Friday 16 October 2026: PR & Marketing Round-Up | From Guinness Gaffes to Afterlifetime Crisps
Welcome back to this week's PR & Marketing News Round-Up from Visible PR.
This week’s stories show brands using personality, cultural moments and their most distinctive assets to earn attention, whether that’s a pint of Guinness becoming an unexpected viral moment, Pringles stretching its iconic can into Halloween territory, or Just Eat reframing takeaway culture around the everyday moments that matter. From Zuckerberg’s very public Guinness struggle to Pringles selling us on an afterlifetime of crisps, the common thread is clear: the strongest ideas don’t just show up in culture, they give people something instantly recognisable, surprising and genuinely worth talking about
Let’s jump in and read on for more…
Zuckerberg vs. the pint of Guinness
Although it’s not a campaign, we couldn’t resist including Mark Zuckerberg's viral moment after visibly struggling through a pint of Guinness on the Cheeky Pint podcast. The 12-second clip, all sloshing, suppressed disgust and a heroic attempt at a poker face, has racked up over five million views, with viewers loving the “pretending to enjoy your first beer” energy.
Why it matters for PR & Marketing: Sometimes the most shareable brand moment isn’t polished at all. Guinness didn’t need to do anything here; the product became the punchline, the challenge and the cultural reference point in one. A reminder that recognisable products can earn huge organic attention when they’re placed in unexpected, human situations.
Le Pain Quotidien calls out influencer fees
Le Pain Quotidien has gone viral after revealing an influencer asked for €2,000 to film themselves enjoying a coffee and profiterole. Rather than pay up, the bakery posted its Global CFO, Frank Gysbrechts, doing the job for free, complete with the pun: “Our CFO is all about PROFITerol”. The clip has earned over 4.5 million Instagram views and sparked a lively debate about creator pay, authenticity and the so-called “influencer recession”.
Why it matters for PR & Marketing: This is a bold, reactive piece of social storytelling that turns an awkward commercial conversation into brand entertainment. But it also shows the risk: while many consumers loved the anti-influencer stance, others rightly pointed out that creative work deserves payment. The lesson isn’t “don’t work with influencers” it makes sure partnerships feel genuinely valuable, transparent and aligned with the brand’s voice.
Just Eat swaps celebrities for real life
Just Eat has launched its new global platform, ‘Stay Just Where You Are’ and it's a major departure from the celebrity-led, jingle-heavy campaigns of recent years. Instead of Snoop Dogg or Katy Perry, the work focuses on the small, joyful moments people don’t want to leave: a grandad meeting his grandchild, friends chasing festival tickets, or families in the middle of a game night. The campaign spans TV, OOH, social, print, radio and PR, with eight hero films plus additional social and OOH assets.
Why it matters for PR & Marketing: This feels like a smart evolution for a delivery brand: moving from “did somebody say Just Eat?” to a more emotionally useful role in people’s lives. Rather than selling convenience in the abstract, it sells the time and presence that convenience protects. A strong example of a brand platform built around a simple human truth that can flex across markets and channels.
Pringles is giving away a burial urn
In possibly the most gloriously unhinged Halloween activation of the week, Pringles is giving one US fan a custom Pringles can-shaped burial urn plus a “200-year supply” of crisps, or an “afterlifetime” supply, as the brand is calling it. Fans enter via a playful “will and taste-ament” at OnceYouDrop.com. The stunt nods to a genuinely true story: Fredric J. Baur, the inventor of the Pringles can, asked for some of his ashes to be buried in one after his death in 2008.
Why it matters for PR & Marketing: This is dark humour done with a purpose. Pringles has taken its most distinctive brand asset, the can, and stretched it into a story people can’t help but talk about. It’s weird, memorable and rooted in real brand love, which stops it feeling like randomness for randomness’ sake.
Ali G takes over London
Sacha Baron Cohen brought 300 Ali G lookalikes to London to promote Ali G: Who Iz I?, taking over landmarks, riding double-deckers, hosting a Thames boat party and ending with a lookalike competition at Cineworld Leicester Square. The film will screen in cinemas for just one week from 23rd October before heading to Prime Video.
Why it matters for PR & Marketing: A brilliant reminder that a launch can be an event, not just a trailer drop. By turning fans into the campaign, Cohen created instant spectacle, social content and press coverage, while the limited cinema window added urgency and made the release feel like a cultural moment.
Final Thoughts
Across these stories, the common thread is brands using personality, cultural recognition and a little bravery to create moments people actually want to talk about. Whether it’s Zuckerberg turning a pint of Guinness into an unexpectedly relatable viral moment, Pringles stretching its iconic can into Halloween territory, Le Pain Quotidien taking a stand on influencer fees, or Just Eat reframing delivery around the everyday moments it protects, the strongest work starts with something audiences already recognise, then gives it a fresh, surprising twist. It’s a reminder that distinctive assets, strong points of view and well-judged humour can turn even the simplest product or service into a story with real cultural cut-through.
Looking for an idea that gives your brand something worth talking about? Visible can help. Let's talk: hello@visiblepr.co.uk