It's the time for end of the year lists and Nielsen’s "Tops of 2011: Advertising" collection is certainly worth a look.

The media tracking firm covers everything from Volkswagen’s Little Darth Vader Super Bowl phenomenon to product placement. Nielsen says these "best-liked ads reflect the enduring value of traditional ad elements that have withstood the test of time – strong creative, simple and engaging messaging, and a solid emotional connection."

The Nielsen charts that caught our eye were the two pertaining to product placement, because both tell us almost nothing about measuring product placement except to underscore how nobody can properly measure product placement.Continue reading...

Well, that was fast. Yesterday, NASA announced a new toxic (arsenic-based) lifeform; Purell's response, above. More fun with Brand Bites, after the jump.Continue reading...

Thanks to Woody Harrelson, star of last weekend's US top-grossing Zombieland, the world now knows vegan Twinkies. His new film's plot revolves around the spongy cakes, which he spends munching as he looks for the last Twinkie on earth. As Michelle Boisson reports:

While Twinkie, by far, receives the most prominent brandcameo in the film—being totally integrated in the plot—in reality, Harrelson couldn’t eat the Hostess brand. Being a raw vegan, he had to have special Twinkie-like cakes made for him.

Zombieland may be a dangerous place, but it's also a brand fiesta. Many products make appearances in the comedy-horror film, ranging from the AK-47 to Cadillac Escalade, and from Animal Crackers to Purell. (See the brandcameo page for brandchannel's complete reference list of product placements in this and other top-grossing films.)

One well-known social media site also shows up, though it most likely didn't pay for the mention. According to Jesse Eisenberg's character Columbus, the best thing about Zombieland is: “No more Facebook status updates.”