In an effort to expand ridership to consumers with expanding bottoms, Trek--the Waterloo, Wis.-based brand that Lance Armstrong rode in his Tour de France victories--has a new $500 bike with wide seats that automatically shifts gears. The Lime, introduced this spring, has three speeds and looks like the bikes that baby boomers rode as kids. Bicycle sales have been flat for 12 years, and companies are looking to woo new riders, says Jay Townley, an industry analyst with Gluskin Townley Group. With an estimated 160 million people considered potential riders, strong sales could reverse the trend. Automatic …

Patients who have to pay higher deductibles for brand-name drugs will sometimes forgo medication altogether rather than substitute generics that cost less, according to a study released by mail-order prescription drug firm Express Scripts. It also says that the savings might lead to expensive complications if patients fail to take necessary medications. Express Scripts was looking at employers using consumer-driven health plans. Patients in those plans pay a larger portion of their health care costs so they have more incentive to stay healthy and choose cost-effective care when they're sick. Experts said the study's findings are complex. Some …

Following the national uproar that prompted sponsors to yank their advertising from Don Imus' radio show and TV simulcast, Nike took out a full-page ad in the Sunday New York Timesthat indirectly thanks Imus for bringing the issues of race relations and sexism to the forefront. The ad, which does not mention Imus by name, reads, in part: "Thank you for making all of us realize that we still have a long way to go." This week, digital applications in the form of banner ads will run on Flip.com, Cosmogirl.com, Seventeen.com, ESPN.com, FoxSports.com and NikeWomen.com. Each digital application will …

"Bom Chicka Wah Wah"--a pop culture phrase that supposedly mimics a guitar sound from 1970s adult movies and is slang for a sexual encounter--is the operative phrase in new ads for Unilever's Axe deodorant. Since its 2002 launch, Axe's theme has been "giving guys an edge in the mating game," says David Rubin, Axe's brand development director. New TV ads show women who suggestively blurt "Bom Chicka Wah Wah" to men wearing the spray. The brand's eight body sprays are also getting new packaging and an enhanced fragrance. Body sprays are key in the young male market because they …

Coke Zero has sold more than 100 million unit cases since its June 2005 debut, making it Coca-Cola's most successful launch in 20 years. The success of the no-calorie soda made from the Coke formula and a blend of artificial sweeteners comes after a series of flops--and a move by consumers toward other beverages. Some outsiders see signs of a bigger turnaround that reflects improving product development by Coke scientists, snazzier marketing and patched-up relations with bottlers. Katie Bayne, CMO for Coke's North American business, says company officials are meeting monthly with bottlers to analyze consumer feedback and …

After years of making their mass-market cars more expensive, the world's automakers are suddenly designing cars for buyers who might otherwise be able to afford only a motorcycle. The trend is driven by a quest for new opportunities in emerging markets, as growth stagnates in the U.S., Europe and Japan. Renault-Nissan is the first global automaker to take up the gauntlet thrown down in 2003 by India's Tata Motors, which plans to launch a $2,500 car next year. The automaker began offering the roomy Logan in Europe for just $7,200 in 2004--some 40% less than rival sedans. A …

The 38 million-member AARP is expanding a longstanding contract with UnitedHealth Group to market private, comprehensive Medicare plans--known as Medicare Advantage--under the AARP name. The group has also struck a new partnership with Aetna to design, underwrite and administer a range of health plans for consumers under 65. The deals illustrate how providing health care for older Americans has become a big business, even as AARP tries to remain a consumer health advocate for its members. They are also a coup for both insurers. AARP executives say the deals will help them reach their target of providing health …

Xerox is using viral videos, employee blogging, virtual research islands, quirky humor and offbeat sponsorships to push its marketing and brand-image boundaries. Its digital efforts are attempts to bring words such as "fun," "energetic" and even "exciting" to its stalwart brand image of quality and reliability. Xerox's newest viral video uses three office-worker characters and oddball cost-cutting ideas, such as a downloadable digital garbage-eating goat and "everything" templates, to poke fun at the argument that color copies are too expensive. But the videos have yet to cause widespread pass-around. "It's not going to happen overnight," says Gary Peterson, an …

Pepsi is readying a red-hued, citrus-cherry-flavored, limited-edition Mountain Dew. It will carry the name of the much-anticipated Xbox 360 "Halo 3" video game that will be released in August. Touted as the first soft drink created for and co-branded with a video game, the new Dew is positioned as "game fuel." Images of the drink on Llama.com show a 20-ounce bottle with the "Halo 3" logo and an image of its central character, Master Chief, along with the words "Game Fuel" and "limited edition." According to a bulletin-board post, the drink contains 48 milligrams of caffeine per eight ounces, …

The credibility of CMOs is increasingly challenged by the position's vague definition and a failure on the part of corporate America to align qualifications with business goals, according to a survey sponsored by the MarketBridge marketing consultancy on behalf of the CMO Council. Plus, CMOs are failing at a high rate; they lack the skill sets and authority to fulfill their often ill-defined jobs. The study's authors write that the credibility of CMOs has been further eroded by "self-described 'superstar marketers' who leverage personal style to elevate and inflate their titles" -- and salaries, which average between $300,000-500,000 …