Liquid Death Wants to Ruin Your Day

In the spirit of tricks and treats, we’re here with something even sweeter than a full-size candy bar: marketing insights you can actually use.

Welcome to the first issue of The Friday Fortune, where we share wisdom from the world’s top CMOs, marketing execs, and a few other genius-level minds—because your inbox deserves more than just spooky sales emails this week.

Each Friday, we’ll show you how brands use impossible-to-ignore marketing to get in front of more eyeballs and share actionable strategies you can use right away—all with a side of humor that will leave you leaving this email happier than when you opened it.

Ready? Good. Let’s go.

📈 Marketer of the Week

if there’s anyone who knows how to make a brand impossible to ignore, it’s MasterCard’s CMO, Raja Rajamannar.

Raja Rajamannar’s path to becoming a marketing legend wasn’t exactly a straight line. Originally a chemical engineer, his journey into marketing began during an internship with a cosmetics company, where he pitched a simple slogan—"Is it bad to look good?"—and turned it into an award-winning campaign.

That accidental brush with marketing set the stage for what would become a career full of unconventional strategies and bold moves.

Now, Raja is leading the charge at MasterCard, transforming their approach from traditional advertising to what he calls "experience-led marketing."

His strategy includes multi-sensory marketing, engaging more than just sight and sound to connect with consumers on a deeper level.

Raja’s Takeaway:

“There are more than 5,000 messages that an average consumer gets exposed to on a daily basis, and their attention span is going down to below eight seconds—which is less than that of a goldfish. So, advertising is getting more and more difficult… We don’t just rely on sight and sound, but try to get through all five senses. When you do that, it can make a huge difference.”

By focusing on immersive, multi-sensory experiences, MasterCard has climbed from #87 to the 11th most valuable brand in the world. Raja’s approach involves tapping into every possible sense to create memorable interactions—whether it's a scent that brings back memories or soundscapes that resonate emotionally. It’s about making your brand something that people can feel.

Action Step:

When planning your next campaign, don’t just think visually. How can you activate multiple senses? Could you incorporate sound, texture, or even scent to make your message stick? Engaging more senses means crafting a deeper, more impactful experience.

To hear more from Raja about his unconventional path and how multi-sensory experiences can elevate your marketing, tune into the full episode of CMO Weekly.

🔮 Liquid Death's Latest Trick (or Treat)

Last week, Liquid Death just turned the marketing world upside down... again.

And this time, OpenFortune was lucky to play a role.

If you've been paying attention, you know Liquid Death doesn't just do “collaborations” - they create cultural moments.

From E.L.F. Beauty to YETI to NASCAR, they’ve made an art out of leaving a trail of memorable chaos.

For Halloween, they channeled that same rebellious energy into Misfortunes—hilariously depressing, black fortune cookies filled with grim messages, scattered across select Chinese restaurants in NYC and LA.

(Because what’s better than cracking open a cookie to find out your future is bleak?)

The cookies encourage recipients to sign up for LD’s “HorrorScope” service that brightens inboxes with “a look into the horrifying things that lie ahead.”

Once again, Liquid Death proves that the most memorable marketing doesn’t follow the rules. It surprises, delights, and makes people talk.

You can check out the full scoop on AdAge here.

🥠 The Cookie Jar

Crack open a handful of the week’s best marketing links—because good fortune favors the curious.

• Dunkin’s Spider Donut is taking the internet by storm.

• Heineken is expanding its Boring Phone concept to encourage more people to prioritize IRL connection

• A great breakdown of the psychology behind this amazing Pepsi stunt

• 8 years later this classic Bud Light ad still hits. A friendly reminder that humor-based marketing will always stand out.

That’s a wrap for this week’s Friday fortune.

If you enjoyed the read, pass it along to your favorite marketer who could use a little extra inspo in their inbox.

Until next time, may your marketing be memorable and your cookies always be fortunate!

— The OpenFortune team