As video and audio are increasingly being used to build brands on the Web, mascots and other types of brand ambassadors are proving to be right at home. As part of experiential marketing campaigns, they give marketers like Procter & Gamble and Diageo greater flexibility because they can use the same image on TV, in print or online. P.& G. posts images of its flesh-and-blood Mr. Clean on a Web site (mrclean.com), and a real-life hunky Mr. Clean took his magic to New Orleans, where he led volunteers in clean up efforts after Hurricane Katrina. P&G also posted the …

The new ready-to-drink offering that Coca-Cola will introduce this summer under the Caribou Coffee Co. banner, will be a chilled, slightly sweet dairy-and-coffee blend, says Michael Coles, chairman of Minneapolis-based Caribou, the country's No. 2 coffeehouse chain. He adds that more drinks will be coming. Coke also hopes to move another drink--the coffee-and-chocolate flavored Godiva Belgian Blend--into national distribution. Starbucks, meanwhile, whose frappuccinos and other packaged drinks dominate the ready-to-drink market through a partnership with PepsiCo, is preparing to roll out a hot vending machine. It will dispense nine-ounce cans of Starbucks coffee in recyclable steel cans with …

Young customers are at the forefront of a boom in air fresheners, which have grown up since Glade's first sprays were marketed to suburban families in 1956. Since then, thousands of new products have made their debuts--plug-ins, fragrance fans, diffusers, flashing light shows--becoming pricier and fancier every year. After sensing a growing market, Procter & Gamble introduced Febreze air products in 2004 and put its marketing power behind them. Sales across the industry are up 50%--or nearly $600 million--since 2003, according to Kline & Company. "P&G came from nowhere," says William Schmitz, a senior analyst with Deutsche …

Omega-3--the fatty acids found in fish and some nuts and oils--is increasingly being added to other foods, often via fish oil or flax seeds. The primary target is the 79 million baby boomers, because omega-3 has been shown to cut risks of heart disease and maybe other diseases, including Alzheimer's. Tropicana will roll out the first national orange juice with omega-3 later this month. Kellogg puts it into a Kashi cereal. Unilever puts it in I Can't Believe It's Not Butter. Eggland's Best sells eggs boosted to 100 milligrams of omega-3 per egg, vs. 37 milligrams for a regular …

Data group eMarketer, which asserts that a percentage of ad spending credited to the Web properly belongs under mobile, says advertisers spent $420 million in mobile advertising in 2006, and predicts spending will leap to $900 million in 2007. But several experts in the field say that while momentum will increase, spending is unlikely to grow at such a rapid pace. They feel 2007 will be marked more by more experimentation. "The carriers need to start working in a more advertiser-friendly form," says Chad Stoller, executive vice president, director of emerging platforms at Omnicom's Organic, which …

A new campaign for job search site Monster.com--"The Monster Works For Me"--includes an online contest with a chance to win $20,000, a Toyota Prius, a family trip or Florida or a donation to a favorite charity. Entrants must register at Monster.com and describe why they work. On-air, Monster is pushing its message via four 30-second TV spots. A variety of workers in different stages of their lives show why they work. A fashion-store owner works to create style, for example, and a nurse works because she cares. Radio and print ads also support the campaign. Monster will use …

Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide has received more than 5,500 applications from beer lovers in 31 countries vying for the new position of chief beer officer at its The Four Points by Sheraton hotel chain. Beyond having a passion for and knowledge of beer, strong verbal and written skills are required for the CBO position, as the winner will be representing the company at promotional events, leading brewery tours, selecting beers for hotel menus and attending new hotel openings. Applicants must be of legal drinking age. The job is a largely promotional gimmick for the moment, but Starwood …

Hoping to create buzz nearly a year before it hits showrooms, General Motors took the wraps off of its totally redesigned 2008 Malibu today. Robert Lutz, GM's vice chairman for product development, says the new Malibu's more refined looks, improved ride and quieter interior are a milestone in the company's multiyear effort to upgrade the look and feel of its sedans and coupes. On the outside, the 2008 Malibu looks German, with an exterior profile and proportions similar to a Volkswagen Passat. The new Malibu's interior is a more dramatic departure. The new dashboard has a "dual …

Claiming that the environment "is begging for the Wal-Mart business model," CEO H. Lee Scott Jr., has committed the retailer to selling 100 million energy-saving compact fluorescent light bulbs a year by 2008. The biggest obstacle to overcome is America's love affair with cheap, familiar-looking incandescent bulbs. Wal-Mart will have to persuade its traditional consumers that it is worth paying a bit more at the checkout counter to save a significant amount down the line--a seemingly simple task that few companies ever accomplish. A compact fluorescent uses 75% less electricity than an incandescent bulb, lasts 10 times …

Coca-Cola is planning a huge marketing campaign behind Coke Zero this year and will soon unveil new black packaging with a silver ribbon to boost shelf impact, according to an internal memo. Coke Zero, which has no calories but claims a taste profile similar to flagship Coke "is critical to the health of the [Coca-Cola trademark] portfolio to transition males before they leave" the carbonated soft-drink category, the document says. New advertising extending the theme of "Coke-ness" is expected to break in March via Crispin Porter & Bogusky, Miami. Other plans include a spring launch of …