From dinosaur politicians to functional perfumes, here are some things that made us say “That’s Interesting” in the studio this week.
Dinosaur politics.
The 26th UN Climate Change conference, aka COP26, is taking place in Glasgow. Leaders from all over the world are attending what could be one of the most important meetings of the century. The UN have tried almost everything to get their ‘code red’ message about climate change across. And now, for this conference’s campaign – in what could be last resort – they’ve bought back a dinosaur to tell the story… We’ll leave it to you to decide whether the extinction metaphor is persuasive or trivialising. Climate change is happening and only a holistic approach will stop things getting worse. All businesses have a responsibility to change.
Learn more about extinction here
Unlimited flying.
Consumers are desperately looking forward to traveling again but – with mass Covid unemployment, an inflation problem and looming recessions – they’d rather not do so at an extreme cost. Japanese no-frills airline, Peach, is seizing this opportunity to revive tourism by creating an ultra-limited pass that lets people fly as much as they want over the next month for only £130. Brands can create hype and they grow their appeal by creating limited and exclusive offerings that amplify (or even exaggerate) their proposition.
Catch us if you can here
A new chapter.
You’ve probably seen Facebook has rebranded as ‘Meta’, with all its brands – including Instagram, WhatsApp and the (previously) eponymous Facebook –now sitting under the umbrella. Mark Zuckerberg felt the company was so tightly linked to one product (Facebook) that it was holding back the company’s more expansive aims. Crucially, the decision is the company explicitly sticking its flag (and staking bets) on the much hyped metaverse. The metaverse could be for VR what smartphones are to the clunky mobile phones of the 1980s. That being said we’re still a long way off.
Get meta here
Mental smells.
US healthcare brand, The Nue Co, has launched a unisex perfume that, aside from smelling good, stimulates mental energy, focus and clarity. ‘Mind Energy’ (the product) uses scent science to stimulate neural pathways and create a shift in mood. People are increasingly interested in products with functional benefits. What other product-types could have novel benefits attached to them?
Smell mental (literally and metaphorically) here