Marketing

Netflix Is Going Physical — And It Might Just Rewrite the Experiential Playbook At Cannes Lions, Netflix unveiled more details about its boldest move yet in fan engagement: Netflix House — permanent, immersive venues launching this fall in Philadelphia and Dallas. Think “Stranger Things” escape games, “Squid Game” obstacle courses, “Wednesday” carnivals, mini-golf through your favorite titles, themed cocktails, exclusive merch, and yes — a TUDUM Theater to host fan events and screenings. But this isn’t just a cool activation. It’s a strategic pivot that’s worth unpacking: ✅ Strategic Intent: Netflix isn’t trying to build a theme park empire. This is about deepening emotional ties with fans, amplifying buzz, and future-proofing its brand beyond the streaming wars. These venues aren’t just fun — they’re fan conversion engines. ✅ A New Content Loop: Every attraction is designed to be shared — built for UGC, influencer walkthroughs, cosplay, TikToks, and viral moments. Fans become marketers. Data becomes feedback for future IP development. The venue becomes a living R&D lab. ✅ Not Just Eyeballs — Wallets: With exclusive merch, themed dining, and potential collabs (think Netflix x Funko or Netflix Bites F&B), the monetization flywheel is in motion. Even modest visitor volume could generate $25–30M/year per location — and that’s before you count the uplift in brand love or viewership. ✅ Global Signals: This could be the first step toward regional pop-ups, international localization (imagine a “Lupin” heist experience in Paris or “Money Heist” in Madrid), and even a Netflix-con-branded event model. It’s fandom scaled offline. 💡 Big Picture? Netflix is building something Disney mastered decades ago — real-world storytelling at scale. And if this works, it unlocks a new dimension: streaming IP that lives, breathes, and sells in the physical world. 📊 Our modeled impact: ⌙ ~1M visitors in Year 1 ⌙ 100M+ earned impressions ⌙ 10–15% churn reduction among local superfans ⌙ $5–10 lift in ARPU among engaged segments ⌙ Payback in ~3–5 years — with marketing ROI baked in 🎯 This isn’t about “content” anymore. It’s about building culture. Kudos to Marian, Greg, Josh, Mitzi, Emily, Nidia, Lauren, Jessica, Nikki and team. #Netflix #Cannes #Media #Licensing #ConsumerProduct

Are independent DSPs obsolete? What comes next? Over the last few months, The Trade Desk and Viant Technology — the leading independent DSP and the AI-powered challenger — have seen their stock prices drop by 50% and 30%, respectively. Is the market losing confidence in the standalone DSP model? For years, DSPs competed on supply integrations, user experience, targeting capabilities, and smarter bidding. But today every major DSP plays with the same cards i.e. the tech itself has become a commodity. This means today’s differentiation comes from somewhere else: ▶️ Exclusive data (1st party signals at real scale) ▶️ Exclusive inventory (closed ecosystems) And who owns both? The walled gardens — Google, Amazon, and increasingly, Retail Media Networks. That leaves brands with a choice: ↩️ Double down inside the walls of Google, Amazon, and retail media ↪️ Push for the next generation of independent platforms My take: the independent DSP as we know it is fading — but this creates space for something new. A network of Commerce Media platforms? Verticalized solutions for CPG, Pharma, Travel, etc.? …? Where do you think the next wave is headed? Are independent DSPs in existential trouble, or will they find a new way to differentiate? #advertising #media #tech

Uri Levine is the co-founder of 10 companies, including Waze (which he sold to Google for $1.1B) and Moovit (which he sold to Intel for $1B). He’s also been on 20 different boards, including a dozen he’s still on, and has advised over 50 startups on all things product, growth, hiring, and M&A. Most recently, he's the author of "Fall in Love with the Problem, Not the Solution: A Handbook for Entrepreneurs" which was described by Steve Wozniak as the “Bible for entrepreneurs.” In our conversation, we cover: 🔸 Why falling in love with the problem is so important for entrepreneurs 🔸 The 3 phases of a startup, and what to focus on during each phase 🔸 Tactics for telling a compelling story when fundraising 🔸 Why firing is more important than hiring 🔸 How Waze iterated to achieve product-market fit 🔸 Much more Listen now 👇 - YouTube: https://lnkd.in/gxWJb_Rg - Spotify: https://lnkd.in/gDg4EmqF - Apple: https://lnkd.in/ge8uXpRJ Some key takeaways: 1. You need to “fall in love with the problem” that you’re solving. This is the biggest driver of startup success. It will help you deliver value to users, tell a more inspiring story about your company, and recruit a team. “Falling in love” means feeling enough passion about the problem that it can drive you to persist through hard times. 2. The ultimate measure of product-market fit is customer retention. If customers keep coming back, it indicates that your product or service is meeting their needs and providing value. Achieving product-market fit requires patience and iteration. With Waze, the team went through countless iterations, incorporating user feedback to improve the app. Uri stresses that you must “keep trying different things until you find the one thing that works.” 3. The first and last slides in a pitch deck are the most underused. They show onscreen the longest—while you get set up and while you take questions afterward—so they should contain your strongest point. Don’t waste this valuable real estate on showing your company name or “Thank you.” 4. Use the “30-day test” to maintain a high-performance team. Create a reminder to ask yourself this question 30 days after someone joins the team: “Knowing what I know today, would I hire this person?” If the answer is yes, tell the person you’re excited about them and give them more equity—you’ll gain a lot of loyalty. If the answer is no, you need to fire them immediately, to avoid the inevitable damage they will cause to you, your team, and themselves. 5. Watch users, especially those who use your product in unexpected ways. Different people use products differently, so observing a diverse range of users is key to building the right solution. Uri also advises focusing on those who didn’t convert to uncover barriers and points of friction.

Kraft Heinz has lost $57 billion since its 2015 merger. (60%+ drop in value.)   We're in an era where the smartest strategic move is often subtraction. The food industry is being repriced, revalued, and restructured. And the signals keep showing up. [1] The Great Food Brands Migration. Owning lots of brands used to be a strength. Boards are demanding sharper focus, better capital allocation, and proof of future growth beyond margin cutting. Kraft/Heinz is separating to get as much value as possible from a dying portfolio of brands. Holding onto old slow moving brands is weighing down companies.   [2] Nostalgia ≠ Premium. A familiar name used to mean you could charge more. Not anymore. Consumers now see many “iconic” food brands as functional, commoditized, or outdated. When equity fades and pricing drops, companies are forced to compete on cost, not value. [3] Multi-Channel is the New Diversification Heinz Ketchup and Philadelphia Cream Cheese will likely hold their value because they span channels…across the globe in restaurants, grocery, hospitality, etc. When brands show up where people eat, shop, or order, they become harder to ignore. Expect food brand portfolios to narrow by category but expand reach across channels. The market is now favoring food companies that are lean, distinct, and built to adapt. It's time to stop asking "How can we grow?"...and start asking "How can we last?"

The music AI landscape is too complex for a single map — so instead, I made three. 🤓 As part of my presentation at last week's Boston Music AI Meetup, I developed a brand-new set of market map visualizations, capturing the rapidly evolving state of music AI from multiple angles. If you've been following Water & Music for a while, you may remember our first music AI market map from November 2022, focused on how AI slots into the creative process. Since then, the landscape has expanded dramatically, with dozens of new tools, industry partnerships, and legal challenges emerging. I've realized that one single map is simply insufficient to capture what's happening. So, I opted for three new ones, each showcasing a different part on the market: 🎯 Map 1: The Use Case Lens breaks down who's using what tools and why. The market has naturally organized into distinct segments serving specific needs — from consumer-facing, full-stack generation platforms like Suno and Udio, to specialized professional tools for audio processing and vocal editing. The "Rights & Protection" category in particular did not exist in our 2022 map, reflecting the music industry's growing focus on copyright and attribution for AI. 💰 Map 2: The VC Rollercoaster lens traces how the money trail of VC funding in music AI startups has shifted over the past few years. Ever since Suno's massive $125M raise, the investment focus has actually shifted away from full-stack consumer moonshots toward B2B solutions with clearer revenue paths, particularly those addressing rights management and professional workflows. 🔄 Map 3: The Industry Incumbent lens reveals how established players are responding, leveraging existing user bases and distribution channels to maintain relevance without starting from scratch. While some companies like Splice, Output, and YouTube are building their own capabilities in-house, we're also seeing strategic partnerships and integrations becoming the norm, led by SoundCloud's integrations with nearly 10 different AI tools. I'll be publishing a comprehensive analysis for Water & Music members next week that explores these patterns and their implications for creators, rights holders, and tech companies. Not a member yet? Sign up for our free newsletter to be notified when this analysis drops. Link in comments 👇 #MusicAI #MusicTech #AIStrategy #MusicIndustry #MusicBusiness

Yesterday, yet another AmLaw100 firm announced a round of layoffs of associates & staff. The layoffs seem to be part of a broader trend driven by slowing demand as a result of rising interest rates. This isn’t the first time that’s happened btw. The legal industry goes through these cycles and usually firms re-hire for those same positions when the economy bounces back. This time might be different, though. Here's why: First, generative AI will enable partners to do more with fewer associates. I’m not sure if the AI is good enough to do that today, but it’ll get there soon. Especially since firms seem to be incorporating it into their workflows right now. When demand eventually returns, these firms will likely have far more tech-enabled processes than they do today—which means they’ll need fewer associates to complete the work. If you want to stay ahead of the curve, pay attention to what legal recruiters are saying about hiring patterns when things bounce back. Second, large clients are more savvy about buying legal services than they’ve ever been. The rise of legal ops over the past decade have helped in-house lawyers make better decisions about where to invest resources. There’s also been an explosion in tech and analytics (e.g. Persuit, SimpleLegal) to help with outside counsel spend. I expect a trend towards greater financial discipline among legal departments, similar to how insurance companies work with their outside lawyers. If you want to stay ahead of the curve, pay attention to rate increase data for various practice areas. Third, there’s an unprecedented amount of high quality talent that now exists outside of traditional Biglaw. The boom-bust nature of the industry means that capable attorneys are constantly being pushed out. It’s not just associates; it’s also partners who are being de-equitized for the sake of PPEP. That, combined with the generational trend towards remote work, rise of boutique / regional firms, and explosion in flex talent providers (e.g. Axiom, Paragon, Latitude). If you want to stay ahead of the curve, pay attention to layoff data & equity partner growth & attrition rates. Now don’t get me wrong. Many AmLaw100 firms and their people will be immune to these trends. Clients will still go to their same go-to firms for high stakes matters, like big time M&A or bet the company litigation. Basically anything that has boardroom visibility. CLOs and GCs are betting their careers on the successful handling of those matters, and they’re not going to be influenced by cost savings or efficiency. As they say, no one ever got fired for hiring Cravath. For everyone else though, you’ve got to stay ahead of the curve. Because it doesn’t matter what school you went to, what firm you worked at, or whether they promised to make you partner. Market dynamics dictate so much of success and failure in our careers—so you always want to be prepared for whatever comes. Good luck my friends. 

I asked Richard van der Blom, the man behind the LinkedIn Algorithm Report, how to win on LinkedIn. This is what he told me: 1️⃣ Focus on helpful content over vanity “LinkedIn now has a process where they steer the more knowledge-based content primarily to your followers. And as soon as you add a selfie, it goes more to your connection.” Knowledge-based content will target followers (and beyond), while personal content (the selfie) is more likely to reach connections. 2️⃣ Most LinkedIn users are still consumers “Only 1.1% is active on a weekly basis…there’s a huge opportunity if you become consistent in what you do on LinkedIn.” With a small percentage of users actively posting, there’s a significant opportunity for consistent creators to stand out and gain visibility. 3️⃣ Consistency > Frequency “Consistency is more important than frequency. If you can publish 3 times a week but maintain that for months, that’s much better.” Establish a consistent posting schedule that you can maintain over time to build a reliable presence on LinkedIn. 4️⃣ Diversify your content formats “At least have 3 formats and mix them up… I normally work 1 week ahead and make sure to have 4 to 6 posts.” Use a variety of content formats (text, images, videos, polls) to keep your audience engaged and avoid algorithmic penalties. 5️⃣ Polls are so back “Polls are really performing well compared to the median reach of all types of posts.” Utilize polls to engage your audience and generate insights for future posts. Polls can also be a lead generation tool by analyzing who votes and following up with them. 6️⃣ Posting daily doesn't require creating daily “I normally record 6 to 10 videos in 1 hour, 1 hour and a half.” Create content in batches when you're at your creative best. 7️⃣ Share the love in the comments “Consistently posting 10 quality comments daily for a month can lead to significant increases in profile views, engagement, and follower growth.” Engage with other people’s content regularly. It's important for the algo (and for human connection). 8️⃣ Try new features (but don't be afraid to revert) “I still use the text link instead of the customized button because I see a higher conversion for the text link.” Experiment with LinkedIn features like the custom button or text links in your profile to see what works better for your specific goals. 9️⃣ Turn viewers into customers in your Featured section “Have some low commitment offers in your featured section to tease people to take the next step.” Optimize your LinkedIn profile to guide visitors through a journey. Use the featured section for low-commitment offers like newsletter sign-ups or introductory calls. – If you liked this, follow Jay Clouse for more! And if you want to go deeper, listen to our full conversation here: https://lnkd.in/eaKr2u5Z

Triangulation. Why do we need 3 methods to measure the impact of media? We use measurement to... - Identify what worked in the past - Optimize the present - Forecast/Plan the future Unfortunately, there is no single tool that can do everything. But you can use the following methods together: 1.) Media Mix Modeling (MMM) 2.) Experiments (Geo Tests, Lift Studies) 3.) Multi-touch Attribution (MTA) Let's break down what each is good for. 1.) Media Mix Modeling (MMM) This considers your media (impressions, spend) and models it to your outcome (revenue, leads, profit). It answers which factors, channels, and tactics impact that outcome. Pros - Holistic, can measure all channels - Calculates incrementality - Can give you a baseline - Can measure lag (ad-stock effect) - Privacy-proof - Incorporated factors beyond media Cons - Not granular - Can be technically challenging to run We use MMM for... ✅ Measuring the past ❌ Optimizing the present ✅ Plan the future 2.) Experiments Geo-tests are the most popular. This method finds similar geographies (city, state, DMA). Which allows you to measure the impact of pulsing media up/down/off. Pros - Statistically accurate - Calculates incrementality - Privacy-proof Cons - Time-intensive for many channels - Challenges in smaller countries - Lost revenue from holdouts We use experiments for... ❌ Measuring the past ✅ Optimizing the present ✅ Plan the future 3.) Attribution (MTA) This stitches journeys together at the user-level, and assigned credit to the channels/campaigns that the user engaged (click, view). Tools like Google Analytics or even Meta/Google's internal platforms use attribution. Pros - Data is realtime - Easy to get the data - Visitor/User-level data Cons - Blind to offline/non-click channels - Relies on cookies, not privacy-proof - Does not measure incrementality We use MTA for... ✅ Measuring the past ✅ Optimizing the present ❌ Plan the future So, how do mature brands put this all together (triangulation)? 1.) Measure the past using MMM and MTA - What worked? - Which channels were incremental? - What is our baseline? 2.) Use MTA and Experiments to optimize the present - MTA for campaign-level data in a single platform - Experiments to validate the MMM 3.) Forecast and Plan the future - MMM to model and scenario plan What would you change/add about this approach? #triangulation #measurement #methods

For the past two years, CPG brands have been coasting on price hikes to keep revenue numbers up. And now? That strategy is running out of steam. I spend a lot of time talking to CPG leaders, and here’s what I’m hearing as we head into 2025: consumer confidence is weak, volume growth still hasn’t bounced back, and brands can’t rely on price increases anymore. The question I keep getting is—what now? - Global CPG sales grew 7.5% in 2024, but that’s down from 9.3% in 2023 and 9.8% in 2022. - 75% of growth came from price increases—not volume. Better than the 90% in 2023, but still not healthy. - Developed markets are slowing fast. U.S. & EU growth dropped to 4.5% in 2024, and volumes stayed flat. - Emerging markets are driving almost all global volume growth. They saw an 11% sales increase in 2024—twice the growth rate of developed markets. (Bain & Company) For the first time in years, raw material costs aren’t the #1 worry. Instead, every executive I talk to is worried about: 1. More competition for shoppers – Too many brands, not enough differentiation. 2. Consumers spending less – 80% of U.S. & EU shoppers are actively cutting back. 3. Retailers pushing back harder – The pricing power shift is real, and brands are feeling it. And if you look at where consumers are actually spending, the trend is obvious: ✅ Premium brands and private labels are thriving. ❌ Mass-market and mid-tier brands are getting squeezed. ✅ Shoppers want ‘value’—but that doesn’t just mean ‘cheaper.’ It means better quality, stronger differentiation, and clear benefits. So, Where Do CPG Brands Go From Here? - Volume needs to make a comeback. Price hikes won’t cut it anymore—brands have to focus on innovation, relevance, and real consumer connection. - Emerging markets can’t be an afterthought. If you’re only focused on U.S. and Europe, you’re missing the biggest growth engine. - Retailer relationships will define 2025 winners and losers. Brands that offer real category value (beyond price negotiations) will have the advantage. - If you’re stuck in the middle, you’re in trouble. Premium and private label are thriving—where does your brand fit? I’ve had so many conversations lately with CPG leaders trying to figure out their next move. If 2024 was the year of price hikes, 2025 is the year to rethink strategy. What are you seeing in the market? What’s the biggest challenge (or opportunity) for CPG this year? Let’s talk. 👇 #CPG #IndustryTrends #ConsumerGoods #RetailStrategy #FMCG #Executives

10 Things that stood out to me at Cannes Lions 2025 1. AI Is the New Operating System AI isn’t a bolt-on—it’s the new backbone. Cannes made it clear: the future belongs to marketers who can blend creative instincts with AI orchestration, testing, and optimization. Fluency is now table stakes; integration is the edge. 2. Creators Are Studios Creators aren’t just influencers—they’re full-stack media companies. They want clear briefs, creative autonomy, and a seat at the table. Brands that treat creators like partners (not placements) are winning relevance and scale. They also came with business hats on - engaged and up early in meetings. 3. Brand Behavior > Advertising  The best work didn’t interrupt—it participated. From Burger King litigating taste claims to Wendy’s trolling broken machines, Cannes rewarded cultural behavior, not just campaigns. Conversations outside the Palais also focused on consumer behavior shifts overlapping with modern discovery methods (Read LLMs) - to find that place in the middle where brands need to stand out with distinction. 4. Content Discovery Is the New Distribution Search is being redefined. Platforms like YouTube and Snap are pushing visual-first and AI-assisted discovery. Brands that optimize for LLM visibility, shopping UX, and platform-native storytelling (vs. dumping ads into channels) will win. 5. Creative Agencies Are Falling Behind A quiet reckoning: Many creative partners are not AI-literate. CMOs voiced frustration at shops that can’t iterate with performance data or build for variant testing. The gap between creative storytelling and performance execution is widening, and the search for the right talent has been challenging. 6. Content Infrastructure > One-Off Assets Tools like Pencil, Runway, and Writer aren’t side hustles—they’re content engines. Cannes highlighted a shift toward always-on systems that combine creative, data, and AI to generate, test, and optimize content at scale. The smartest orgs are rebuilding the entire creative stack 7. Retail Media + Creators = the Next Big Stack From Snap Specs to TikTok Shop to YouTube’s shopping integrations, commerce is becoming culturally native. RMNs are now expected to include content strategy, influencer layers, and measurement models—not just shoppable units. 8. Fandom Is a Strategy, Not a Vertical Whether bull riding or Bad Bunny, brands leaned into niche communities. Fandom isn’t entertainment—it’s identity. Emotional resonance and community-first activations are driving long-tail brand equity. 9. The CMO Role Is Splintering  Marketing, UX, AI, and brand stewardship are too big for one title. More orgs are creating dual roles—like Chief Brand Officer and Chief Digital Officer—to manage taste and transformation in parallel. 10. Taste Still Wins Even in a sea of automation, taste matters. The best work had restraint, clarity, emotion, and specificity. Cannes reminded us: AI can scale your message, but only good judgment makes it worth scaling.