Procter & Gamble has released a new brilliantly humorous ad for Old Spice following the launch of the deeply emotional and dramatic videos in the ‘Thank you, Mom’ campaign. The baldest brand in the company’s portfolio is presenting a skinny man, who managed to reach all of his ambitious goals with the help of affirmations recorded on tapes, which are played via a walkman designed as an Old Spice deodorant packaging. The ‘I Will Live Forever’ advert, created by Widen+Kennedy (the agency behind P&G’s Olympic push), was released yesterday, July 23, as part of the ‘Believe In Your Smelf’ campaign, launched in spring 2012.

Pepsi has revealed two new Pepsi NEXT flavours inspired by summer, which will be available this season only. The new additions to the portfolio of the low-cal drink with real cola taste and 60 percent less sugar, Pepsi NEXT Cherry Vanilla and Pepsi NEXT Paradise Mango, were presented by actor William Levy, who was named the sexiest man of 2011 by People en Español, who is a longtime fan of cola and summer. The flavours are true representation of the most adventurous season of the year—Paradise Mango has a tropical twist, while Cherry Vanilla is a mix of traditional tastes served in a new chick way.

The brand-customer relationship no longer purely focuses on the product or service but also on the experience — or perceived experiential element — that the brand or product can give. And I firmly believe that the focus of en masse social events and networking (both real and virtual) will now start to shift back to being about the individual. In response, brands will need to find ways to holistically design new experiences to truly immerse us in the brand and nurture the relationship — on a more meaningful and one-to-one level.