Onions, Noods, Cows, Dogs – Sales Lead Digest

The food is getting sexy in this week’s Sales Lead Digest. We have stories of onions, mac and cheese, and I bet we could have found a few more if we looked! To balance we found some animal stories. We’re getting soft in our old age. Enjoy!

Why some onions were too sexy for Facebook

“We use automated technology to keep nudity off our apps, but sometimes it doesn’t know a Walla Walla onion from a, well, you know,’ Facebook Canada’s head of communications, Meg Sinclair, told BBC.”

This cracks me up, but also points to the small ways AI is creeping into our lives. The machines are out there helping us, and occasionally making us laugh. What will that mean for our marketing? If it can see something naughty in the onions, it can probably be taught to find our best prospects.

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Angry Moms And QAnon Believers Attacked Kraft’s “Send Noods” Campaign For Sexualizing Mac ‘N’ Cheese

“Some customers did not find the bit funny, saying it was wildly ‘inappropriate’ because Kraft was a ‘family company.’ Many threatened to take their business to Annie’s, another purveyor of mac ‘n’ cheese.”

This time is wasn’t the robots, but I’m guessing Kraft wishes it were. Sending noods is funny. There was a time when they may not have heard much from the naysayers, but today every customer has a voice. You never know how far you can push the envelope until you get there. I’ll be waiting to see if this little dustup has legs, and in the meantime I might send a few noods to friends and see if it registers. My guess is they can keep pushing. Free publicity is still publicity.

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Is cow hugging the world’s new wellness trend?

“Cow cuddlers typically start by taking a tour of the farm before resting against one of the cows for two to three hours. The cow’s warmer body temperature, slower heartbeat and mammoth size can make hugging them an incredibly soothing experience, and giving the animal a backrub, reclining against them or even getting licked is all part of the therapeutic encounter.”

This is so udderly great. Even if it’s only 2% of the population that can take advantage of it. I don’t want to skim past the real benefits, but it’s hard not to milk this story for a few puns. From a marketing perspective, getting more from existing assets is why we’re out shaking things up.

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In Vermont, a haven for dogs and the humans who love them

“. . . St. Johnsbury was once a thriving industrial town that has struggled in recent decades. . . Huneck and his wife bought the property that became Dog Mountain in 1995. They worked out of an old dairy barn making wood carvings, furniture, sculptures and other whimsical pieces. But shortly after, during a long illness that left him in a coma for two months, Huneck had a near-death experience that led to his vision for the Dog Chapel.”

To recover from the onions and nood jokes, we’re going to the dogs. The idea that something like this can exist in the world gives me hope! Enjoy the weekend!