As promised, a slew of new ad campaigns made their red carpet debut during the Oscars telecast Sunday night on ABC and in local markets. Below, check out new campaigns for Samsung Mobile (starring director Tim Burton and a unicorn), Kristen Chenoweth for Royal Caribbean, Jennifer Aniston for Aveeno, Naomi Watts for Pantene and more. Then tell us which (if any) you think deserve best in show—and which marketers should have saved a million dollars or so.Continue reading...

After spending the first couple years of his tenure falling short of expectations, Procter & Gamble CEO Bob McDonald now sees a big ray of sunshine — in the form of P&G's second fiscal quarter earnings report. Earnings and sales were well ahead of forecast thanks to the chief's recent aggressive actions to boost brand performance and cut costs.

Consumer and retailer response to new products such as Tide Pods and a high-price version of Pantene shampoo has been promising. P&G said it held or grew market share in businesses representing nearly 50 percent of sales in the October-December quarter. In the U.S. market, it met that pattern in businesses representing nearly 60 percent of sales.

The case of Tide Pods, an important new product, is an example of what P&G is aiming for. Marketing has been able to persuade some customers, even cost-conscious ones, that the premium-priced innovation, which is coming up on its first anniversary, is worth the higher outlay.Continue reading...

Depending where you were, you may have celebrated Halloween on Oct. 31st. At Procter & Gamble, they've been celebrating the company's 175th anniversary.

That's right: P&G – mother of such consumer packaged goods icons as Tide, Pampers, and Comet, among others – is now 175 years old, but a look back at the company's history reveals that the whole endeavor might not have started if an errant flame and a rapscallion hadn’t done their dirty work all those years ago — or if an opinionated father and father-in-law hadn't intervened.

Or put another way, Mr. Procter's failures in England led to P&G's global success today — and Procter took a Gamble that paid off.Continue reading...

It's been 20 years since Evelyn Lauder created the Breast Cancer Awareness Campaign, and brands continue to support the work in a variety of initiatives. Indeed, this year's Delta pink plane is adding Lauder's signature, as seen above, to honor the woman and her brands' contributions to fighting breast cancer.

2012 also marks Ford Motor Company's 18th year of involvement having dedicated more than $115 million to the cause so far, and this year’s Ford Warriors in Pink campaign offers a limited-edition T-shirt inspired by film and television actor James Denton. For every shirt sold, 100% of net proceeds go to the Pink Fund, an organization that provides short-term financial aid to people during treatment. "The last thing someone with breast cancer needs to worry about is how they are going to pay their bills," says Denton.

Go Daddy is ‘driving’ awareness with Danica Patrick donning pink gear for the GoDaddy.com No. 7 Chevrolet in Friday’s NASCAR Nationwide race in Charlotte. “It’s time to kick breast cancer’s butt,” Patrick commented. “So many women and their families have been impacted by breast cancer … if we all work together, we can definitely help find a cure sooner, rather than later.”Continue reading...

It was embattled Procter & Gamble CEO Bob McDonald's turn today to describe what he sees taking place at the CPG behemoth now and in the future, as he assured shareholders at the company's annual general meeting in Cincinnati that "we're confident we're doing what's right and necessary to achieve [our] objectives, now and for the long-term health of our business."

McDonald pledged that P&G is focusing on the company's 40 largest businesses, 20 top innovations and 10 most important developing markets as well as its $10-billion productivity program to drive future growth. "Our plan," he stated in a press release after the meeting, "is decisive, simple and focused. Grow our core and win with innovation fueled by productivity."

The CPG executive has been taking more heat than any other recent P&G CEO because the company lately has stumbled in meeting its growth objectives, has been shown up by competitors, and seems to have fallen off in innovation compared with a few years ago, when an emphasis on new products, new features, line extensions and new brands was propelling Procter & Gamble to record growth.Continue reading...

Pantene today announced its newest celebrity hair model: Zooey Deschanel, who talks about her new campaign (which references her Fox TV series, New Girl) for the P&G-owned brand below.Continue reading...

Facebook appears ready to go public with $10 billion IPO in early February, despite ire at leak.

Exxon Mobil sells Japanese subsidiary for $4 billion in move to cut refining.

News Corp. reportedly woos Bloomberg exec as Twitter-happy Murdoch sees weekend arrests at The Sun tabloid.

ABB buys Thomas & Betts for $4 billion.

Angry Birds boss doesn't fear piracy.

Apple aims to sell 40 million iPhones in China next year.

Altria sees tobacco users embrace discount brands.

Bank of America shakes up investment banking division.

Barnes & Noble takes on Amazon with fifth Nook device.

Beyonce sees university class focus on her.Continue reading...

Microsoft eyes Yahoo bid, Reuters hears.

Apple red-faced as new Siri feature sounds like 'buttocks' in Japanese.

British Airways ramps up London 2012 sponsorship.

Ford joins Boxtops for Education.

Groupe Aeroplan changes name to Aimia.

Pantene signs Liv Tyler for new campaign.

Tiger Woods brand rebounds with Rolex sponsorship.

Wheaties selects a new NASCAR driver to sponsor.

Yum! Brands charts turnaround for Taco Bell.