Monthly Archives: February 2022

Coinbase got a lot of attention — and new users — after running that Super Bowl ad of a QR code bouncing around the screen.

• But, on Monday night, the cryptocurrency exchange’s marketing win lost a little lustre, after CEO Brian Armstrong fumbled a Twitter thread bragging about the origins of the ad spot.

Why it matters: Twitter missteps aren’t uncommon for tech executives, but for a fintech like Coinbase — seeking to be a major player in finance — this kind of unforced error could appear amateurish.

What happened: In a 12- tweet thread Armstrong said Coinbase was initially pitched “a bunch of standard Super Bowl ad ideas” by an outside agency and didn’t like them. They brainstormed instead.

• “No ad agency would have done this ad,” Armstrong tweeted.

The intrigue: But an agency did have the idea of using a QR code, Kristen Cavallo, CEO of The Martin Agency, said in a reply to Armstrong’s sixth tweet:

• Coinbase’s ad “was actually inspired by presentations our agency showed your team on 8/18 (pages 19-24) and 10/7 (pages 11-18) with ad concepts for the Super Bowl floating QR codes on a blank screen.” Her reply got thousands more likes than Armstrong’s initial missive.

Go deeper: Coinbase’s chief marketing officer, Kate Rouch, replied to Cavallo — with five more tweets — hours later. She said the company had indeed worked with an agency, Accenture Interactive, in creating its ad. “Our CEO actually thought we were a single team when presenting work,” she wrote.

• “Multiple agencies — including The Martin Agency — pitched us ideas that included QR codes for several different campaigns,” she added. 
• Armstrong also fired off a final tweet about 12 hours after his first, acknowledging they had help from “a creative firm.”

The term “phygital” — a portmanteau of “physical” and “digital”— refers to a marketing strategy in which brands use bricks and clicks to entice customers.

Why it matters: While the term is far from new — an Australian ad agency called Momentum copyrighted it in 2013 — the word is cropping up more and more as digital marketers expand and enhance the concept.

• While “phygital” used to be a cool way to describe selling stuff through a blend of brick-and-mortar sites and e-commerce sites, the word gains new relevance in an era of NFTs and the metaverse.

The big picture: Marketers say we’re fully immersed in the phygital era, given that consumers expect the same levels of personalisation and customer service wherever they shop.

• Cashier less stores like Amazon Go and the growing popularity of BOPIS (buy online, pick up in-store) are symbolic of this trend.

“The line — however slim — that existed between in-store and online retail experiences was eliminated during the COVID-19 pandemic.

We have entered the age of ‘phygital’ shopping, in which digital enhances the in-store shopping experience.

What’s next: Expect to see more blending of the virtual and physical space in the shopping realm, like phygital displays in retail stores that point you to virtual fitting rooms, online product reviews, etc.