In a bid to lure young soda drinkers, Pepsi is gambling that rotating can designs and an invitation for consumers to play a role in the imagery will pay off. It's a strategy used successfully by smaller beverage marketers, like Jones Soda. Thirty-five designs, including such images as deejays, snowboards and emoticons, will be on Pepsi cans in supermarket shelves within days. More such designs are in the works for 2008. While the soda giant risks alienating or confusing some consumers, one industry consultant says it may be worth it because "consumers are bored, bored, bored." …

Eschewing the hip-hop image commonly used to appeal to black consumers, Ford's Lincoln division is taking a lower-key approach with the hiring of a wedding gown designer from Ethiopia as the brand ambassador for its Lincoln MKX. Amsale Aberra runs Amsale, the New York-based wedding- and evening-dress house that is on a par with Vera Wang. Her appeal is such that Lincoln, which had hired her to increase its penetration into minority media and certain urban markets, decided to include the ads in its general market ads. Lincoln has struggled to find a consistent new look for its …

Starting Saturday, Proctor & Gamble's Febreze brand is heading to malls across to the country to find a new face for its Air Effects air freshener. Consumers interested in auditioning for the role will be asked to do their best "freshness lover impersonation." That's what other companies might call a heavy user. They "are people who just can't get enough of it," said Michael Sabbia, assistant manager for the brand. "They spray their couches and rugs with fabric spray. They are constantly spraying fresheners in the air and use electric air fresheners to scent each room." …

Broadening its hold on the football marketing, Home Depot has become the "official home improvement sponsor" of the National Football League, including marketing rights to the Super Bowl. Home Depot said its partnership also includes marketing rights to the Pro Bowl, community-affairs activities, NFL Network-related programming and designates it as the presenting sponsor of The NFL Experience theme park. Roger Adams, chief marketing officer for Home Depot, says the company will look for more ways to integrate its suppliers and professional football customers at the store level. Home Depot already has existing local club sponsorship agreements with …

It may be a case of working too well. Roadside billboards, those iconic messengers of the motoring experience, are increasingly going digital with bright colors and the ability to rotate messages constantly. Advertisers are thrilled. Highway safety advocates and municipalities, however, are worried that bright lights and changing imagery are distracting drivers. Such signage has been popping up more frequently inside subways and buses, shopping malls, office buildings and airports. Over the last two years, the out-of-home category has been second only to the Internet in its growth rate. So far, lawsuits involving roadside billboards have been …

Saying it has owned the name since 1996, Cisco Systems has filed a trademark lawsuit against Apple after the latter introduced the iPhone with a big splash at the MacWorld Convention. Talks between the two companies had been on-going for years. Cisco says it was willing to share the name; Apple, apparently, was not. Cisco says it wasn't looking for money, just collaboration and joint development with Apple to ensure that the phone works with Cisco's networking gear. Apple has called the lawsuit "silly" and says they are ready for it.

For its first Super Bowl half-time sponsorship, Pepsi is giving away a $100,000 blinged-out soda can to a lucky fan. That person will also get two Super Bowl tickets every year for life. The sterling-silver can crusted is with 300 diamonds, 100 sapphires and 100 rubies. The design was inspired by past Super Bowl rings, as well as by the Vince Lombardi Trophy for the winning Super Bowl team. Registration at SuperBowl.com/pepsi begins Saturday, along with TV, radio and Internet ads for the sweepstakes. After people sign up at the site, they will be e-mailed a code …

Recent films starring penguins have turned the darling creatures into Madison Avenue's new "pitchbeast of choice." Build-A-Bear Workshop, Burger King, Roche Laboratories and General Mills signed on early for "Happy Feet," which opened in November. A clear difference from 2005, when no one tied in with "March of the Penguins" because no one expected it to become the docu-hit it is. Why penguins? "None of us wants to feel we're just another penguin in a sea of penguins," said Michael Megalli, a partner at Group 1066, a corporate-identity consulting company in New York, so a penguin that …

Wal-Mart had personnel problems galore in 2006, like the embarrassing ouster of Julie Roehm, the young ad whiz Wal-Mart had hired away from DaimlerChrysler. It also had a bad rep as an employer. In October, a Philadelphia jury ordered Wal-Mart to pay $78 million to a class of 185,000 workers who claim they were denied breaks and forced to work off the clock. A top Wall Street analyst suggests Wal-Mart take a break from earning growth to better compensate its people. "I could rite the press release now," says HSBC retail analyst Mark Husson, whose stock-picking prowess ranked among …

Later this year, McDonald's will begin serving only Rainforest Alliance-certified coffee in its 6,200-plus European restaurants. It wants to stay ahead of competition, such as Starbucks, and also make its mark in the sustainability movement. In a deal worth nearly $100 million to some of the poorest farmers in the world, the fast-food giant will begin offering ethically sourced Kenco coffee. In doing so, McDonald's joins multinationals such as Wal-Mart, Royal Philips Electronics and Unilever in getting serious about sustainability. "Companies are increasingly trying to boost their social responsibility programs because they know that not to …