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Showing their support of the proposal to legislate in favour gay marriage in the UK, Ben & Jerry’s, the Unilever ice-cream brand, will change their name of their “Oh My! Apple Pie” ice-cream to “Apple-y Ever After”.

Not only have they change the name, they have also redesigned the packaging to show a male couple standing on top of a wedding cake, after they partnered up with Stonewall, the charity that campaigns and lobbies for the rights of gay, lesbian and bisexual people.

The renaming of their popular fruity ice cream came about because this week the UK Government is set to open its consultation on how to implement the legislation that will give equal marriage rights to gay people. It’s not the first time Ben & Jerry’s have been in support of gay rights. In America to celebrate the introduction of gay marriage legislation in the brand’s home state of Vermont, Ben & Jerry’s renamed its “Chubby Hubby” ice-cream to “Hubby Hubby”.

To gain interest in their renaming and to help others show their support for gay marriage, Ben & Jerry’s have dedicated part if their UK website, to show information on the proposed legislation and why they have changed the name of their apple flavour ice cream. You will also find links from their website to the Facebook app and a drafted letter that consumers can use to send to their local MP.

On gay rights issues, Ben & Jerry’s said it has been an advocate for equal rights, regardless of sexual orientation, since the brand was created.

Laura Doughty, deputy chief executive, Stonewall, said: “We’re truly moved by Ben and Jerry’s support for same-sex marriage in Britain. All people want is to call their long-term relationship by the same name as everyone else. Our strong advice to those who disapprove of same-sex marriage is just not to get married to some-one of the same sex”

VW Up!

Volkswagens, latest car, the Up! will see an outdoor campaign launched through Facebook, which is a prime example on how social media is now at the forefront of many companies advertising campaigns. This latest VW model will see comments about the car left on Facebook to drive the content of ads.

The Volkswagen up has been designed for young urban drivers and so the campaign will reflect this, using Facebook with its ‘Big up the Up!’ campaign. You will be invited by VW to “big up” the car on Facebook by sharing a number of complimentary statements about Up! with their friends. In turn, VW will return the compliment on its digital billboard ads.

According to Kirsten Stagg, national communications manager for VW, the company is looking to grow its market share by reaching new audiences in the UK, which they hope, the campaign for the Up! will do. They are looking for an increase of current 9.2% market share to 10% by next year.

Kirsten Stagg, said: “The new car market is traditionally older because of the available disposable income, but with the Up! model there is a definite opportunity to reach a different audience. Consumers aren’t interested in hard sell messages from brands on social media so we wanted to do something fun that raised awareness and talked about the benefits of the model.”

The new ads will be running across Ocean Outdoor’s digital sites in London and Liverpool and there will also will be TV and press activity and traditional outdoor billboards to run with the social media campaign. Also for images and data to be used in billboard apps users will need to give permission for the app to use them first.

A new £5million campaign by VisitEngland is being launched with the hope of shoring up the domestic market this year, in particular during the Olympics. It is in partnership with commercial operators and fellow tourist boards and features a host of stars.

It will be called; “Holidays at Home are Great” and hopefully inspire UK residents to take a holiday at home this year whilst the country is hosting both the London Olympics and the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee to help mitigate “against a potential Olympic sag”.

Because of the importance of the 2012 Olympics, commercial partners are offering a 20.12% discount on accommodation, dining, attractions, transport and more for the UK. The contributors include; Thomas Cook, leisure group Merlin Entertainment, Travelodge, Bourne Leisure and Hoseasons Group.

Launched today (7th March) the campaign advertisements will feature stars such as Stephen Fry, Rupert Grint and Julie Walters at various locations, supported by the tourist boards for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

You can enjoy Julie Walters at Tate Liverpool and in the Lake District, Rupert Grint in Anglesey and on Bridlington beach and Michelle Dockery on Giant’s Causeway. Some of the strap lines also include “No passports, no jabs, no visas and no Euros” in an attempt to bring some light heartedness to the campaign.

Some of the destinations which are to be showcased during the adverts for about ten seconds include Blackpool, Skegness, Yorkshire and Liverpool.

VisitEngland chief executive James Berresford says: “This is the largest domestic tourism campaign ever undertaken and aims to inspire UK residents to take advantage of the fantastic events taking place in the country this year.”

Toy giant Mattel, who own Barbie and most recently acquired Thomas the Tank Engine own Hit Entertainment are looking to use marketing so they can make an emotional connection with parents, in an effort to boost sales.

Over the years the company has grown, most famously known for Barbie, Mattel have also recently acquired Hit Entertainment who had under their belt; Thomas the Tank Engine, Bob the Builder, Fireman Sam, Angelina Ballerina and Pingu making them one of the biggest players in the toy industry.

In an effort to keep up with their sales growth (7% worldwide) they are turning their attention to marketing their brands rather than individual products and thus helping those who buy the products. According to their newly promoted marketing director, Jenny Watson “Our marketing used to be very functional, telling mum about the five main benefits of a product.” Now the company seems to be going for a more indirect approach, trying to gain interest of specific brands rather than just products.

Last year Mattel launched a campaign for Fisher-Price with a softer, more emotional appeal, focusing on the joy of learning. As part of this new approach they have also made numerous changes to their website. So instead of searching for a specific product you now search their collections based on your child’s age to make sure you get the right products for your child’s needs.

Adding to this more personal touch from the company, Mattel have shot their new advertising campaign with an intimate feel, which simulates a hand-held video camera. Also instead of using models, they have used real families to show the genuine connection between mother and child.
According to marketing director, Jenny Watson, What we’re giving mothers in the TV ad is that emotional connection and just the key words they can search to find products. Fisher-Price is a long-lasting brand but it’s had a bit of dusty feel to it and this has been about injecting a bit of modernity.”

Part of embracing modern technology, Mattel has designed the Apptivity case, which launched earlier this year. It has been designed so that it makes your iPhone child safe. It’s a protective cover that lets babies and toddlers play with it safely so no damage is not caused to your iPhone nor is your baby in any danger.

Dove launched an interactive campaign for Valentine’s Day, which was yesterday. It has been launched as part of the cosmetic company’s on-going Real Beauty stance which has seen the company opting for nonprofessional models, mainly their customers.

Dove used digital outdoor screens in London’s Victoria station to engage consumers and “spread a little love” around Valentine’s., as of Monday customers were able to post a different question each day on the large-format Transmission screens in the station, which invited passers-by to respond with thoughts and reflections on beauty and happiness.

Those responses were streamed in real time on the screens. Dove also gave out free gifts that relate to the day’s question.

Speaking about the Dove campaign Jocelyn Hsieh, senior brand development manager on Dove Global said: We hope the engagement and interactive nature of our campaign will bring a smile and a moment of Dove’s warmth to Londoners during their daily commute. We look forward to seeing Londoners’ reflections on beauty and their thoughts on the women in their lives shared on our billboard at Victoria Station.”

The campaign will be running until the 19th of February.

T-shirt printing is becoming increasingly popular, and many individuals and printers in London are printing their own T-shirt designs either as a hobby or for profit.  Apart from the obvious reasons for printing T-shirts such as for fun, there are many situations for which personalised printed T-shirts can be perfect.  Many shops offer printing services, both online and on the high street, and individuals who enjoy arts and crafts can print their own T-shirts at home quite easily.

A printed T-shirt can be a fantastic gift.  The T-shirt can include the person’s name, age, birthday, or a memorable photograph.  T-shirts can be printed to commemorate any memorable date; for example, the date that a class of students left school, or the date of a charity event.

Printed T-shirts can also be useful for sports teams and can incorporate logos, names and numbers.  Many T-shirt printers offer a range of different styles and colours, so that they will be suitable for every sport.  Professionally printed sports kits will give a sports team a more professional, cohesive look.

Printed T-shirts can also be ideal for groups of people who are taking part in an event.  For example, a group going on a stag or hen weekend may wish to have printed T-shirts, and people taking part in a family event such as a reunion may wish to wear matching printed T-shirts. You can normally get discounts for bulk orders from printers in Nottingham.

T-shirts printed with a company’s name and logo can give the business a professional edge, and can make employees more easily identifiable to clients.

Innocent, who make Innocent Smoothies and other naturally good drinks and food are encouraging consumers to unleash their romantic side in the run up to Valentine’s Day. As an alternative gift idea for your loved one, Innocent is giving you the opportunity to personalise a label on their favourite Innocent smoothie.

The company have launched a dedicated site, valentines.innocentdrinks, where you can generate your own “love label” to print out and stick onto a smoothie bottle. More information on Innocents Valentine’s campaign can also be found on their Facebook, Twitter sites as well as online advertisements.

Innocent have altered their logo which is a circular face with two eyes and a halo so it is now heart shaped to fit the logo’s and the theme better. On the dedicated site you can pick your favourite smoothie and edit the label to include phrases such as, “It may or may not have an aphrodisiac effect. Sip it and see,” and “It’s a gift from someone who’ll set your groin on fire”.

You will also be able to choose from a range of poems or messages to appear on the labels or if you have a creative side you can write your own.

Innocent Smoothie label

Lynx which is a well know MALE grooming brand is looking to give girls the ‘Lynx effect’ after it launched a women’s body spray in the UK on Monday. It will be the first time the brand has entered the women’s market.

Lynx which is owned by Unilever, is launching their new female range in conjunction with their new Attract range which is aimed at men, Attract for her will be part of the range and will be marketed as limited edition. The mens range however will be permanent and includes a body spray, antiperspirant and a shower gel.

According to Selina Sykes, Lynx marketing manager at Unilever, the Lynx brand is established enough to have the permission to launch a women’s fragrance. She said: “As a brand, Lynx has got to constantly find new ways to entertain guys with a new variant that tops the previous years. Lynx is about surprising and entertaining consumers to generate conversation around the brand. Lynx will not be marketing the women’s Attract fragrance directly to women. Sykes said Lynx already has a high “spontaneous awareness” of the brand within the female deodorant market, which means the brand “doesn’t need to market to girls. The women’s fragrance is being marketed as a limited edition product to encourage consumers to engage with the Attract variant, she said, emphasising “when it’s gone, it’s gone”.

Lynx is looking at different marketing options for their range across the globe last October Marc Mathieu announced their “more magic, less logic” marketing strategy. Selina Sykes spoke about this strategy and said: “Everything we do has that implied magic.” Plus Lynx has always been based on strong insight and the “magic”.

It has also been announced that the Lynx brand will also be launching the female fragrance in other markets under their Axe name, it will be called Axe Anarchy and will of course use the same advertising format that we see with Lynx and the same strapline; “Unleash the chaos”.

You can find more information about the new female fragrance on Facebook and the TV ad will be screened on 1 February and will be supported by digital, outdoor and PR activity. The new ad features a female American “cop” and a male “robber” running through the streets of a city, where they are undressing while in pursuit of each other. At the end of the ad the pair are gazing at each other, about to kiss.

Please see video below.

Katy Perry

The hugely popular game franchise The Sims will see pop starlet Katy Perry joining their simish world, after she partnered with EA to develop and promote multiple Sims games with Perry-themed in-game content and virtual goods.

As well as featuring in the game Katy Perry will also be taking part in advertisement campaigns including TV adverts, which will start off with the launch of a collector’s editor for ‘The Sims 3 Showtime’.

The game is being released on the 9th March here in the UK and there will also be online communications and in store advertising for the game too.

EA have said that they will be working closely with Katy to create in-game accessories, clothing, hairstyles, furniture and props to as they say “celebrate the imagination that she brings to her performances, music videos and life”.

It isn’t the first time EA have collaborated with popstars for their Sims games for the original Sims game they worked with Christina Aguilera in the same vein which was hugely popular.

They may look like normal posts, however you will be surprised to know that some of the posts on your news feed will now be paid adverts, with the only difference being that they will say ‘featured content’. For now Facebook will insert one advert per day however they haven’t ruled out that there may be more per day in the future. In the past adverts has come under ‘sponsored content’ however Facebook thought that they blended in too easily.

It’s possible that if you have ‘liked’ anything in the past you could now start advertising to your friends through news feeds. According to critics, you could unwittingly click on them thinking they are just a news feed from friends without realising. Facebook have assured users though that it will only display adverts for goods and services that somebody has already ‘liked’. The adverts will only be seen on full versions of Facebook and not on mobile sites.

This isn’t the first time Facebook has run adverts in the news feed the company ran them between 2006 and 2009, before Facebook reached the popularity it now has. However it’s thought it could be very lucrative now for the company to do so, because of the number of people now signed up to the social networking site.

It’s not yet clear how the adverts will go down with Facebook users as many don’t seem to like change. The recent changes made to the interface including the constantly-updated ticker and the Timeline feature has not gone down well with users. According to a poll by 86 per cent of users hated the update and an even higher number of teenagers, 91 per cent hated it.