REVENUE MARKETING

Unilever

The 2026 FIFA World Cup has presented a lucrative opportunity for businesses both big and small. Even for a consumer goods behemoth like Unilever, the sporting event is an opportunity to reach a new global audience. Its multiyear partnership, launched in 2023, now includes a variety of initiatives across more than 35 of its personal care brands like Dove, Degree, and Axe.

“[The World Cup] touches everybody in a way that’s really different,” said Ryu Yokoi, chief media and marketing capability officer at Unilever North America. “It’s created a really wonderful opportunity for us to go out and bring our marketing philosophy to life, which is around driving desire at scale and really showing up in the moments of culture that matter for our brands.”

Social-first strategy

Yokoi described this World Cup as the first “social-first” era for the tournament and Unilever capitalized on this with its “House of Fresh” initiative, an in-person creator hub in World Cup host cities Miami, New York, and Mexico City.

Yokoi explained the initiative delivered unprecedented engagement levels and allowed for greater social media experimentation, as the company transitions into a “commerce-forward, social-first marketer.”

“Crafting experiences for those moments that add value for those people and bring to life the benefits of our brands has been a real point of emphasis—it’s something new that we took on,” Yokoi said.

Brand synergy

For Unilever’s brand-specific World Cup initiatives, Yokoi said it was important to go about them in a way that was consistent and authentic to the individual brand’s messaging. For example, Dove is sponsoring Tori Penso, the first American woman to serve as lead referee for a men’s World Cup game. Yokoi said this partnership was a natural fit for Dove, which has run a campaign aimed at raising girls’ self-esteem for over 20 years.

Read how Unilever’s FIFA partnership will continue its momentum.—LI

      

From The Crew

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SALES TECH

Getty Images

As AI tools promise to automate crucial sales functions, new data shows that more sales organizations should be leveraging these tools to avoid disrupting revenue execution.

A new report from Theorem, a digital marketing solutions provider, found that 77% of organizations experience manual errors that are impacting advertising revenue generation, with 44% spending more than 10 hours each week on manual presales tasks. Despite this data, 92% of organizations say their tools work efficiently.

The report shows that presales is the most important period for sales reps to make sure everything is aligned and accurate to close a deal. Some findings that stress this importance include:

• 22% of sales reps say internal system or data issues are the leading cause of delays.
• 52% report limited integrations between ad sales and operating systems.
• 61% say they would spend more time on strategy and client relationships with more automated presales processes; 47% think deals would close faster.

“Organizations are still closing deals, which makes these inefficiencies easy to overlook,” said Jay Kulkarni, founder and CEO at Theorem, in a press release. “However, as volume and complexity grow, what once felt manageable starts to erode margin, slow growth, and introduce risk at scale.”

Big picture: The data shows that 86% of organizations report an increase in closed deals after introducing presales automation, which highlights that adopting the most up-to-date AI tools will help reduce these frictions.—LI

      

STARTING YOUR BUSINESS

John Peyton

For many entrepreneurs, the dream is to build something entirely their own. Franchising offers a different path: owning and growing a business within an established system. A January 2026 study from the International Franchise Association reported that 64% of franchisees are first-time business owners, making franchising an entry point to entrepreneurship for many aspiring founders.

Few executives have spent more time thinking about that trade-off than John Peyton. Before becoming CEO of Dine Brands, the parent company of Applebee’s and IHOP, Peyton built his career as a brand leader across the hospitality industry, including at hotels, restaurants, and consumer-facing businesses. Since taking the helm in 2021, he’s led two of the country’s largest casual dining chains through post-Covid era challenges like cost inflation, the growth of takeout and delivery, and changes in consumer behavior. “What we know about younger guests is that they like to photograph their food,” Peyton told Founder Brew.

Peyton spoke with Founder Brew about why franchising can be a pathway to business ownership, the traits he sees in successful operators, and the leadership lesson he had to learn after becoming CEO: what got him the job wasn’t necessarily what the job required.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

Many entrepreneurs dream of opening their own restaurant concept. Why should an ambitious restaurateur choose franchising instead?

There’s a big difference between opening an Applebee’s or opening John Peyton’s Bar & Grill. If you’re an entrepreneur and you’re going to invest in opening a restaurant, when you invest in a national brand like Applebee’s, you’re getting a menu that’s been tried and tested for generations across the country, as well as the innovation that comes with it. You’re getting a national marketing and advertising platform; you’re getting our technology; you’re getting the restaurant design; you’re getting the brand standards, our social platforms, our training.

We also provide financial assistance and funding for first-time franchisees, for renovations, and things like that. There’s a lot of security that comes with being part of a franchise system.

Keep reading for common traits among successful franchise operators.—JH

      

active pipeline

Stat: $1.09 billion. That’s how much sandwich chain Jersey Mike’s is planning to raise in its IPO. (Forbes)

Quote: “Just as we are only beginning to reap the benefits of AI, we are still in the early stages of learning its downsides. But they will be infinitely greater if government becomes a part owner of the industry.”—Michael Bloomberg (Bloomberg)

Read: America’s enterprising spirit is booming after decades-long slump. (the New York Times)

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