When Violife’s dairy-free cream cheese earned the top spot in the U.S. within its category earlier this year, spreading the news was the logical next step. And the biggest event to tie it to, of course, was the presidential election.

Timing product news to election season is not the wisest move for most brands. But for Violife’s “America Has Voted” campaign, which included distributing free bagels and cream cheese on the morning of Election Day, cheeky OOH ads with slogans like "Our Winning Campaign Promise: No Bull,” and an election-style social video with a parodied victory speech, the brand bet on irreverent humor as a reprieve from political tensions.

We spoke with Olga Osminkina-Jones, Global President & Chief Growth Officer at Violife, about the campaign’s strategic goals, the challenges of marketing within the category, forthcoming brand innovations and leveraging humor to break through.

Brands with access to first-party data have launched media networks in recent years across a variety of verticals, from grocery chains to hotels to airlines. But in the past year, financial companies have also gotten in the game—and the latest to do so is Western Union. Here’s what the new media network can provide for marketers.

While many companies have rolled back their DEI support in the past year, e.l.f. Cosmetics became the first beauty brand to be a lead sponsor of an Indy 500 driver—and that driver is the only female that competed in the race. Read how e.l.f. teamed up with Purdue University on a “Lip Oil Change” activation at Indianapolis that also coincided with the final leg of Taylor Swift’s U.S. Eras Tour.

Lastly, some major news for CM and its sister publications: The Chief Marketer Network has signed on as Official Media Partner for CES 2025. For the first time, CMN’s nine award-winning brands will be together on site reporting on trends, interviewing marketers and providing daily updates online and via video. Read more about what’s to come this January.

Until next week,