always sells fashion, but exclude minors.
When it comes to sexual advertising, fashion brands have always been among the boldest. A few years ago, Dutch brand Her Suistudio caused a gasp with an ad showing a woman putting her stiletto heels on a man’s…er, masculinity.
But when fashion houses combine this tactic with children, even if it’s tangential, the results are always disastrous. (Older ad buffs may recall Calvin’s Klein campaign in 1995, which starred her teens in her 8mm pornographic film, leading to an FBI investigation.)
So it’s anyone’s guess why someone at famed Spanish fashion house Balenciaga gave the go-ahead to a recent campaign that showed kids posing with teddy bears in BDSM gear.
Indeed, only the stuffed animals wore leather harnesses and neck padlocks. Still, the public was reeling, and Balenciaga got the attention marketers could have dreamed of. not the good kind.
After that, things got worse.
First, web researchers noticed that one of the props used in the shoot looked like a page from a Supreme Court ruling on child pornography. The discovery prompted Balenciaga to sue North Six Productions and its set designers. [to] It has falsely and horribly associated Balenciaga with the subject of a disgusting and highly disturbing court ruling. “
North Six says it did not produce the campaign and subcontracted the set designers. He said he got sick while filming.
Besides, he added, bears punknot BDSM.
Balenciaga went into damage control mode and issued an apology, saying the company was “strongly condemned.”[s] child abuse. “
But at least the conspiratorial creators have identified all sorts of satanic goods and symbols, such as black hoods and “sneakers that look like the devil is staring at you,” to worship Satan. Judging by the TikTok videos.”
Bottom line: moving fast and breaking things was never a good motto for anyone.
On November 9th, Elon Musk took to Twitter (the social media platform he acquired for $44 billion on October 27th) and tapped the following message: “
The job is done, critics say.
Silicon Valley companies have historically prided themselves on their speed, stemming from Facebook’s motto, “Move fast and break things.” But knee-jerk decisions can’t meet the shoes of strategy, and Musk is the latest tech companion to prove it.
Musk began burning down the place shortly after leaving the package at its headquarters. After firing CEO Parag Agrawal, he ousted the CFO, policy chief, general counsel and the entire board.
When Musk laid off about 50% of Twitter’s 7,500 employees on Nov. 4, the butcher was next turned into a regular employee.
Those layoffs also included employees managing content moderation, and the sudden disappearance of standards upset both advertisers and their agencies. Brands that have stopped advertising on Twitter include Volkswagen, General Motors, REI Sporting Goods, United Airlines and giant advertising shop Interpublic Group.
This is a big problem for Twitter, as advertising makes up 90% of their revenue. Some advertisers are back, while others are waiting for the reassurance that their content will be effectively moderated.
Even when that meltdown happened, another meltdown unfolded. A few days after purchasing the platform, Musk announced that verified users (individuals and companies that earned a blue check mark for some legitimate cultural influence) would have to pay $19.99 a month to keep them. I was notified that there is When horror writer Stephen King was tight-lipped, Musk offered to drop the price to its current price tag of $8.
But $8 was also a price anyone could afford. The blue check mark is blatantly a move that has opened the door for impersonators who love to impersonate, including major brands like Nestle, Apple, and even Musk’s own Tesla. Twitter stopped him experimenting after two days due to so many fake accounts.
Next is the balance sheet. Musk’s highly leveraged acquisition increased Twitter’s debt by $13 billion. It costs us $1 billion a year just to provide it.
So it’s no wonder Musk was desperate to cut costs and find new sources of income. But by removing Twitter’s content watchdogs (including the Trust and Safety Council) in the name of free speech absolutism, the bigger question is whether Twitter can make more money. It’s not a matter of whether it’s going to be a place that everyone wants in the end. Not at all.
easy
Bottom line: For brands tied to toxic spokespeople, plan an exit strategy.
On Oct. 26, a spokesperson for Madame Tussauds Wax Museum made a brief announcement: Kanye West (who has shortened his name to Ye in 2021) has been taken to a warehouse.
It wasn’t amazing news. In October 2022, we watched celebrities who enjoyed ten-figure net worths destroy their own empires in a matter of weeks.
The troubles began on October 3 when Ye showed up at Paris Fashion Week to promote the Yeezy Season 9 ready-to-wear collection wearing a “White Lives Matter” T-shirt. Horrified by Ye’s use of white supremacist slogans, celebrities like Jaden Smith and Diddy called him back.
Four days later, Ye hit back on Instagram, accusing Didi of being controlled by a Jewish cabal. In anger, he announced that he was “doing descon 2 to the Jews.” That comment also got Ye’s Twitter account locked.
Then Leaf bit the hand of the largest company that fed him. “I can say anti-Semitic shit,” he exclaimed on Oct. 16. “And Adidas can’t let me down.”
On October 25th, Adidas unplugged its Yeezy sneaker and apparel line. Ye was reportedly kicked off the roster of American billionaires and his net worth dropped to his $400 million.
By the end of the month, brands that abandoned Ye could read like celebrities of American consumerism. Gap, Balenciaga, Peloton, Vogue, JPMorgan Chase, Foot Locker, Marshalls, TJ Maxx, The RealReal, Christie’s.
Ultimately, the brand stepped up and removed the offending spokesperson, but stepped in what many consumers felt should have been an obvious and immediate decision, leaving some The brand has been publicly criticized.
disney
Tip: If you already have a great reputation, try to keep it.
There is an important note at the top. Disney is fine. Disney’s market cap is still $164 billion. Disney is one of the world’s most admired brands.
Nonetheless, 2022 hasn’t been a good year for the Mouse House.Disney’s stock is down 44% in 2022, giving November its worst trading day in 21 years.
And why did it happen? Let’s count the ways.
First, we have Disney+. The streaming service added more than 12 million new subscribers in the fourth quarter, but its D2C division (which includes ESPN+ and Hulu) lost him $1.5 billion. According to industry watchers, the cause is the high cost of creating new content to meet constant consumer demand.
Next is the park. The company has raised Disney World ticket prices twice this year in an attempt to recoup pandemic-related losses. Other parks have seen ticket prices increase as well. The move angered many loyal vacationers, some of whom complained that the Magic Kingdom was more than just broken vehicles and litter on the ground.
Last month, due to price increases and other moves by CEO Bob Chapek, Bob Iger, who led Disney from 2005 to 2020, said:[Chapek’s] Killing the soul of the company. “
Finally, there is political turmoil. When Florida passed the Parent’s Rights in Education Act (called the “Don’t Say Gay” bill) in her March, a human rights campaign wrote a letter denouncing the bill. About 150 companies signed, but Disney did not. The move enraged her LGBTQ+ employees at Disney. It also ruined the perfect score Disney enjoyed on the Corporate Equality Index.
This is probably why Disney reversed their positions and started opposing the bill. However, the move angered Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, who on April 19 revoked the special tax status Disney had enjoyed since 1967.
The turmoil over its financial performance and key social issues made Disney seemingly lacking a steady hand to lead it. Many people were surprised when
However, Eiger’s contract is only for two years. You may need a fairy godmother to find a suitable replacement.
Terra USD, FTX,other.
Bottom line: Crypto brands? Regulate yourself or your government will.
Cryptocurrencies had little idea of a safe and stable investment. But as the 2022 economic storm clouds gather, disaster strikes for some of the sector’s biggest brands.
As an algorithmic stablecoin, TerraUSD (trading as UST) was supposed to be immune to the drastic value fluctuations of larger cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, as its value is pegged to the US dollar. However, as the name suggests, stablecoins are in the hands of algorithms that balance supply and demand and stabilize prices.
On May 7, the World Economic Forum communiqué said, “This particular stablecoin balancing act has failed.”
Within a week, $50 billion disappeared from the cryptocurrency market.
The collapse of the UST was only the beginning.
FTX’s cryptocurrency exchange ranks among the largest in its field and is big enough to hire Tom Brady and Larry David to appear in ads and slam their name in Miami Heat stadiums.
But in November, when CoinDesk revealed that FTX was dangerously leveraged, the resulting shortage of deposits sparked a liquidity crisis that pushed the $32 billion company into bankruptcy. . Another Crypto exchange, BlockFi, filed for Chapter 11 soon after.
By mid-November, the market capitalization of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies is down 70% from the same period in 2021.
Despite the crypto winter of 2022, many analysts are cautiously optimistic about the fate of cryptocurrencies in 2023. According to a Deloitte survey, he predicts that 75% of retailers will accept cryptocurrencies as a payment method in the next two years. Giants such as Microsoft, AT&T and Amazon are already doing so.
But as Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen recently said, “This is an industry that really needs proper regulation.”
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