Welcome to the 21st Edition of The Marketing Newsletter!
This issue is presented to you by Marketing Tools List, the ultimate tool finder, which provides a curated list of marketing apps and tools.
Around the Web
Amazon just dropped a bombshell at CES 2025 with their new Amazon Retail Ad Service. Now, retailers can use Amazon's ad tech magic on their own sites. If you've ever wanted that Amazon ad mojo for your own store, it's time to get excited.
Oh, Meta, always stirring the pot. They're dialing back on censorship and diving headfirst into the deep end with more engagement on spicy content. It's a risky move, but could it mean more eyeballs for brands? Only time will tell!

AI in 2025: Five trends for marketing, media, enterprise and e-commerce
Inside Netflix's Huge Experiential Marketing Campaign for 'Squid Game'
⚙️ The Cool Kids' Club
Visual Content Creation
Piktochart*: Create Beautiful Infographics, Presentations, and Reports
Adobe Spark: Create Stunning Graphics, Videos, and Web Pages
Visme*: Create professional presentations, interactive infographics, beautiful design, and engaging videos, all in one place.
Venngage: Professional Infographic Software with 10,000+ Templates
VistaCreate: Tell your story with design
Snappa: Quick & Easy Graphic Design Software
Lumen5: AI-Powered Video Creation Platform
Biteable: Bring your message to life with Biteable
* indicates a promoted tool, if any
🧑🎨 Marketing Hacks That Don't Suck
The "Unexpected Utility" Campaign
TL;DR: Find or create an unexpected use for your product and highlight it in your marketing. Showcasing versatility can reignite interest in existing customers and attract new ones.
ugo, a company selling waterproof phone cases, traditionally marketed for water activities, discovered they were also excellent for protecting phones from dust and sand. They launched a campaign titled "Beach to Desert - Your Phone's Ultimate Protector."
They created content showing the phone case in dusty, sandy environments, not just water, emphasizing its all-around protective qualities. They partnered with influencers in desert regions or those who travel to such places to share real-life testimonials.
What are the Results?
Brand Expansion: The campaign expanded its market to include outdoor enthusiasts in dry climates.
Sales Boost: Sales increased by 25% in regions where dust and sand were significant concerns.
Engagement: Social media posts with this theme saw higher engagement rates as followers were intrigued by the new use case.
How to Make It Work for You?
Research: Look into customer feedback or reviews where they mention using your product in ways you hadn't considered.
Content Creation: Develop engaging content (videos, blogs, infographics) showing this unexpected use.
Promotion: Use platforms where your new audience hangs out. If your product's unexpected use appeals to a niche, target those platforms or communities.
Incentives: Offer a small discount or promotion for customers who share their own "unexpected utility" stories with your product.
🤝 Virtual Marketing Meetups
Marketing Masterclass: How to Build a Successful 12 Month Marketing Plan - Thursday, January 23rd
Social Media Marketing Essentials: Master the Basics - Saturday, January 25th
Social Media Marketing and Artificial Intelligence Unleashed - Sunday, February 2nd
My Top Marketing Secrets for Building a Business - Sunday, February 2nd
Sales and Marketing: Email Marketing - Tuesday, February 11th
📕 Your Brain's Buffet
Learn Google Ads the Easy Way
Dive into the world of Google Ads and turn clicks into customers!
What you'll learn:
Crafting Ads That Convert: Learn the art of compelling ad copy.
Cutting-Edge Techniques: Stay ahead with the latest ad optimization tricks.
Hands-On Practice: Apply what you learn with real-world scenarios.
Marketing Channel Strategy: An Omni-Channel Approach
Robert W. Palmatier, Eugene Sivadas
Unlock the secrets to selling across all channels with:
Easy-to-Implement Strategies: Simplify your sales approach.
Inspiring Case Studies: Learn from the pros at top companies.
Customer Satisfaction Tactics: Enhance every touchpoint of the customer journey.
Ad Genius
Marketing Department? Why waste the space when you can have a 'Department of Cleverness' - one genius in a broom closet with a light bulb overhead who reads “The Marketing Newsletter”