HOLIDAY AD CHAOS — Sephora, Calvin Klein, Subscription Boxes (Ep. 019)
Description
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From Sephora’s “striking” elves to Calvin Klein’s viral thirst traps — Joanna and Michelle unpack how brands are losing (and winning) consumer trust this holiday season. Plus, how you can turn this chaos into marketing gold.
What You’ll Learn:
- What the Sephora x Mariah Carey ad got wrong — and how to avoid tone-deaf marketing during hard times
- Why humor, relatability, and repetition are the real keys to shareable content
- How subscription boxes became a $40B business model (and how coaches and creators can steal their strategy)
Timestamps:
00:00- Introduction
03:35 – The controversial Sephora holiday ad: “elves on strike”
07:50 – When “no press is bad press” doesn’t work anymore
15:20 – Uber Eats and Calvin Klein: ads that actually nailed storytelling
25:30 – Double standards in advertising: Sydney Sweeney vs. Calvin Klein
27:45 – Why people share content: the psychology behind “contagious” marketing
31:10 – Real estate agents and car dealerships making viral, personality-driven content
39:10 – Subscription boxes: recurring revenue, retention, and brand loyalty goldmine
References & Resources:
- Sephora — Mariah Carey holiday ad
- Calvin Klein — Jeremy Allen White & Jungkook campaigns
- Contagious by Jonah Berger (book)
- Wildgrain — subscription bakery doing $31M/year
- HelloFresh, Stitch Fix, ButcherBox, Above the Bar
- HubSpot’s The Hustle newsletter
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