New Year's Day
New Year's Day 2024 is just around the corner,
and it's celebrated in many different ways around the world.
One of the most popular event is the spectacular "fireworks display".
Around the world, fireworks displays begin
when the hands of a clock strike midnight on December 31,
and New Zealand and Australia are said to have
the most spectacular fireworks displays because they ring in the New Year first.
The next most famous New Year's event is the "Ball Drop" in the United States.
The ball drop marks the beginning of the new year
by dropping a glowing ball down a flagpole.
While some public events have been canceled or scaled back
in the past three years due to COVID-19, this year,
with the World Health Organization (WHO) officially declaring the pandemic over,
many people are looking forward to the ball drop,
which has regained its original scale.
In countries like South Korea, China, and Vietnam,
it's a custom for adults to give money to children during the Lunar New Year.
In China, red envelopes called "hongbao" are commonly used,
while in South Korea, the child's name is written on a white envelope.
In addition to these, each country and culture has its own New Year celebrations,
such as the Songkran festival in Thailand and the Tazon event in Japan.
As this is the first New Year since the official declaration of the pandemic,
many people are expected to enjoy a variety of events.
As diverse as the New Year's celebrations are in different countries and cultures,
so are the content needs for the end of the year.
 
Groundhog Day
Do you know an animal called "groundhog"?
The groundhog, commonly known as "mamut" in South Korea,
is a rodent commonly found in the northeastern
and central United States and Canada.
Every year on February 2, the United States celebrates Groundhog Day,
an event where people watch for groundhogs if they see their own shadows. Groundhog Day originated as an European superstition is to predict
when spring will arrive: if the groundhog sees its shadow,
winter will be six weeks longer, and if it doesn't, spring will come early.
The event is said to be unique to the United States and Canada.
The National Weather Service has stated that "it's not a good idea to predict the weather based on whether or not the Groundhog sees his shadow."
However, despite the weather service's opinion, many people celebrate the holiday,
and many businesses offer discounts in honor of Groundhog Day.
Consider creating content around Groundhog Day,
one of popular holidays as Black Friday.
 
Super Bowl Sunday
What's the most expensive event in the world to advertise?
It's the National Football League championship game in the United States,
aka the Super Bowl.
It's the largest single-game sporting event in the world,
and an ad in the Super Bowl will cost up to $7 million in 2023 according to Ad Age,
a global advertising publication.
Super Bowl ads run for a minimum of 15 seconds and a maximum of 90 seconds,
and while the price tag may seem steep, the brand awareness gained
by companies is said to far outweigh the cost of the ad.
The reason for the Super Bowl's exorbitant ad spend can be found in its ratings.
The Super Bowl's all-time high viewership was 49.1% in 1982,
and the 2020 viewership was 41.6%.
Considering that the Major League Baseball (MLB) World Series
and the National Basketball Association (NBA) Finals get less than
10% of the viewership, that's a lot of viewers.
It's no wonder why Super Bowl ads command
hundreds of millions of dollars per second, right?
With a viewership like that, how many people are watching the Super Bowl?
The Super Bowl first broke the 100 million mark in 2010 with 164.7 million viewers,
and then set an all-time record in 2015 with 114.4 million viewers.
That's 100 million people you're reaching in a split second of screen time.
That's a lot of people looking forward to Super Bowl Sunday.
Why not take this opportunity to create content around it?
 
Lunar New Year
Do you know the difference between a solar and a lunar calendar?
The cycle that the moon goes through as it travels around the earth,
from new moon to waxing moon to full moon to waning moon to new moon,
is called the "lunar" calendar.
The lunar calendar has a cycle of roughly 29 days,
which means there are only 354 total days in the year,
about 11 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar,
which is why Chinese New Year and Lunar New Year fall on different dates.
Lunar New Year used to be celebrated primarily in Asian cultures -
is that still the case?
According to the World Population Review, as of this year,
the Asian population in the U.S. was estimated to be around 20 million
(about 6% of the total U.S. population), and the New York Times (NYT),
citing the 2020 U.S. Census, reported that the Asian population
in the U.S. has tripled in the last 30 years.
As the Asian population in the U.S. continues to grow,
so does the movement to celebrate Lunar New Year.
The Lunar New Year was once recognized as a public holiday in New York City public schools, with then-New York State Assemblyman Ron Kim, who is Korean-American, saying, "This holiday doesn't just mean that kids get a day off from school. It means that New York City is saying to Asian Americans that their culture and heritage is part of the fabric of America."
It seems that Lunar New Year is no longer a celebration of Asian cultures only.
We encourage you to share your content to help
make Lunar New Year a celebration for all cultures around the world.
 
Mardi Gras
One way to get the most out of a city you are traveling
is to engage to the local festivities.
New Orleans, the home of American jazz,
celebrates its annual Mardi Gras festival in mid-February.
New Orleans is the capital city of the southern U.S. state of Louisiana,
and its Mardi Gras celebration is considered one of the top three global festivals.
From mid-February through the end of February,
parades are held throughout the city on weekends and weekdays,
attracting more than 1 million tourists during this season.
Mardi Gras offers so much to see, more than its overflowing crowds.
During Mardi Gras parades, participants and spectators enjoy the streets
in colorful costumes such as masks, beaded necklaces, and headbands.
Parade participants pass by throwing imitation coins
and beaded necklaces at onlookers.
At the end of the parade, you'll find dozens of beaded necklaces around your neck.
The fake coins are made of aluminum
and come in different colors depending on the theme of the parade.
Some collectors even have a collection of imitation coins with the color of the parade on one side and the emblem of the parade's host group on the other.
Have you ever seen a Mardi Gras celebration in person?
If so, share your experience, and if not, turn your wishes into content.
 
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