Happy Friday, how has your week been?
Here is the most demanded Xmas jumper this yearโฆyes, Greggs sausage roll ๐ jumper. Iโll let you make up your mind if it is Vegan or notโฆ
This week has seen a number of changes, Nike move away from selling on Amazon to โfocus on its own direct sales to consumersโ (this is likely to happen on Instagram btw), Disney+ launch in ๐บ๐ธ to 10m subs in 2 days (in ๐ฌ๐ง itโs not out until March), Motorola brought back the Razr (yes touch screen flip & it looks ๐ฅ) and 6.4m views on the John Lewis Advert (donโt worry more info below)
Did you know in Japan 60%+ of Coca Cola is sold via vending machinesโฆwell vending machines have been making a come back and this is pretty smart by Kylie Jenner to place it in Las Vegas airport.
๐ This Weeks Must Reads ๐
๐ฎ2020 Vision: The future of social media
Instatok? Instagram is testing aka rolling out tiktok features My ๐ญ: Instagram has become the testing ground for Facebook, why you might ask, itโs all about time spent and advertising spend, alongside serving the next best piece of content for you. Why Brazil? ๐ง๐ท Is known for having a largely popular userbase and has adopted new features and networks quickly. Insta has a lot riding on its shoulders, especially understanding the remix culture that TikTok has produced. Zuck was found on Tiktok this week, following celebrities but big TikTok talent. Iโd love for him to drop a video on reels I mean TikTok ๐
Snap, crackle, flop ๐ค? Snap has released their version 3 of their AR glasses, this time much more expensive. With Apple announcing their AR headset and glasses for 2022, My ๐ญ: the head and eyes are still the next battlegrounds, some suggesting it will replace the phone. What do you think?โ๐ Thanks, Paula for sending over this weekโs number 5, 6 & 10 ๐โ
๐ฌ๐ง๐ : ยฃ17m has already been spent in the UK on mince pies We have spend ยฃ6m on Christmas puddings already
๐Busy is a choice, productive is a skill: Seth Godin dropping another knowledge bomb
Travel Disruption ๐ฉ: Skyscanner is depriortising meta search and going to become a travel marketplace
A Whole Day Flying? ๐ฆ๐บ airline Qantas completed a one-off research flight that carried about 50 people from London ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ to Sydney ๐ฆ๐บ nonstop, clocking up two world records in the process - thatโs a no thanks from me
Amazon Supermarket ๐ง? Amazon going offline again with more food stores My ๐ญ: The move into stores away from books and Whole Foods is a smart play for Amazon as a brand, whether their meals and prices can attract people from their Supermarket of choice (Walmart in ๐บ๐ธ) only time and scale will tell.
Up in Smoke๐ฅ? After a rough year, Juul the vape company is reducing its workforce and reducing its spending (mostly from Advertising and Marketing) by $1b next year. My ๐ญ: After losing its CMO and being called out for misleading users of the dangers of vaping, itโs interesting timing to make this shift, tobacco and vaping have always used questionable tactics and created smart advertising to promote, I hope we are starting to see the end of smoke-related products!
Good News vs Bad News ๐ฐ? Advertising is the new dot com bubble
New Social On The Block ๐: Wikipedia founder released a news focused social network (a slightly better-looking forum) yesterday
Internet giants fighting over your ๐ธApple led the way, now Facebook and Google are getting into the market..๐ตFacebook improving consumer trust or just going after your money? ๐ต๏ธโโ๏ธGoogle is also reportedly going to offer banking accounts My ๐ญ for some all in android users this makes sense but as a company that has struggled to become a keep my credit and debit card on record, iโd be surprised if there is a mad rush for this away from fan boys and droids
App Marketing 2020 ๐ฒ: Here are 5 trends you will want to know about, especially PWAโs - Consumers spend 674 billion hours on mobile
Nostalgia 101 ๐- Reebok hoping the 25-year logo will bring back the glory days, what do you think?
Mistake ๐: Uber CEO made a big mistake in an interview with Axios this week
Next week I am speaking at the Disruptive Marketing Conference, my deck is called โRIP to The CMOโ, it shouldnโt take you too long to work out if you arenโt a first-time reader of the newsletter on why it is called that. Here is one of the slides, Iโll know you will enjoy:
I will be sharing the presented deck, likely in next weekโs newsletter. There is a much bigger essay comingโฆ
Christmas ๐ TV Ads Playlist Yes, I should apologise, you are no doubt sick of them already but here is a list of the 2019 Christmas Ads, Ikea is definitely winning from social sentiment, what is your favourite?
Quote that resonated with me this week
"Talent wins games, but teamwork and intelligence win championships."
โ Michael Jordan ๐
๐ง Podcast Of The Week ๐ง -
๐LinkedInโs Hello Monday is a great pod series, this has been my favourite in recent time Struggling with anxiety or stress at work, donโt worry you are not the only person, even COO of Vice media (and was deputy chief of staff at the White House)
Have a great week and thanks for reading the Must Reads Newsletter.
Disclaimer: All views are my own, until you click through on the stories.

