Birthday Parties for Everyone

Burger King France worked with agency David Madrid to create a promotion offering free post-lockdown birthday parties—complete with food, cake, gifts, invitations and decorations—to 500 kids. The response was so strong that the chain expanded the promotion to 100 more winners.

Read more: The campaign was accompanied by a 30-second spot featuring several kids exuding a lot less enthusiasm than normal for a birthday celebration. (They’re still cute, though.)

Burger King's marketing machine didn't stop at birthday party IOUs. This morning, it debuted a stunt from David Buenos Aires. Burger King has to do something useful with all those out-of-home billboards, right? That's why the fast-food chain is giving out free Whoppers to anyone who makes one of those billboards their Zoom background. Get the details here.

More campaigns doing good amid coronavirus:

With hiring largely frozen in the agency world and many industry workers feeling immersed in a cloud of uncertainty, agency recruiters are finding new ways to connect with, nurture and energize talent. Talent directors working under quarantine are shifting their daily tasks and expanding their roles to emphasize aspects like professional development, long-term talent scouting and increasing the internal visibility of colleagues.

Read more: We talked with recruiting professionals about Wieden + Kennedy, Mother, O’Keefe Reinhard & Paul and other agencies about how they're connecting with new talent.

On this week’s episode of Yeah, That’s Probably an Ad, co-host Ko Im speaks with clinical psychologist and organizational expert Nicole Lipkin about showing up with less judgment. She also shares how executives are managing headspace, leading teams, prioritizing time and finding breaks to foster creativity.

Tune in: Hear from Lipkin, along with senior editor Doug Zanger, who discusses more good things coming out of the creative world.

To meet the demand for less skin-on-pretty-much-anything contact, agency TBWA\Helsinki has created a simple and clever device that lets visitors to a building or shop open doors without having to grab handles with their hands. Created from postconsumer recycled plastic and produced via 3D printing, the Fortum Vipu add-on lets you pull open a door with your sleeved forearm.

See it: Check out the device and learn how the project came together.

We created Media Together as a way for media, marketing and tech professionals who have been impacted by Covid-19 to connect with the larger community and job opportunities. It's a place for them to gather, tell stories and find solutions for the future. If you're a media pro, learn how to get involved here.

If you're looking to hire talent, read about the editorial, marketing and technology pros who have already come together to share their stories and expertise with us.

Best of the Rest:

Kelly O’Halloran, a senior designer at Adweek Fastest Growing Agencies honoree 10 Thousand Design in Minneapolis, has created miniature gouache paintings commemorating some of the products that have gained prominent status throughout the pandemic. Half of the proceeds from sales goes to Feeding America.

Tomorrow on Adweek's livesteamed video series, Fiona Carter and Seth Solomons join Adweek's Lisa Granatstein for candid conversations on how they are forging the way forward. Tune in to this Adweek Pro member exclusive tomorrow at 3 p.m. ET.

Klaire Hensley, principal and business development, The Richards Group

"One of the things we have always done is to hold what we call “an agency stairwell,” a gathering at our internal stairwell, led by Stan Richards and Glenn Dady, to share internal news with our whole agency at the same time. We gathered at our first virtual agency stairwell recently to celebrate a new business win. While we all wish we could have been in person, doing it virtually was much better than not doing it at all, and we were really able to celebrate the success as a whole agency."

Brad Casper, CEO, OH Partners

"We are advancing our annual practice of Summer Fridays by a full month. Instead of letting employees "leave" at 3 p.m. on Friday between Memorial Day and Labor Day, we will start this benefit May 1 to alleviate burnout and reward employees for our tremendous success during the pandemic."

Alda Abbracciamento, chief growth officer, flytedesk

"We named our weekly 'good news and gratitude sessions' after one of our most effusive employees as she has set the tone for true celebration of individual's successes. There is something really special about peer to peer recognition."

From managing expectations to planning for post-pandemic.

Airbnb will use a 'booking buffer' to space guests 72 hours apart in some homes.

After a rough month due to Covid-19, retail revenue, visits and orders rebounded.

Don’t think like an advertiser.

It's time for marketing's lemonade break.