The Influence of Stewart’s Visual and Emotional Branding

Martha was one of the first to showcase her products as an extension of herself. Her aesthetic, values and actions, paired with a magnetic media personality, caught the public eye. And after years in the spotlight, she has kept it. Stewart was extremely successful in building an emotional connection as well as a jealous desire between her and her audience. She demonstrated her influence from through setting new standards between creators and customers. Her ability to build a brand on deeply aesthetic storytelling has translated to the creation of experiential marketing firms today. And her influence endures, as decades later, audiences still seek to attain her cultivated aesthetic and lifestyle philosophy.

Curated Influence: How Stewart Turned Products into Narratives

Martha arranges products in a way that tells a story. Today, marketing firms emulate this approach, where products are not simply functional but serve to curate a mood. Through Stewart’s signature arrangements, her audience doesn’t just observe her polished lifestyle—they crave it.  Whether hosting from her home or appearing on screen, Stewart invites her audience into her world. For those eager to bring her world into their own homes, her kitchenware line allows them to. This experiential model, where every item contributes to a narrative, elevates a product’s value while aligns it to an aesthetic. Now central to brand strategy, experiential marketing aligns products with immersive storytelling and sensory engagement for consumer connections. Stewart instinctively understood the secret to marketing: a product’s power lies in the world it invites people to enter. Through intentional branding, Stewart sold a way of living and continues to influence.

Transforming Presentation into Persuasion

Stewart’s influence extends into how people design and interact with their living spaces. She created the blueprint for transforming the mundane into something meaningful. With consumers seeking more intentional ways to express themselves at home, she introduced product variations to suit different lifestyles. Her impact is clear today: content creators like @kenziethetexan and @debtrette have popularized the idea of “hosting cabinets” or closets. They display dedicated spaces filled with cookbooks, aprons, table clothes, and tools to set an abundant table. What once may have seemed like unnecessary extras have become aspirational essentials. Now, creators regularly share presentations for hosting dinner parties or simply bringing beauty to the ordinary. This reflects how Stewart’s ethos of beautiful living still resonates in modern content culture. Fittingly, her Instagram bio reads “elevating the everyday.”

A Timeless Legacy That Continues To Inspire

While she’s not an Instagram native, she thrives within it. Gen Z and Millennial audiences now repost her throwbacks, seeing her as an aspirational classic to replicate on their feed. TikTok influencers like @talliia follow her roadmap to a beautifully organized lifestyle and emulate her energy while preparing and hosting dinner parties. Her integration of products into an aesthetic, perfectly set table is a popular strategy that brands like Lands’ End and various content creators follow to achieve engagement with a larger audience. For example, content creator @alessandrabrontsema incorporates the theme of dinner into everything, bringing the experience to life. Stewart has raised the bar of hosting and began the notion of having a charming life. Her continued relevance on digital platforms reinforces the fact that her influence transcends a single era. She grounds it in her ability to create, adapt, and remain an icon.

Enduring Influence: Stewart’s Ability to Adapt, Connect, and Captivate

Stewart preserved her image through her conviction and capitalized on bad press. She continued to share her life with viewers and in doing so, maintained a sense of authenticity that kept audiences invested. Additionally, she also knows how to stay relevant: Her unlikely friendship with Snoop Dog has drawn followers from a different demographic. Martha and Snoop Dogg often cook together on her show, offering viewers an experience that brings the captivating “opposites attract” concept to life. Just as any successful public figure, she has continuously changed her frequency to stay in tune with what’s current and trending. This, in turn, allows her to be timely while creating content that’s sure to influence. Like many others, she excels at connecting with the audience and offering what they desire as preferences and times continue to change.

Martha Stewart crafted the blueprint for immersive, multi-sensory experiences that feel personal yet scale commercially. By turning her lifestyle into her brand, she became the original influencer. For modern marketers, Stewart offers a timeless lesson: consumers remember how a brand made them feel, and the most powerful campaigns are those that make everyday moments feel elevated. Stewart proves that when branding is authentic and well-curated, it becomes not just influential—but iconic. In an era where attention is fleeting, Martha Stewart reminds us that the most enduring brands thrive by creating experiences that feel both intimate and aspirational.

App to Icon: How Duolingo's Mascot Spread His Wings

Green Owl or A-List Celebrity?

The infamous Green owl loved indulging in some of the hottest events of the season, making appearances from stage to stage. Last Fall, Duolingo's marketing team developed a strategic campaign stunt to place their mascot at the Charli XCX tour with Troye Sivan. In a stylish manner, Duo arrived at the venue wearing a brat shirt, showing his support to Charli and engaging with fans.

Eventually, Duo was escorted off the premises; however, this is not where the stunt ended. As the concert began, multiple Duo mascots sang and danced in the mosh pit, capturing Charli's attention. Moments later, the renowned singer gave Duolingo a shoutout, screaming, "Duolingo right there baby". This performative stunt initiated greater talk around the mascot, as hundreds of individuals saw Duo's existence in real time.

A Ploy to Capture Celebrity and User Attention

Duolingo has built strong relationships with users that extend beyond in-person experiences. Using experiential marketing to build a supportive fan base online, many individuals have become emotionally invested in Duo. In an attempt to increase app engagement, Duolingo's team created one of the most bizarre and unorthodox campaigns. On February 11th, Duolingo's Instagram posted to fans that Duo, the Duolingo Owl, had passed away. Afterward, reels were released displaying that Duo had been hit and killed by a CyberTruck. The team even went to lengths to create a mock funeral, in which Duo was carried away in a coffin.

Generating over two million likes and 600 thousand shares, everyone wondered, was Duo dead? Quite the opposite, and the creative team had never felt more alive. Days later, the app created a challenge stating that in order to bring Duo back to life, users had to gather a certain number of XP on Duolingo, which are points for completing lessons. Globally users worked together, raising a significant amount of XP to bring Duo back. Additionally, Duo's death sparked a conversation with popular singer Dua Lipa, whom the mascot had always had unrequited admiration for. He completed his double-sided mission when Dua Lipa commented, "Til' death duo part," causing an even larger Internet frenzy. Ultimately, Duo was revived.

Although the campaign was victorious and gathered significant attention, Duo's death provoked emotional responses from multitudes of users and fans, confirming that Duo the Owl had a notable influence on his fan base. Duo had become more than a mascot to many, but a familiar and friendly face.

Creativity Is a Necessity

Each of Duolingo's campaigns embraces the importance of building a brand image. One that connects with users and audiences on an emotional level. Each campaign positions Duo as more than an exciting personality, but engages with users to become a real-life presence. Similarly, creativity and authenticity are two key aspects that Likey Co specializes in when building customer relationships. We use our strategic experiential marketing skills to create genuine experiences, that showcase who we are and what we represent.

By Caitlin Egan

It goes without question that failure is not fun. None of us enjoy it. However, when we do fail, we learn to dance in the rain. We take the fundamental steps towards success, and how we view the failure is actually instilled within us at a young age.

The moment you realize failure holds the keys to a booming future, everything changes.

Besides being criminally underrated, Disney's, Meet The Robinsons exemplifies the idea that failure is both inevitable and vital for one's success journey. The movie centers around a young inventor named Lewis, who faces numerous setbacks but ultimately learns to embrace failure as a crucial step in his growth. He goes from viewing failure as a source of shame, to seeing it as an incentive to "keep moving forward." In fact, he embraces that theme so heavily, that he ends up becoming a renowned inventor. As cheesy as a Disney film may be, anybody could learn from Lewis's story if they look inward.

The Messages We Receive During Our Youth Matter

The messages we put into a child's mind about failure at a young age can make a difference in the trajectory of their lives. When we teach kids the importance of perseverance, we implement the message that failure is just a way for them to improve. If they become terrified of failure, many will likely shut down and fear trying again.

"A Person Who Never Made a Mistake Never Tried Anything New" - Albert Einstein

Elon Musk faced several challenges with Tesla early on. The company struggled with quality control issues, production delays, and financial instability. It got so bad, that Tesla came close to bankruptcy in 2008. However, Musk remained persistent. He secured funding, implemented better production practices, and focused on marketing the brand’s sustainability mission. Today, we recognize Tesla as a leader in the electric vehicle market with great innovation and commitment to renewable energy.

...and before Elon Musk, lived the one and only Steve Jobs. Most are aware that he co-founded Apple, but many don't know that he was kicked out of the company in 1985 because of internal power struggles. During his absence, he founded NeXT, a computer platform development company. While NeXT didn’t achieve significant commercial success, it created advanced technology. Things came back around, as Apple acquired NeXT in 1997, bringing Jobs back to the company. He then led a remarkable turnaround, launching iconic products like the iMac, iPod, iPhone, and iPad, ultimately transforming Apple into one of the most valuable companies in the world.

At Likey Co., we believe that elasticity is key. As quoted by Taylor Swift, "If you're experiencing turbulence or pressure, that probably means you're rising." You cannot make a dent in discovering your greatest potential if you allow yourself to be paralyzed by setbacks.