by | Monday, February 2, 2026 · 7:00 am

Super Bowl Teasers: How Brands Tap into Your Mind Before the Big Game

Do you remember when Super Bowl ads were broadcast during the Super Bowl? Gone are the weeks of anticipation for brands leading up to the game. Now ads warm up the crowd well in advance of the big game. This year’s teasers from Salesforce and Duolingo show how brands cleverly shape consumer perception, motivation, and even cultural identity long before kickoff.

Take Salesforce teaming up with MrBeast. This collaboration is more than a celebrity endorsement; it’s a strategic play in consumer behavior. MrBeast’s vertical, phone-shot teaser feels informal and spontaneous, matching the media habits of millions of young viewers. It leans into lifestyle marketing by letting a creator who “gets” the audience shape the message. And the tiny hint of “you might become a millionaire” taps directly into consumer motivation. Sweepstakes equal instant dopamine hit.

Meanwhile, Duolingo is using Bad Bunny’s historic Spanish-language halftime show to generate buzz with five and fifteen second micro-ads. These short bursts act like subliminal nudges. Duolingo has also created two 5-second reminder ads to air prior to the Super Bowl and will also have a presence on the New York subway system, wrapping the train with Duolingo visuals and translating short Spanish phrases. By translating playful lyrics and dressing Duo the owl in full Bad Bunny mode, the brand ties language learning to identity, culture, and fandom – not homework.

Both campaigns understand something fundamental. Students, young professionals, creators, and fans build meaning from the media moments they care about. These teasers aren’t just promoting products, they’re inserting brands into the cultural anticipation of the Super Bowl, where lifestyle, motivation, and perception collide.

Discussion Questions and Activities

  1. How might using creators like MrBeast change the perception of Salesforce?
  2. What consumer motivations are Duolingo and Salesforce tapping into?
  3. How do micro-ads (5–15 seconds) influence attention and recall compared to full-length ads?
  4. In what ways do these teasers reflect the lifestyle and identity of Gen Z consumers?
  5. Where do you see potential subliminal messaging in these campaigns? Discuss the ethics of this practice.
  6. Ad Teaser Review. In small groups, watch selected teasers from the Brand Innovators Super Bowl Ad Tracker 2026. Identify strategies tied to consumer behavior or perception.
  7. Cultural Cue Hunt. Analyze Duolingo’s Bad Bunny-inspired ads and list the cultural cues that might motivate fans to learn Spanish.
  8. Creator Strategy Sprint. Design a 20-second teaser for a brand of your choice using a creator or influencer, explaining how it shapes lifestyle appeal and perception.

Sources:

Follet, Gillian (16-Jan 2026), MrBeast Teams up with Salesforce on Super Bowl Ad, Ad Age; Baar, Aaron (23-Jan 2026) Duolingo offers to help with Bad Bunny Translation, Brand Innovators.

Leave a comment

Filed under Classroom Activities

Tagged as , , ,

by | Tuesday, January 27, 2026 · 7:50 am

The Sustainability Sweet Spot: Marketing Meets “Greenproofing”

Sustainability in 2026 isn’t just a feel-good add-on, it’s becoming a competitive engine. This year’s leading companies aren’t winning because they shout the loudest about being green. They’re winning because they can prove it. Across industries, a major shift is underway from greenwashing (overstating progress) and greenhushing (staying silent to avoid criticism) toward something more strategic – greenproofing.

Greenproofing means embedding sustainability directly into a company’s business model, operations, hiring, and long-term risk strategy. For example, financial institutions are appointing board members with sustainability expertise at the highest rate in years, signaling that “green hiring” is now a tool for resilience, not reputation. Meanwhile, companies like Schneider Electric, Moncler, and Illumina show that sustainability for profit is real, whether it’s software that cuts emissions, luxury fashion made from recycled materials, or biotech innovations that reduce waste.

At the same time, new regulations, from stricter climate disclosures to supply-chain transparency rules, are pushing brands to back up every claim with data. “Performative messaging is out; radical transparency is in,” as Rory Burghes, Head of Sustainable Futures at Capgemini UK puts it. This is why companies are investing in AI for supply-chain visibility, designing longer-lasting products, and making their data centers more efficient.

For marketers, this moment presents a fascinating challenge. How do you communicate sustainability when audiences are skeptical, watchdogs are alert, and regulators are watching? The answer lies in shifting from persuasion to proof. Brands earn trust by showing measurable progress rather than promising perfection. They also achieve differentiation and even profit. Sustainability isn’t a side story anymore. It’s becoming the strategy itself.

Discussion Questions and Activities

  1. Which concept, greenwashing, greenhushing, or greenproofing, do you think poses the biggest marketing challenge, and why? Moncler markets itself as a sustainable brand and earned a number three ranking on Statista’s Most Sustainable Brands of 2024. Review Moncler’s website and claims. Where do you think they stand on the “green marketing” spectrum? Does their marketing reflect this? Why or why not?
  2. How can sustainability become a source of profit rather than a cost?
  3. Should brands highlight their sustainability efforts boldly, or focus on low-key transparency?
  4. How might AI and supply-chain visibility reshape sustainability marketing?
  5. What risks do companies face if they make sustainability claims that can’t be verified?
  6. Greenproofing Audit. Students pick a brand and evaluate whether it is greenwashing, greenhushing, or genuinely greenproofing. They justify their judgment with evidence from the brand’s public reporting or actions.
  7. Sustainability-for-Profit Pitch. Groups design a new sustainable product or service and present how it delivers both environmental impact and business growth. They must outline what data they’d use to prove credibility.
  8. Transparent-but-Not-Boring Campaign. Students create a mini marketing campaign (headline + 3 message points) that demonstrates sustainability progress without exaggeration, balancing transparency, creativity, and consumer appeal.

Sources: Jessen, Jasmin, (10-Dec-2025) Top 10: Sustainability Predictions for 2026, Sustainability Magazine; King, Charlie (25-Nov-2025) Goodbye Greenhushing, Hello ‘Green-Proofing’: EY Q&A, Sustainability Magazine; Time Staff, (7-Jan-2026), World’s Most Sustainable Companies of 2024, Time.

Leave a comment

Filed under Classroom Activities

Tagged as , ,

by | Monday, January 19, 2026 · 7:28 am

How Nuuly Is Riding Macro Trends

In a retail world packed with competition and plenty of economic mood swings Nuuly, the apparel rental brand under Urban Outfitters, has carved out a strategic edge by tapping directly into the macro forces shaping Gen Z behavior. On the economic front, Nuuly’s subscription model hits a sweet spot: $98 for six clothing items a month feels far more accessible than buying full-price outfits. At a time when budgets matter, “renting is Nuuly” has become more than a slogan – it’s a value proposition tied to real wallet pressure.

Socio-culturally, the moment is perfect. Young consumers want variety, sustainability, and self-expression, but not necessarily permanent ownership. Renting allows identity play without overconsumption, and Nuuly fuels this with creative, sometimes quirky campaigns like talking rental totes. These choices signal how brands can meet a generation craving novelty, personality, and lower environmental impact.

Technological trends are also pushing Nuuly forward. Investments in automation and logistics expansion, from new sortation systems to increased storage, show how operational tech becomes part of a brand’s marketing strength. Faster fulfillment and better service translate directly into customer satisfaction and loyalty.

But perhaps the sharpest competitive insight is this: while other retailers fight traditional margin battles, Nuuly grows by offering a different model altogether. With subscriber growth nearing 400,000 and double-digit revenue increases, it’s proving that innovation, not imitation, is the real differentiator. For marketers, the lesson is clear. When economic uncertainty, cultural shifts, technology leaps, and competitive pressures collide, the brands that win are the ones willing to rethink the rules.

Discussion Questions and Activities

  1. Ask students to watch and review this video clip of Nuuly’s “Buying is Normal, Rental is Nuuly” talking tote advertising campaign. Why was the campaign successful?
  2. What role does creative branding (like talking totes) play in differentiating a company in a crowded market?
  3. Which macro-environmental force (economic, socio-cultural, technological, competitive) seems most responsible for Nuuly’s success? Why?
  4. How does Nuuly’s subscription model reshape consumer expectations about fashion and ownership?
  5. How might Nuuly’s technological investments influence customer perception of the brand?
  6. Macro-forces Mapping Exercise. In groups, students create a quadrant chart identifying four macro forces shaping Nuuly’s momentum. They choose one force and propose how Nuuly or a competitor could respond.
  7. Subscription Model Innovation Challenge. Teams design a new subscription service (not clothing) inspired by Nuuly’s strategy. They pitch value proposition, target demographic, and macro-environmental justification for this new service.
  8. Creative Campaign Remix. Students develop a short campaign concept using humor or unexpected visuals (like Nuuly’s talking totes) to solve a competitive challenge for any brand Sources: Pasquarelli, Adrianne (15-Sep-2025), How Nuuly’s Kim Gallagher helped build a booming rental brand for clothing, AdAge; Zack’s Equity Research (6-Jan-2026) Nuuly’s Strong Revenue Growth Powers Urban Outfitters Momentum, Yahoo Finance; Ul Ain Rehman, Noor (31-Dec-2025) Where is Urban Outfitters (URBN) Headed According to Wall Street?, Insider Monkey.

Leave a comment

Filed under Classroom Activities

Tagged as , ,