🗓️Weekender Links 03/16/24

Let's make money from weird stuff together: CC #289

Mar 16, 2024

In This Issue: Pinterest Launches Body Type Filter / Microsoft’s Ramadan Marketing Tips / Taco Bell Holds Trade Show-Style Event For New Menu Items / Cory Doctorow On Blogging / The Blueprint For Internet Holding Companies In 2024 / Uninsured American Hoping Doctor Duets Their Video Of Weird Rash Before TikTok Is Banned

a group of people standing next to each other — Photo by Robs on Unsplash

Welcome to Context Collapse, the world’s best comms newsletter. I’m Neal Ungerleider. I run Ungerleider Works and used to work as a reporter for Fast Company, write op-eds for the LA Times, and work as a senior copywriter for R/GA. This newsletter helps readers navigate the weird new world of media and gleefully ignores all the conventional wisdom about journalism, public relations, marketing, and advertising.

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Lots going on this week. Lots and lots.

But first… Need marketing or PR help?

I’m taking on a few projects for early April at Ungerleider Works. Need help with white papers? Executive ghostwriting? Newsletters? Creative or strategy stuff in general? Let’s talk.

Now on to the links.

Pinterest Launches Body Type Filter: “In theory, the tool’s premise is innovative. It uses AI to identify and categorize the 3.5 billion body types on the platform. Then, it narrows it down to just four specific body size ranges.

Using the feature, which is currently in the US and for women only, is pretty straightforward. You just type something like “autumn outfits” into the search bar and then select one of the four body types in question. According to Pinterest, using this search tool led to a 66% higher engagement rate.”

Microsoft’s Ramadan Marketing Tips: “The holiest month in the Islamic calendar—Ramadan—is observed by over 2 billion Muslims around the world with Southeast Asia (SEA) and the Middle East, Republic of Türkiye, and Africa (META) contributing to close to 50% of this number.

Ramadan not only marks a time for spiritual reflection but also an important period for marketers and brands in these regions as the dynamics of consumer behavior undergo a noticeable shift. It’s often the period when people plan their zakat (an annual charitable donation made by Muslims during Ramadan) and take to their devices to shop for home essentials, browse gifts for loved ones, map out travel plans, manage expenses, prepare for Iftaar meals, or find grooming options ahead of Eid.

To help your brand tap into the incredible opportunities that Ramadan presents and build meaningful connections with consumers, Microsoft Advertising and InMobi have curated comprehensive insights in a new report—Ramadan in the Digital World: The Marketer’s Manual.”

Taco Bell Holds Trade Show-Style Event For New Menu Items: “Welcome to Friday. You made it to the end of the week. Congrats. I have a treat for you all: Taco Bell’s 2024 Live Mas Event. What’s that? It’s basically a Taco Bell mini-E3 complete with musical acts, announcements, and all the cringey moments you crave from something like this. Yes, if you guessed that this would be a weird, late-capitalist fever dream, you are correct.

I had no idea this event was happening until someone on Twitter began tweeting about it. I immediately dropped everything and started watching.”

Cory Doctorow On Blogging: “I get up at 5AM and make coffee. Then I sit down on the sofa and open a huge tab-group, and scroll through my RSS feeds using Newsblur. I spend the next 1-2 hours winnowing through all the stuff that seems important. I have a chronic pain problem and I really shouldn't sit on the sofa for more than 10 minutes, so I use a timer and get up every 10 minutes and do one minute of physio. After a couple hours, I'm left with 3-4 tabs that I want to write articles about that day.”

The Blueprint For Internet Holding Companies In 2024: