The rise of “wellness” products and services such as cold-pressed juice bars, raw and paleo eateries, boutique yoga studios and alternative therapies has brought with it a specific vocabulary. Some of these wellness words sound like science; some, especially those coming from Deepak Chopra, have the ring of religon, and quite a few are so divorced from meaning that they’re uncategorisable. After overdosing on YouTube philosophical debates one night, Australian web developer Seb Pearce wrote some code to randomly generate New Age copy at the push of a button.

Interactive advertising revenue continues to grow, with segment surpassing $200 million in a quarter for the first time in the third quarter of 2015.

Volvo follows up its ‘Epic Split’ campaign by giving a four-year-old control of one of its latest truck. But things don’t go quite as poetically this time round.

Rarely, if ever, do furniture hunters settle on the first couch they try. The process usually involves trying out option after option, until the right couch announces its existence vicariously through the satisfied sigh of the person sitting in it. And, if a new video series from Hunter Furniture is anything to go by, then this seemingly endless search is also a familiar feeling for those in the business of producing the products we purchase at furniture stores.

Our weekly wrap of good things, strange things, funny things and other things from inside the intertubes.

While there’s plenty of growth in the local cider market, it’s still suffering from a bit of an image problem, particularly among Kiwi men who prefer beverages on the drier side of the scale.

If you know Nick Offerman and his character, Ron Swanson from TV show Parks and Recreation you will know how much the curmudgeonly Offerman loves whisky and silence. If you need further proof, the bearded actor and fine wood worker has just filmed a 45-minute spot for Lagavulin whisky where he sits in a fine leather chair next to a crackling fire, calmly staring into the camera, imbibing his beverage of choice and moving very occasionally. Watch it and drink it all in.

The development of new technology invariably leads to the emergence of new words to describe exactly what this tech can do. And with the emergence of programmatic ad-buying and a range of other digital tools, marketing has become flooded with acronyms, intialisms and buzzwords that wouldn’t make sense to anyone outside the industry. Attend an agency lunch or dinner these days, and you’re more than likely to hear a few of these phrases thrown around by individuals who are either in the know or doing their best to feign it. Jargon overload can be frustrating, but we’re actually pretty lucky. At least we aren’t in the business of selling Turbo Encabulators.

As well as the traditional ads everyone has come to know and love, the rise of ad creep means we might also see ads on receipts, on jerseys, on foreheads, on the upper thigh region and pretty much anywhere else humans may look. But is it going too far when advertisers follows us into the bathroom? Captive Media doesn’t think so.

NZME is continuing to pull all its strings together with this week’s announcement that it was launching CreateMe, a new division comprising the media company’s core commercial content creators and strategists. And it seems in many ways quite akin to a creative agency. We chat to CreateMe general manager Fiona McLeod about the role she sees the new department playing in the industry.

Historically, Mike Pero Real Estate’s ads have featured the founder talking up its lower commissions or profiled some of its salespeople and properties. And that strategy—and the booming property market—has helped it take off, to the point where it appeared on the 2014 Deloitte Fast50 list with revenue growth of 328 percent. Now it’s trying to get more salespeople to join the family, but it’s gone with something a bit more ‘creative’ this time.

Mimi Gilmour’s restaurant chains Burger Burger and the newly opened Fish Fish have adopted the no-reservations policy increasingly used overseas. But as queues form, she is planning technology to take the agro out of waiting for a table.

SBS bank has introduced Kiwi audiences to a Kiwi couple, Eric and Sandra, who are randomly interrupted by luminescent text featuring messages from the bank.

V Energy’s latest campaign sees the company moving beyond guarana-infused beverages into streetwear, with the launch of a new range one-of-kind T-shirts designed by street artist Mr G Hoete.

Air New Zealand is once again poking fun at rival airlines with a facebook post jibing airline Jetstar for its claims to be “New Zealand’s most punctual airline”.

Auckland’s Karangahape Road, known to locals simply as K road and formerly the hub of the city of sails’ seedy underbelly, has long been a subject of curiosity and ten short films soon to be released will tell stories inspired by one of New Zealand’s most famous locations.

It’s no secret that the Internet and its capabilities to give anyone an audience alongside budget cuts and redundancies have shaken up the industry. So much of a shake in fact that the number of print journalists in New Zealand declined 61 per cent between 2006 and 2013 according to census data. But also worthy of a mention is the rise of PR. A 56 per cent increase between 2006 and 2013 resulted in public relations professionals outnumbering print, television and radio journalists three to one in 2013. So what this mean for the fourth estate?