What Leon’s Bagels NYC Gets Right About Lifestyle-Led Food Branding By Sean Beckingham, Branding & Buzzing I recently went down a rabbit hole on the Instagram account for Leon’s Bagels NYC, and it’s one of the best examples I’ve seen of a food brand fully understanding who...
If you’re not paying attention to the mini-drama trend on TikTok, you’re missing one of the most powerful content formats of the moment. Popularized in China, mini-dramas take full-length storylines and break them into bite-sized episodes built for vertical viewing. Think soap opera tension meets Hallmark-style...
Social Media Manager vs. Social Media Marketer: Why the Difference Matters for Your Brand Author: Sean Beckingham, Branding & Buzzing If you are confused between a social media manager and a social media marketer. You are not alone The truth? They are not the same role. And if you’re...
Branding & Buzzing Casting Call: Food Review Creators Wanted We’re casting real people with real personality to create fun, chaotic, low-fi reviews for an upcoming food brand campaign. Think unpolished, candid, funny, aesthetic in an ugly-on-purpose way — the exact style trending right now on TikTok...
Authored by Sean Beckingham, Partner at Branding & Buzzing Every few months, another headline drops claiming that alcohol consumption is “down,” that the industry is “in trouble,” or that Gen Z has stopped drinking entirely. And sure — some numbers show a dip. But the conversations...
🍟 Canada’s Hottest Fast-Food Drama? The Great French Fry Container Conspiracy by Sean Beckingham with AI assist If you’ve been anywhere near the internet this week, you’ve likely seen it:The Rumour™ that McDonald’s puts almost the same amount of fries in every container size.Small, medium, large — apparently...
Walk into a newly opened restaurant, scroll through a food brand’s Instagram, or browse new kitchen appliances and one thing is clear:colour is quietly disappearing. Beige walls. Off-white tiles. Stone countertops. Cream espresso machines. Neutral menus. Muted packaging. Pantone’s recent choice of Cloud Dancer — a soft...
For our agency, Terroir Symposium has never just been another industry event. It has been one of the most important gathering points for Canada’s food and hospitality community — a place where ideas, chefs, producers and marketers cross paths in 2014 it simply did not...
OPEN CASTING CALL Food Photography Creatives – We are seeking an experienced food photography creative team to produce a set of recipe-based images for the launch of a new egg brand. This is an opportunity for photographers and production teams who specialize in packaged food, recipe development,...
Why Terroir Symposium Mattered to Our Agency For Branding & Buzzing, the Terroir Symposium was never “just another conference.” It was one of the most important gathering points in the Canadian food and hospitality calendar—where chefs, farmers, producers, writers, marketers, and industry veterans came together to...
Schmuck is a New York–based cocktail bar known for its creative drinks, playful irreverence, and a team that doesn’t take itself too seriously but some how taking hospitality very seriously. Led by industry veterans, As a strategy Schmuck blends high-end cocktail culture with humour, personality,...
By Sean Beckingham I actually love the holidays. Tradition, nostalgia and doing good are some of my favourite things. One of the most classic Canadian holiday traditions is the Advent Calendar. Every December, they show up again.Sometimes they’re wildly creative. Sometimes they’re nostalgic chocolate throwbacks. Sometimes… they’re very boozy. Advent...
When is the best time to activate influencer marketing?The short answer: when your brand needs attention, momentum, and real-world validation at the same time. Whether it’s reminding consumers why they love a brand they already know, or introducing something completely new, influencer marketing works best...
Feature Artificial Intelligence (AI) Human Imagination Foundation AI relies on algorithms, vast datasets, and computational power. It processes information, recognizes patterns, and generates responses based on probabilities learned from its training data. Human imagination is a complex process driven by personal experiences, emotions, culture, and intuition. It allows for original,...
How a Cheeseburger Teaches Us AI-Discoverable Metadata And why food brands need both in 2026 At Branding & Buzzing, we’ve always believed that great food content starts with great storytelling. Sometimes that story is a chef. Sometimes it’s a destination. And sometimes — as we saw in...
Your quick guide to ADVERSITY TRUTH HOOKS "You're not going to like this, but you need to hear it...
Turning apple orchards, French heritage & great cocktails into a multi-year Canadian success story. When Calvados Business France asked us to help grow awareness in Canada, we knew exactly where to start: with creators, chefs, and stories that make people feel something. Because Calvados isn’t just...
AI-Discoverable Metadata: What It Is, Why It Matters, and How Brands Should Use It As search evolves beyond keywords and into a world driven by generative AI discovery, brands are entering a new era of visibility. No longer is it enough to “rank” on Google alone....
As Meta continues to evolve its analytics and unify performance tracking across Facebook and Instagram, a key update is now rolling out: “Impressions” are being replaced with “Views.” This change aligns Facebook with Instagram’s existing terminology and reflects Meta’s ongoing move toward simplifying performance metrics for...
Part-Time Ad Specialist (Training Included) Branding & Buzzing is looking for a part-time Ad Specialist who’s interested in learning the ins and outs of digital advertising. We’ll start you off with Meta Ads training — the first part is about 20–30 hours of online learning. After that,...
Rise, Griddle & Glory: A Cheeseburger Day Tribute from Branding & Buzzing Today is National Cheeseburger Day — a time to celebrate sizzle, cheese melt, juicy patties, and all the ways we’ve helped clients make burgers more than just food: making them culture, conversation, and craveable...
Case Study: Nanak Foods – Rasmalai Street Video Campaign Objective Nanak Foods wanted to create buzz for their No Added Sugar Rasmalai using real people, real reactions, and a real Toronto street backdrop. The goal was to capture authentic, unpolished moments that would connect with viewers on...
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Another week, another Instagram update — but this one’s actually worth your time. Instagram just rolled out a set of new tools that are all about making the app feel more social again. Think: more interaction, more discovery, and more ways for your content to be...
We're Hiring: Digital Ad Specialist (Mid-Level) At Branding & Buzzing, we live and breathe food and beverage marketing—and we’re growing. We’re looking for a mid-level Digital Ad Specialist to join our team and help us drive campaign performance across our client roster of amazing brands. This is...
