Top Ten Marketing Highlights of 2024

With 2024 now history, it's time for my annual "Top 10" marketing highlights post – incredible that this is my 15th post featuring annual marketing highlights – and a traditional January 1st blog post.

What do you remember from the 2024 marketing reel? What stood out as marketing innovation, and what will go down in history that was as memorable as Apple's 1984 Super Bowl ad? Without further ado, let's get to it!

With a nod and thank you to David Letterman for the format, here's my list:

NUMBER 10: Effective January 1, 2024, an early version of the Walt Disney Company's internationally-recognized mascot, Mickey Mouse, that was featured in the 1928 short film, "Steamboat Willie," entered the public domain for the first time. According to CNN, "The good-humored rodent, which has been synonymous with the Disney brand for nearly a century, has grown into one of the most iconic characters in American pop culture. But since U.S. copyright law, last updated by Congress in 1998, allows copyright to be held for 95 years, Disney’s sole claim to the character has officially ended. A Disney spokesperson explained to CNN, 'More modern versions of Mickey will remain unaffected by the expiration of the Steamboat Willie copyright, and Mickey will continue to play a leading role as a global ambassador for the Walt Disney Company in our storytelling, theme park attractions, and merchandise.'"

NUMBER 9: In May, Cartier, the expensive international jewelry brand, made a mistake and listed gold-and-diamond earrings for 237 pesos ($14 USD) instead of the correct price of 237,000 pesos ($14,000 USD). A doctor in Mexico, who was doing his medical residency, ordered two sets. After months of back and forth discussions between the customer and the company, the customer received the earrings for the advertised price. According to Mexico's Consumer Protection Agency known as Profeco, "Companies have to respect the published price. If there's a mistake, it's not the consumer's fault."

NUMBER 8: In November, a federal judge ordered the Port of Oakland to stop using "San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport" as its airport's new name, agreeing with San Francisco's claim of trademark infringement. The judge explained that, over the last 97 years, San Francisco had spent millions to develop its brand, and as a result, ordered Oakland's airport to remove any signs with the new name.

NUMBER 7: After six seasons as a co-host of the popular ABC morning talk-show made famous by Regis Philbin and many co-hosts over the years, Ryan Seacrest said goodbye to the show in April. Kelly Ripa welcomed her husband, Mark Consuelos, to join the show, and the promotional tagline became "From Co-Stars in Life to Co-Hosts on Live." The show's name changed from "Live with Kelly and Ryan" to "Live with Kelly and Mark." Time will tell if viewers tire of the married couple's stories. In addition, Seacrest left the morning show to take over from retiring TV show host Pat Sajak of the nearly 50-year-old evening game show, "Wheel of Fortune," for which he served as host for 43 years.

NUMBER 6: On April Fools' Day, Oreo posted the best joke of the year after changing its brief description to: "We're done." Oreo posted the following message on Twitter/X:

"After time and consideration, we have made the decision to separate the cookie and the creme duo that you all know to be as OREO cookies. There are no secrets or anyone to blame, we are just two best friends who met at a very young age and have grown over the past 112 years in our own ways. We appreciate your continuous support as we enter this new chapter, separately."

Then, "Follow @just_the_water and @just_the_creme on Instagram for more."

The message was signed: "Wafer and Creme."

On Instagram, @just_the_creme described itself as: "Better off alone."

On Instagram, @just_the_wafer described itself as: "This cookie won't crumble."

A follow-up post stated: "Just the Creme and Just the Wafer hit shelves 4/31."

However, April has only 30 days, so if fans didn't realize that this content was an April Fools' Day joke, that final post provided the gotcha!

NUMBER 5: In late-October, after a decade of division wins and great season-ending records, the Los Angeles Dodgers finally won a World Series Championship! And against the rival New York Yankees to boot! The two franchises have clashed on the Fall Classic stage 12 times, five more than any other matchup in World Series history. This was the Dodgers' eighth World Series title in franchise history and first since the 2020 pandemic-shortened season. As a lifelong Dodgers fan, this championship was very sweet!

NUMBER 4: Two terms appeared during 2024 as a result of singer-songwriter-entrepreneur Taylor Swift's international fame: "Visitor Economy" and "Economic Fairy Dust." These terms reflect the impact on local economies where she performs because visitors flock to each location's airports, hotels, restaurants, and more - and Swift dusts the cities with an economic boom.

NUMBER 3: After years of filming plus delays caused by the Covid pandemic and the SAG-AFTRA and Writers Guild strikes, the movie that is based on the 20-year-old musical "Wicked" opened in movie theaters on November 22nd. According to NBC, "Grammy-winning pop sensation Ariana Grande brings her huge vocal talents to the young witch's musical role, playing Galinda in her pre-Good Witch days as she befriends the picked-on Elphaba after the two first meet as students. Where Elphaba is unpopular at school, Galinda is just the opposite. Everyone thinks she's pretty (and POPULAR), yet she forms an unlikely friendship with Elphaba that has sweeping implications for the musical's bigger story." During the movie's opening weekend, it broke a record with an estimated $114 million at the domestic box office, marking the highest cinematic opening for a Broadway adaptation. That's a lot of popcorn!

While two summer blockbusters from last year created a new portmanteau (a word formed by combining the sounds and meanings of other words), "Barbenheimer" derived from BARBIE THE MOVIE and OPPENHEIMER, this year's pre-Thanksgiving weekend saw the arrival of "Glicked" to promote WICKED and GLADIATOR II. According to CNN, "A lesson learned is that two very high-profile movies can go head-to-head, and both can thrive in the theatrical marketplace." And according to Yahoo Entertainment, fans were asked to "Celebrate Glicked by watching both movies either as a double feature or over the course of a weekend and dress the part donning something earthy and Romanesque for Gladiator II and either Galinda pink or Elphaba green for Wicked."

While the movie's story was the main attraction, countless brands jumped on the co-branding bandwagon to cash in on Wicked's buzz. Some of the brand partnerships and/or co-branding campaigns included Starbucks, Lego, Ulta Beauty Stores, Vera Bradley, Croc's sandals, Hasbro's Monopoly, Kellogg Company's Rice Krispies Treats, and Lexus.

NUMBER 2: During the summer of 2024, the eyes of the world were on Paris, France, and the Summer Olympics (also referred to as Paris 2024) did not disappoint! Here were some highlights:

Was that a boat parade, or was that a boat parade? Despite months, if not years, of naysayers saying it couldn't be done, the parade of athletes in the Opening Ceremony took place along the Seine River in an incredible manner. No host country will ever match the originality, creativity, and artistry of that opening arrival of athletes.

The Olympic cauldron shone brightly in a large balloon and hung high in the sky (via a tether) each night so that Parisians could see and enjoy it.

According to the Olympics, "The LOGO for Paris 2024 combines three separate symbols – the gold medal, the flame, and Marianne, the personification of the French Republic. Each of these symbols reflects a part of the French identity and values. It is also the first time in history that the same emblem has been used for both the Olympic Games and the Paralympic Games. The MOTTO of the Olympic Phryge and Paralympic Phryge is: "Alone we go faster, but together we go further," representing the ways in which the mascots, and the people of the world, can make each other better by working side-by-side."

Which athletes stood out to you? To me, American gymnast Simone Biles with her four medals, American swimmer Katie Ledecky with her four medals, and Swedish and American-born pole vaulter Armand "Mondo" Duplantis with his gold medal and world record. Duplantis summed up his experience eloquently, "If I don't beat this moment in my career, I'm pretty ok with that. I don't think you can really get much better than what happened."

For the Paris 2024 Olympics, 206 countries participated. Of those countries, 11,000 athletes participated. The United States, France, and Australia had the largest country representations – each between 450-600. And the least represented countries were Belize, Liechtenstein, Nauru, and Somalia – each sent only one athlete to compete. Russian and Belarusian athletes competed as "Individual Neutral Athletes" – because the International Olympic Committee (IOC) voted to suspend both countries from competition due to the ongoing war in Ukraine. And finally, for the first time, the IOC announced that an equal number of men and women athletes competed at the Olympics.

This Paris Games hosted Olympians of a wide range of ages. The youngest competitor was skateboarder Zheng Haohao of China at 11-years-old; and the oldest was 65-year-old Juan Antonio Jimenez Cobo, an equestrian from Spain. Zeng Zhiying (age 58) competed at table top tennis and made her Olympic debut almost four decades after she missed out on being selected to represent China in Los Angeles in 1984. Zeng represented Chile and is affectionately called "The Table Tennis Grandma."

The number of medal events was 329. The United States won total 126 medals (40 Gold, 44 Silver, and 42 Bronze), China won 91 total medals (40 Gold, 27 Silver, and 24 Bronze), and host country France came in fifth with 64 total medals. According to NBC, "Medalists at the Paris Olympics will get to own a piece of the one of the world's most iconic structures. An original piece of the Eiffel Tower is included at the heart of each Olympic and Paralympic medal this year as host nation France puts its own stamp on the 2024 medals...Approximately 5,084 medals were created: 2,600 for the Olympics and 2,400 for the Paralympics."

Unfortunately, a disappointing asterisk will forever tarnish the Paris Olympics. American gymnast Jordan Chiles won the bronze medal for floor exercise, however, there was an appeal of the score. The dispute may be a months-long or even years-long battle over the gymnastics scores, and time will tell as to how this drama unfolds. Another reason why this is sad is that the photo from that floor exercise medal/victory ceremony will forever be etched into all viewers' minds as one of the highlights from the Paris Olympics. America's two gymnasts (Simone Biles and Jordan Chiles) bowed down to Brazil's gold medal winner.

And, regarding medals, did you know that medals can equate to a financial reward other than advertising endorsements? According to Business Insider, "US athletes receive $37,500 for a gold medal, $22,500 for a silver medal, and $15,000 for a bronze medal. Hong Kong offers the highest reward of $768,000 for gold medalists."

What products stood out due to their co-branding with the Olympics? Some of my favorites included the Minions from their mini-movie integrated into the Opening Ceremony and inclusion on athletes' attire, Krispy Kreme Doughnuts with their "Go USA" collection "to fuel your dreams and sweeten your victories," Chipotle (meals aligned with various athletes), designer Ralph Lauren (Team USA's Opening and Closing Ceremonies apparel), GK Elite (Team USA's Women Gymnasts' apparel), Visa, and Samsung. And let's not forget that each day during the competition, there was a unique Google Doodle!

According to Tony Estanguet, President of Paris 2024, "The most difficult part of any love affair is saying goodbye. And at the Closing Ceremony, we are all in love with the Games. The feelings of hope, inspiration, and love will remain. And when the time comes, we will be reunited in Los Angeles in 2028."

And finally, drum roll please...

NUMBER 1: Vice President Kamala Harris became the Democratic Party's nominee for President after President Joe Biden pulled out of the race. The 2024 Presidential campaign was littered with negative language, some terms stood out and became battle cries: "Childless Cat Ladies," "Felines Versus Felons," and more.

As Hillary Clinton said following her November 2016 Presidential election loss, "We still have not shattered that highest and hardest glass ceiling. But some day, someone will." Who could have forecast that another educated and talented woman would run for President so soon? With VP Harris' foray into the race as the first woman of color and first woman of South Asian heritage, the election contained many firsts. Hopefully, the third time that a woman participates in the U.S. Presidential race, the female candidate will be victorious.

In the meantime, let's remember what Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren said, "Remember, every step toward progress in American history came after darkness of defeat. Abolitionists, suffragettes, Dreamers, and marchers for civil rights and marriage equality all faced impossible odds, but they persisted. Now it is our turn to pull up our socks and get back in the fight."

Lastly, let's always remember what VP Harris said, "While I concede this election, I do not concede the fight that fueled this campaign. The fight for freedom, for opportunity, for fairness and the dignity of all people. A fight for the ideals at the heart of our nation. The ideals that reflect America at our best. That is a fight I will never give up."

What would you add to this list? Here's to 2025 and another year of marketing highlights. Happy New Year!

Image Credits: iStock, Wicked the Movie/Universal, Paris 2024 Olympic Organizing Committee, and Harris Walz Campaign.