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What started off as a quirky pharmacy mascot has evolved into a cultural phenomenon, culminating in November 2024s Simifest, a music festival blurring the lines between brand marketing and grassroots fandom. Dr. Simi, the cheerful, mustachioed mascot of Mexicos Farmacias Similares, is a familiar figure seen dancing outside pharmacy doors to promote the chains low-cost generic medications. (Farmacias Similares operates over 9,500 stores in Mexico and other Latin American countries.) In recent years, fans transformed him into an unlikely icon of concert culture, tossing plush Dr. Simi dolls at music stars like Lady Gaga and Rosalía as gestures of admiration. It turned the pharmacy mascot into a viral sensation.Rather than dismissing the fan-led movement, Farmacias Similares leaned into it, creating a festival celebrating Dr. Simis role in pop culture. In addition to acts like Anderson. Paak, Jungle, Ely Guerra and Technicolor Fabrics, the Mexico City event offered more than just a nod to the pharmacy chain; it featured cosplay contests, fan art and plenty of opportunities to interact with Dr. Simi. Its a lesson in harnessing the energy of customers who co-opt and reinterpret brand symbols to express broader values. With consumers increasingly skeptical of traditional marketing, Simifest shows how to foster spaces where audiences feel seen, heard and free to play.Some of todays most resonant brand narratives arent top-down campaigns but emergent, co-created stories that thrive on social medias participatory dynamics. Dr. Simis evolution from pharmacy mascot to cultural icon reflects a deeper societal shift: people crave experiences that blend humor, authenticity and community. By embracing this shift, Farmacias Similares transformed a corporate mascot into a symbol of fun, connection and national pride. Other brands: time to release control and let consumers lead the way?!
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Marketing and Advertising
Waymos fleet of driverless vehicles are operating in more cities and a study indicates that may reduce crashes on roadways. The study, a non-paid partnership between Waymo itself and reinsurer Swiss Re, indicated Waymos cars result in fewer insurance claims than those operated by people. Swiss Re analyzed liability claims from collisions covering 25.3 million miles driven by Waymos autonomous cars. The study also compared Waymos liability claims to human driver baselines based on data from over 500,000 claims and over 200 billion driving miles. The results found that Waymo Driver demonstrated better safety performance when compared to human-driver vehicles.. The study found cars operated by Alphabets Waymo Driver resulted in 88 percent fewer property damage claims and 92 percent fewer bodily injury claims. Swiss Re also invented a new metric to compare Waymo Driver against only newer vehicles with advanced safety tech, like driver assistance, automated emergency braking and blind spot warning systems, instead of against the whole corpus of those 200 billion driving miles. In this comparison, Waymo still came out ahead with an 86 percent reduction in property damage claims and a 90 percent reduction on bodily damage claims. Of course, there are two glaring issues. First is that Waymo currently only operates in cities, which, yes, account for the bulk of crashes in the US, but rural areas account for a much higher number of crashes (especially fatal ones) proportional to their population. (The study, incidentally, states that having exurban data included in the baseline metrics actually cuts against Waymo's true safety numbers.) Second: Waymo simply hasn't been around that long. It's very hard to get an accurate measure of the system when its real-world testing period has been so relatively short. The numbers may look good for Waymo Driver in studies but they arent perfect by any stretch. Waymo issued its second recall over the summer when one of its robotaxis hit a street level telephone pole at 8 mph in Phoenix. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration launched an investigation into Waymo and found 24 incidents that involved crashes or traffic violations.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/waymos-driverless-cars-are-apparently-an-insurance-companys-dream-220746643.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
It's here! The Steam Winter Sale is underway now and runs through January 2. That leaves you plenty of time to internally debate whether you really need to buy yet more games and ultimately convince yourself that yes, in fact, you do. Several notable titles from the Summer Sale are once again seeing similar discounts this season. Baldur's Gate 3 is 20 percent off and you can buy it for $48. At $27, Cyberpunk 2077 is half off and Elden Ring is $36, which is 40 percent off. If you've already had your fill of Elden Ring, you can save 40 percent on a different Souls-like. Lies of P takes the familiar gameplay in a dark retelling of the Pinocchio fairy tale and you can grab it for $36. There's also a 60 percent discount on No Man's Sky, which is still getting regular content patches; soar into infinite space for $24. Another great deal is for the original Cities: Skylines, which is a calmer and more stable experience than the game's troubled sequel has been. The simulator is 70 percent off, costing just $9. Steam sales are always a great time to fill up on indie hits. We here at Engadget are bonkers for Balatro, which you can save a dollar on at only ten percent off, but there are many steeper sales to explore. Feline-focused Stray is $18, or you can play a more sinister critter in Cult of the Lamb for under $13. For $14, you can fish and roll sushi to your heart's content in the quirky Dave the Diver. Slay the Spire is just over $6 and the perennial favorite Stardew Valley is down to $8. A bunch of classic titles are up to 90 percent off. Stellar first-person shooter Titanfall 2 is a mere $3. Go nuclear in Fallout 4 for $8. The trio of games in the Mass Effect Legendary Edition can all be yours for $5. Divinity Original Sin, the sprawling RPG that helped prove Larian Studios was the right team to make Baldur's Gate 3, is $4. That's just scratching the surface of what's included in this season's Steam sale. Take a look over your wishlist and see what else you might want to buy. Happy holidays!This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/tis-the-season-for-the-steam-winter-sale-to-take-all-your-money-202852825.html?src=rss
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Marketing and Advertising
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