How Three Communication Leaders Use Nostalgia to Reconnect Iconic Brands With Culture

Welcome to Adweek, Adweek's podcast about the business of marketing, media, and creativity. In this episode, we're sharing a conversation recorded live at one of Adweek's events featuring leaders from across the industry discussing the ideas shaping brands right now. Let's get into it. >> Welcome to Happy Brandiversary. My name is Robert Klara. I'm a senior editor at Adweek magazine, and it is my privilege and honor to be joined by three esteemed guests. I'd like to introduce them to you. Gina Lauglin is vice president of global brand communications for Delta Airlines, which is celebrating its centennial this year. Gina, welcome. >> Thank you. >> Melissa Menta is SVP of global brand and communications for Peanuts Worldwide. Peanuts turns 75 this year. And Sohna Lafleur-Moon is chief communications officer of Yahoo, which turns 30 this year. So, I talk a lot in the stories that I write for Brandweek about the importance of authenticity in brand marketing. And one of the most effective ways to convey authenticity is by sending the message, "Hey, look, you know what? We've been doing this for a really long time." And so, savvy brands, I think, recognize that an anniversary, especially a round number anniversary, is an opportunity to make that case and develop a host of marketing activations to make that case memorably. So, that's what we're going to be talking about for the next half an hour. Uh and I would like to start with uh Sohna, if I could, uh because I think that just in terms of uh national awareness, Yahoo probably made the biggest splash imaginable this year with this football game uh Super something. You returned to the Super Bowl after what? 23 years of being away, right? 23 years, yeah. So, I don't want to give away everything, but basically it was Bill Murray in a very short ad giving out his Yahoo email address. I think we have a clip if we could run it. >> Have you ever looked in the mirror and not seen yourself? I don't think I need professional help, but a skilled amateur maybe will help. >> Okay, copy that address down while it's up. So, this was anniversary marketing because your CEO Jim Lanzone said, "With Yahoo turning 30 this year, we're inviting everyone to be part of an adventure that could only happen with Bill Murray." So, I'm hoping that you can explain some of the thinking behind this ad. Maybe you can even explain kind of what the whole what happened when people send an email to Bill Murray. >> Absolutely. How many of you saw that ad? Anybody? All right, that's good. Um okay, so the last time Yahoo was uh you know, in the Super Bowl advertising was 23 years ago and we had that iconic talking dolphin out there and I think you had mentioned all of the brands here today, why are we still around? How is our brand identity still where it is? And I think the secret to being a durable brand is really being authentic and really owning your brand DNA. And for us that meant, you know, bringing that quirkiness, bringing a little bit of humor, not taking ourselves too seriously. So, we work with an agency called American Highkoo and came up with this concept that we could not say no to and we felt like after a 23-year hiatus, we could only come back with someone like Bill with a very very quirky journey. And we know that during Super Bowl, so many people are having a multi-screen experience and usually you consider that to be on social platforms, but we were like, "Hey, what about email, y'all? What about email?" So, we had a 15-second spot. You may have noticed that it's pretty unbranded or low branding, which you know, explain that to your CFO. But, we really wanted to kind of give back to the people who have been part of the Yahoo journey for the last 30 years, and we felt like it was an opportunity to reintroduce ourselves, but keep the same quirkiness that came with the dolphin ad. So, what happened is, obviously Bill looks at himself in the mirror. He does not recognize himself, you know, as as that dog. And so, he turns to all the viewers to help him out. And what then begins is an immersive journey that kicks off with this spot, and then ends with people, you know, going along with Bill Murray written emails that, you know, are shared throughout the course of the evening. And so, what that looked like was several hundred thousand people emailed him that night. So, you know, obviously went to their keyboards or their phones and typed the words billhimself@yahoo.com, and then we had a surprise live stream with Bill during halftime, where he answered live, and 2 million people have viewed. So, you know, after maybe a little break from Yahoo, folks decide to rejoin us for that journey, and we were the fourth most watched spot of the evening on YouTube, and we had 8 million plus views and counting. So, lots of fun, no pre-tease, very very short and minimal branding, but it felt very true to our DNA. >> Very cool. Thank you for that. Melissa, let me turn to you if I may. Even though this has been a 75th anniversary, I think arguably all of your branding and marketing has kind of definitionally been about legacy, because you told me everything we do is based on what Charles Schulz created in the comic strip. So, before we go any further, I'd like to show you one of the early strips. This is probably from 1950 or so, I'd imagine. >> Yep. >> No sound. Just use your imaginations. So interesting to see how these characters have have have been around that long. They are so familiar. So, I want to pick up on this idea that you have to follow with your marketing what you term to me the the Bible of Peanuts. Can you tell me a little bit about what that means? >> Either the Bible of Peanuts or the longest novel ever written because he drew Peanuts for 50 years and nearly 18,000 strips. So, when we come up with different ideas of promoting or exposing new audiences to Peanuts, we look to the strip. So, it it also just that strip itself is a perfect Instagram carousel. Like that's why we do so well on social media, but really we look for partnerships like the Arbor Day Foundation. We plant trees with them. Arbor Day is mentioned throughout the strip. We have a space act agreement with Peanut and with NASA, which I like to brag about because how many people can say they work with NASA on a daily basis. I do. Um and that is because Snoopy wanted to go to the moon and there's many many strips talking about going to the moon. So, it's a natural extension. >> I want to come back to some of what you said, but I'd like to jump to Gina first if I may. So, a study appeared recently in the International Journal of Aviation Psychology. There is such a publication? That found that most flyers ignore the pre-flight safety briefings and you know who you are. I doubt, however, that passengers ignored the one that you folks made for your centennial. So, I think we're going to we have a little bit of it that we >> Delta [music] Delta Airlines The health and safety of our customers and crew is our number one priority and the shared responsibility of everyone on board. So, before we depart, please pay attention to this important message. Stow all carry-on items in an overhead bin and place smaller items completely under the seat in front of you. >> Larger electronic devices must be placed in a bag. Handheld portable electronic devices, including mobile phones, [music] should also be secured. >> Keep the aisles, exits, and bulkhead areas clear. If you lose an electronic device in your seat, please [music] do not adjust your seat and ask a crew member for help. >> Excellent. Uh there's a clip also that has a disco ball dangling from the ceiling of the aircraft. And so, gosh, I have so many questions about this. Whose idea was this to do that video? >> Yeah, we've we've had an incredible team throughout Delta that has really contributed and collaborated to the Centennial strategy and some wonderfully creative colleagues on our marketing team that constantly looks at the safety video thinking about the ways that we can keep it fresh. To your point, it is really important information, um but it is also somewhat easy to get on that airplane and uh think about that email or dive right into maybe uh whatever entertainment you're watching. So, the key and the fun part, I think, about this safety video, not only it did it connect all of the different decades throughout our century, but we have long only used Delta employees to represent the crew members. And that can connects back to the authenticity that we are a brand about Delta people, and it's Delta people who have been the foundation of the last 100 years and certainly the foundation of 100 years more. So, anytime you see a safety video, and certainly this one is true to that form, uh we're always featuring our own people um in the uniforms that they wear and the roles that they have at Delta. >> I really like those old suitcases. I'm assuming somebody who made a run to the Goodwill at some point. >> And we have access to a lot of wonderful archives, too. >> Uh we're going to talk about the museum in a minute. So, now let me come back to you, if I may. During our call last week, you said that for this 30th anniversary, your marketing goal was less to talk about our anniversary, you said, and more to use it as a milestone to reintroduce ourselves. Can you explain that? >> Sure. One interesting thing about Yahoo is nine out of 10 Americans you visit every month. So, it's definitely part of people's daily habits, but somewhere along the way there became a bit of a gap between the usage and, you know, being willing to maybe share that you use it. So, you know, for example, many people start their days with Yahoo Finance or in a fantasy league. And when you say, "Oh, do you use Yahoo?" They're like, "No. No." But actually that is not totally true. So, we we thought it was an opportunity to get back into culture, get back into conversation. And so, that's that's kind of how we thought about it. But also beyond that, we really wanted to take a moment to, you know, celebrate let's say the staying power and tech, which is is a little bit >> I mean feet. >> I mean feet. And but it is, by the way, nice to be here today as the millennial of the group. Usually we're the elder in the tech community, but it was an opportunity to really kind of consider all the people who have been with us on on this journey, but also so many of our alums, which make up a really important part of the Yahoo community and still bleed purple is what, you know, our alums say. And we really focused a lot on kind of telling those stories. We had a reunion on LinkedIn, and so many people kind of joined in to share which class they were part of. We actually also met on Martinez Beach in Cannes and had a big reunion and had a multi-hundred person yodel, which was pretty fun. So, I want to ask you about that yodel. >> Yeah. Yeah. >> One moment cuz I I want to pick up on something that Melissa said before I forget. So, I went Googling uh and Yahooing >> Okay, I was like >> to look for Peanuts 75th anniversary things and I stopped making a list at a certain point because there's quite a bit of it. Uh so, there's merch with lifestyle brand Kith, I believe. Drinkware with Igloo. There's a Hallmark glass Christmas tree Peanuts merch with uh Boss Kaws, I believe. And here's my question. Seeing as Peanuts has always done a lot of merchandising and licensing activity, was there anything about the 75th anniversary products that you did that was different? Did you come into it with a different mindset or what distinguished this anniversary year when it came to those products, if anything? >> Well, first I have to say I'm Gen Z. No, I'm just kidding. Um I'm really old. Um so, you're correct. >> I was going to say that the Gen X delegation are welcome here. >> I actually have people on my team who are younger than the length of time I've worked on Peanuts. Um but I think the the key distinction is that we really wanted to celebrate the art of Charles Schulz. Um and we do every year we do 20 to 30 what we call style guides or trend guides. But what we don't do is we don't mix the art. So, what you saw in that Instagram post was 1950s art. We never mix 1950s with 1970s or 80s. >> Right. >> We mixed the art for the 75th so that people could really celebrate Peanuts through the decades. Yeah. >> So, and you're talking about the evolution of the characters as Schulz drew them because we recognize these characters, but yet style >> You don't really. I mean, Snoopy's on all fours in the 50s and then he stands up and then he starts to think and he looks If you go through the decades, he looks dramatically different. So, a lot of partners really want to use the 80s, which is what MetLife used for many years, which is like the classic peanut look. >> So, uh let's see. Jenna, I got to ask you about this museum because we are here in Atlanta. And here in Atlanta, there is something called the Delta Flight Museum, and you can all go to it after Brand Week is over. Uh in two original hangars, right? Uh for the airline. And I believe that for the anniversary year, you refreshed the uh facilities, and it has everything in there. Flight attendant uniforms, you've got a Douglas DC-3 aircraft, several aircraft in there. You have a 737, and people can go out on the wing, which is tremendous. Uh but here's kind of the meat and potatoes question from Matt. Given that flyers, I think a lot of flyers today like, "Oh, you know, they want a low ticket price. They want a convenient flight. Yada yada yada." How does it help the Delta brand to How does it help the public to know that an airline has been around for a century when so many people shop by perks and price? Like, what's the benefit there? >> Well, one thing that is changing, I think, for certainly for the better is it's an industry that is not all about price anymore. And And that's really the key is this is an industry that for many, many years, and important to understand the history, was just a metal tube flying through the sky at the lowest price, but has become this wonderful experience. And we, too, want Delta to be part of your lives, not just the mode of transportation. So, we have this incredibly rich history. If you have an extra hour to spare en route to your flight home, the Delta Flight Museum, which is a nonprofit, is sitting in the original hangars from the 1940s that were actually the aircraft maintenance hangars from Delta, right in front of what was the old airport. So, Hartsfield that we know today was not the Hartsfield back then. And you can see a number of not only the history of Delta, but there's a number of people who are huge aviation fans. And so, whether it's the airplane, the stories, the uniform, uh you see the people over the last 100 years on display and and those stories told through that Flight Museum. The building itself is 80 years old. Like many uh things that are that old needs to be refreshed and the stories needed to be brought forward. And so, as part of the Centennial strategy, it was our birthday present to Delta in early March uh and in coordination with a number of partners to launch and reveal a multi-million dollar renovation of that museum, really allowing it to be the home not only to Delta people, but to that uh that traveling crowd that loves not just aviation, but has also really um becoming part of of our life and we're becoming part of theirs. >> I think with the question I just asked, I'm betraying myself as the budget traveler that I am. Um it's funny though because in a sense, it's almost like a return to the pre-deregulation days when airlines competed based on, you know, their personalities and and, you know, in the food and the experience and the employees being part of that. It's interesting that it's that's kind of coming around again. >> Absolutely. Service and experience, you know, matter. They matter today. >> So, let's see. It's uh it's time for me to talk about Yahoo's Instagram page, which I've spent a fair amount of time on. And if you go there, you'll see a lot of interesting things including the Yahoo yodel performed by yodlers, somebody trying to use a floppy disk at a tap-to-pay register, and a gentleman by the name of EJ the Maker translating common email phrases that nobody uses anymore. So, this did really hit home for me as a Gen Xer because I remember when Yahoo was like the thing when it first debuted. But here's what I thought was interesting about that. Seated in all of that kind of retro cool messaging was also contemporary messaging like, "Hey, you know what? The Yahoo fantasy app just got, you know, an update. And hey, Yahoo search is AI enabled now." So, can you talk a little bit about how you brought those two those two concepts together? First of all, there's nostalgia, but secondly, you have to also send a contemporary branding message that weaves in in with that. >> Totally. And I think, you know, going back to our brand DNA, it's all the all essentially about, you know, helping people through the internet, being the trusted guide to the internet. And a lot of how we are kind of telling our brand story is leaning into nostalgia, but then also bringing it into the modern era. Um I'm going to share maybe an example that uh you didn't touch on, uh which is there's this new uh TikTok and maybe Instagram channel called everyday leaf, uh which anybody ever anybody know it? Okay, there's one. Um it's ASMR of leaf crunching. And, you know, it's gained in uh popularity over the past few weeks. And you could say, "What is Yahoo's tie to that?" Well, we have Yahoo weather. You know, we all want to know what the UV's going to be in the morning, especially my teenage daughter. But essentially we we kind of partner and find ways to kind of stay in touch with culture while bringing our products into it, but also having a little bit of fun. In this case, we we sponsored the leaf crunching of the day, had mention of Yahoo weather, but also it was really fun to see that Yahoo partnered with this creator first, and then Loewe, the fashion brand, did it afterwards. I feel like I'm going to die and go to heaven because that's so exciting. But it's all about really infusing practical information, and then leaning into our brand DNA of humor, not taking ourselves too seriously, and just actually having fun. >> And also just the evolution of Yahoo itself, which in the beginning, for people like me, it was just, "Oh, this is a great new search engine, right?" And yet now, it's a panoply of things. >> Yeah, I mean, we have Yahoo News, which is the number one news site in the United States. There's over a thousand different publishers. It's AI-enabled. Uh Yahoo Fantasy, now you can, you know, get AI selections for your draft picks, which is super exciting. As well as finance, everything has been essentially updated over the last few years, every pixel of every product since we went under uh PE ownership a few years ago, which check us out if you haven't recently. >> So, Melissa, you and I talked last week about how the themes in Peanuts are kind of transcendent in terms of the broad appeal to people, regardless of age and socioeconomic background. There's something about the content of those strips that touches people, you know, no matter what age they are, their backgrounds are. And yet, you still have to meet the next generation of fans where they are, right? So, I read Peanuts in the newspaper, but I don't think that a lot of people encounter Peanuts in the newspaper anymore. Gen Z is obviously finding them on Instagram and other social platforms. And so, you had mentioned this to me, and I'm hoping you can expand on it. Can you talk a little bit about taking the format of like the four-panel strip, and how that works with social media channels like Instagram? Because I think it rather conveniently lends itself to that, doesn't it? >> It does. I think the comic strip was social media before its time. So, we kind of lucked out when things like Instagram and TikTok started, the comic strip just is a short, bite-size media that all you have to be to to all you have to be to like Peanuts is be a human, because it's human emotions, and so that's why it translates everywhere in the world. >> By the way, >> and out in space, too. >> There was a new appea- like I'm thinking, oh, it's time for the Great Pumpkin because the weather's getting cooler. There's a new you put a new show together, right? A new animated special. >> There's lots of new animated special. >> So more than one. >> Yeah, there's Snoopy in Space, um which we did in conjunction with NASA, and then there's several seasons of that. Camp Snoopy, um that was the one that came out. >> yeah. >> Um The Snoopy Show, there's um separate one-off like the classic specials, like one story um episodes, and then in the classic ones, it's all on Apple. Apple TV, they're no longer Apple TV Plus. >> So, Jean, I want to ask you about this is going to do it at the top, but I kind of I overlooked it. By the way, for the record, folks, Pan Am made it to age 64, TWA to 71, and United and American are coming up on their centennials, but Delta got there first, so I think it's um Mhm. So folks are really like the legacy carrier. You talked a little bit about your CEO, Ed Bastian, kind of kicking off the anniversary year, which had a lot of things in it that we obviously won't have time to get to everything today, but you had made particular mention of his talk at CES at the Sphere in Las Vegas as being pivotal to kicking off the anniversary year. Can you talk about that a little bit? >> Yeah, absolutely. Um so we decided that you only turn 100 once, or we're only going to see Delta turn 100 once, um and so we wanted to celebrate for 365 days, which we are still doing, uh but we really kicked off the centennial year with a keynote address at CES, our CEO, Ed Bastian, doing that, and that really laid a foundation for us to talk about not just the history and who we are and what made it possible for us to be here for a hundred years, which are the Delta people, um but how technology, innovation, service, all those things, if you think about where air travel came, if you think about the Wright brothers' first flight and how now we uh can get all over the world in much shorter time, what does that then mean for the next 100 years? And so for us to be able to not only talk about the history and anchor in in who we are and how we got to where we are, but give a nod to what we can all expect in uh from, you know, from air travel, from the experiences that we want to make. And so this was uh a very big moment to come out and talk not only about the history, but really talk about what the future is going to bring. And then that's allowed us really from a messaging platform to carry those messages throughout each of the different events that, you know, that we had and align it to Delta's brand and Delta's mission, which is again to connect the world, make that world a lot better by making it much smaller through this medium that we know as travel and to connect human beings on a very different level. And so the sphere and CES, I think allowed us to not only mark the moment early in the year, um but give us the storytelling and brand platform that we were looking for. >> Yeah, I hadn't even thought of that until just now. The Centennial is almost like, not that you need permission to talk about the next hundred years, but if a brand were to just do that at random, right? Say, "We'd like to talk to you about the next hundred years." Everyone's like, "Who are these people, right?" But you have the framework now, right? You have that platform to say, "Hey look, we made it this far. Listen to us. We have the credibility." Yeah. Okay. Um we don't have too much time left and there's so much that I want to get to. Um So, now I I really I'm I'm drawing this out just because it spoke to me. Um I need to ask you about the keyboard made out of grass, if I may. Uh and I mean lawn turf, folks. So, this made its debut on April 1st, which gives you some idea of a But, I think it was called the agricultural interface. It worked. And the keys uh yeah, it was typing on a lawn, basically. Can you just talk about what on earth that was and why you did it? >> 100%. I think when people talk about AI, they're always talking about the agricultural interface, which is why we focus on just kidding. Which is why we focus on this. Honestly, we wanted to, you know, show up with a bit of a story on April Fool's Day. We made a really kind of overly polished Apple style ad, you know, saying we're going to reveal the new AI kind of technology. And you know, it was really leaning into the insight that so many of us spend a lot of time online. And we want to make sure that when you're with Yahoo, um your time online is truly additive. You're connecting with people, getting information, and just getting things done you know, getting back out there and touching grass. So, you know, it was a little bit tongue-in-cheek. It was actually uh a functioning keyboard covered in grass, where you could touch grass and get your stuff done at the same time. Uh fun fact, this keyboard is functional and it sold on our TikTok shop in like 22 minutes. I, you know, had a little pull, so I've got one, too. Um but, yeah. Just, you know, showing up with you know, a human truth, but also a little bit of humor, which has been pretty much our formula for for the year. >> I need to go check the resale value of these keyboards on eBay. >> one. We can get you one. I know people. Yeah. >> So, Melissa, before we run out of time, I actually want to ask you something about the 70th anniversary from 2020, because it touched on something on a theme that you and I had spoken about last week. Uh and it was called Take Care with Peanuts. And it was three tenets: Take care of yourself, take care of each other, and take care of the Earth. And these things I believe come directly from the ethos that Charles Schulz embodied himself. And I just wanted it was very nice and I know that you used it for your last anniversary, so could you talk a little bit about what that means and how that affected the messaging? >> Actually, we still use it. We still use it. >> Yeah, it was it came out on a believe it or not it came out before COVID. We started talking to our partners about what we should do next and everybody had common themes, which is we need to take care of each other and we need to take care of the Earth. So, that's Take care with peanuts was born. And that has involved working with many different charities. Arbor Day Foundation is one, the American Red Cross is another. If you Google American Red Cross and Peanuts, you'll see how viral it went several years ago and it's just an umbrella to do good. >> Yep. >> Which is what Charles Schulz wanted to do. So, when >> it was a little bit more of these days. >> Exactly. >> So, I have about a minute. Uh do you know I'm about to put you on the spot, but I got to ask you about this. Uh one of the ways that people learn about Delta's Centennial, uh I believe as of March, you had two aircraft with a special livery, uh the silver and blue, very pretty. And right there on the fuselage it says 100 years. Repainting a large aircraft is very expensive from what I understand, so what was the idea there? >> Sure. Well, the taking, um you know, one of our our greatest assets that flies all over the world and making sure that it too can mark that that really special moment uh was really the idea behind it. It's it's not necessarily a new idea. We've used different uh liveries over the over the years. Uh we have an incredible team in both our partners at Airbus, but also our own aircraft mechanics who do paint and that particular livery design designed by one of our employees. >> Really. >> Uh and we unveiled that again on Delta's 100th birthday in March. There's two airplanes, so one international airplane that flies all over the world and one that flies uh domestic and just that along with a lot of other branding from the buses that you may see transporting all of Delta employees to and from work. You know, we tried to make sure that that uh that 100-year logo and those um you know, that visual identity was as many places as we could and an airplane is a really nice place to do it. >> Makes sense. >> I would like to thank uh Sona from Yahoo. Thank you for coming. I would like to thank Gina from Delta. Thank you for coming. And Melissa, I know you flew in just for this. I really appreciate it. Please >> That was a conversation recorded live at an Adweek event. You can find more coverage, analysis, and interviews from across the marketing and media world at adweek.com. Thanks for listening to Ad Speak. If you like the show, be sure to follow or subscribe wherever you get your podcasts.