Remember that one song that goes “doo ba doo ba doo ba doo, ba doo ba doo ba doo ba doo”?

Okay, probably not from that description. But if it played out of a phone speaker right now, chances are that anyone who has been on TikTok in the last year or two would recognize it—but still might not be able to name it.

It’s called “Funny Song,” and it plays in the background of animal videos, family antics, and brands’ TikTok videos trying to get in on the spunky, recognizable vibe. The audio track is so popular that it generates more than $1 million a year across TikTok and YouTube, according to Jesse Korwin, CRO of its licensor, Slipstream, and Korwin said that using a cleared track like this is key to brands getting trendy without risking legal action, especially as brands’ music needs are increasing and labels and rights holders get more serious about enforcing their copyrights.

“We’ve really seen a wave in the last year of clients and companies needing solutions to help them scale production,” Korwin told Marketing Brew. “Traditionally, people would make one show or one ad, or a couple a year, and they would be very high-priced items. But now they’re required to always be on, on multiple channels.”

Continue reading here.—JN

Sometimes no news is good news.

According to Gartner’s annual CMO Spend Survey, the average marketing budget represents 7.7% of total company revenue in 2025, which is the exact same share as last year.

This year’s flatline comes after two years of declines in marketing budgets as a percentage of company revenue, but the majority of CMOs still expressed concerns about their budgets, and are making some cuts as they look to save money and boost efficiency, according to Gartner.

Same as it ever was? Marketing budgets took a dive in 2021 and have yet to return to pre-pandemic levels, the Gartner surveys show. The 2025 survey was conducted in February and March among about 400 CMOs and other marketing execs across North America, the UK, and Europe, largely from companies with over $1 billion in annual revenue.

The fact that the average budget percentage didn’t change from 2024 to 2025 is potentially both good and bad, Gartner analysts wrote in their report on the survey. While it represents an end to the trend of post-pandemic budget decreases, the budgets as of recent years seem “insufficient to meet the needs” of many CMOs, the analysts wrote.

“For CMOs, this may be as good as it gets for 2025, as lingering volatility significantly increases the likelihood of in-year budget cuts,” they wrote.

CMOs from companies in the consumer products, manufacturing, and pharmaceutical industries on average reported the largest marketing budgets as a share of their revenue, while healthcare, travel and hospitality, and IT and business services companies reported the smallest.

Read more here.—AM

Brands have been on edge in recent years, worried by reports of consumer spending pullback and growing selectivity. But a new study from Zeno Group offers a surprising twist: 87% of American shoppers say they support the brands they love—even when it’s not the easiest option.

Meanwhile, 72% of those surveyed said they’d stay loyal to retailers they love even if it meant paying more for their products.

“People truly form relationships with brands—experiencing the highs, the lows, and the emotional stickiness of a real relationship,” Allison McClamroch, head of brand US at Zeno, told Retail Brew via email. “And even in price-sensitive environments, that loyalty can stretch a long way.”

She added that word of mouth was also a powerful channel for creating loyalty, with 65% of the 3,000 US consumers surveyed saying they talked about the brands they love, while 59% recommended them because they believed in them. “Clearly, people still trust other people,” McClamroch said. “And brand love turns buyers into believers.”

Continue reading on Retail Brew.—JS

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