KFC's Viral Doughnut Sandwich; Norway's Marketing Dilemma: Wednesday's First Things First

Welcome to First Things First, Adweek’s new daily resource for marketers. We’ll be publishing the content to First Things First on Adweek.com each morning (like this post), but if you prefer that it come straight to your inbox, you can sign up for the email here. We Tried a KFC Doughnut Sandwich, and Here’s What You Need to Know At some point, we're going to reach peak chicken sandwich (maybe somebody will combine one with hard seltzer so that two trends can jump the shark simultaneously). We're probably not there yet, but KFC is trying its darnedest to get us there with its latest creation: part chicken sandwich, part doughnut. The brand is testing out the new monstrosity at 40 locations, but happens when you don't live in one of those markets? Make your own, of course. Read more: Creativity editor David Griner taste-tested this sweet and crispy sandwich and lived to tell the mouth-watering tale. Norway Has a Marketing Problem Some researches believe tourism accounts for 8% of all global carbon emissions—emissions that are melting one of Norway's most famous glaciers. As it recedes by some 81 meters in a year, tourists are flocking from all over the world on carbon-emitting flights to see the glacier before it disappears. See the problem? Norway is rethinking its strategy for the tourism industry, which accounts for 4.2% of the country's gross domestic product. Read more: Learn how the country reshaped its marketing to set areas affected by climate change up for success as the glaciers melt away. The rest of our Covering Climate Now stories: London’s Air Pollution Is a Public Health Crisis Hiding in Plain Sight Unilever Is Using 100% Renewable Electricity on 5 Continents This Agency Veteran Wants to Turn the Carbon Conversation Upside Down Brands Are Closing Their Doors in Support of the Global Climate Strike How Heinz Created America's (and Ed Sheeran's) Favorite Condiment Who knew what started as a Chinese fish sauce would become America's favorite condiment? A bottle of ketchup is, in fact, present in 97% of American households. What's more, 70% of those ketchup bottles are Heinz. Although we doubt anyone loves it as much as Ed Sheeran does (he has a Heinz Ketchup tattoo), it's safe to say the brand is strong. Our resident brand expert Robert Klara tells us the humble beginnings of Heinz and how it got us addicted. Read more: How Heinz turned Chinese fish sauce into America’s (and Ed Sheeran’s) favorite condiment. Just Briefly: The rest of today's top insights Xandr Adds Bloomberg and Vudu to its Community CMOs from Jacksonville Jaguars and Activision Blizzard Esports Talk Blurred Lines Between Athletes, Gamers and Fans Online Dating in a World of Deepfakes CBS Marketing Chief George Schweitzer Will Leave Next Year, Passing the Baton to Amazon’s Mike Benson Ad of the Day: Volvo Gave Truckers a Charming Moment of Self-Care [kickout id="1"] Road trips are brutal on a body. The aches that come with spending hours upon hours sitting in one spot as mile signs fly by the window are ingrained in all of us. But for the people whose job it is to traverse the country and then turn around and do it again, back and neck pain is often just part of the gig. That's why Volvo gave a number of truckers a free neck realignment in this charming spot. 3 Sustainability Questions With Erica Fite, co-founder and co-CCO, Fancy What role can brands play to curb climate change? Consumers can talk about sustainable habits all they want, but, if brands don’t play their part, we still have those situations where the only option is a plastic bottle. There is something every brand can do, too many things to list here. Fashion brands can use sustainably sourced fabrics. Bottled drinks can use alternatives to plastic. Large manufacturers can transition power sources to wind and solar. Any brand that transports product should keep a close eye on the rapid progress of zero-emission commercial trucks. Everyone can reduce waste. The important thing is to do something. That effort will pay off with consumers who hope to continue living on Earth. If a brand doesn't have a plan to become more sustainable, do they risk alienating the next generation of consumers? They risk alienating ALL generations of consumers. Many consumers are finally starting to see how critical the situation is and walk the walk. Plastic straws are enough to turn a bunch of people off from your fast-food or juice chain. What can companies do to become more transparent about sustainability? If companies are putting effort into sustainable practices, they should totally tout it, put it on the label, devote a communications effort to it, let people know, create a following. Shame other companies into doing the same. Make a lot of noise until it becomes the norm.