In the UK, once Halloween and Bonfire Night are out of the way, retailers go into full “Christmas Marketing” mode. Part of that is the release of Christmas TV ads.
Christmas TV Ads have been around since the beginning of TV but, in the UK at least, the “Big Christmas Story Ad” is a relatively recent addition to the festive schedule.
John Lewis launched their first Christmas advert in 2007 and it has since become something of an annual tradition and one of the signals that the countdown to Christmas has begun in the UK.
Naturally, pretty much every big store took note and…copied the idea.
The “Big Two” are generally reckoned to be John Lewis and Marks & Spencer. So here they are, first John Lewis…
https://youtu.be/sr6lr_VRsEo
Can’t say that I’m terribly impressed with this. Here’s the ad from…
…Marks & Spencer…
OK, I confess I cried a little at the end…even though the “story” doesn’t make much sense.
However, what looks to be the big hit this year is from an unexpected source and even a “Mr Meanie” like me finds it …charming…
More about Christmas TV ads here…
“Teddies who stole Christmas…and won the blockbuster battle of the festive TV ads”
Have to say I find the Sainsbury’s ad extremely annoying…so probably just as well I don’t shop there (I did have a weekend job with them in my youth and remember that fondly).
Worth reading the article , if only to get an idea of the staggering sums of money that advertisers are spending on these frivolities. Yes, I know the article claims that there are “…new figures estimating that every £1 invested in festive advertising can make a £24 profit.” Humbug, I say to that.
These ads are a classic example of the “Image/Brand Advertising” approach. Many of them make virtually no mention of the advertiser (or what they want you to do). OK, when you look at the videos on YouTube there is an effort in some cases to drive traffic to an online site. Overall, however, there is no effort to make a sale or to be able to track results.
Now, big companies might be able to get away with this kind of thing and arguably there is a place for these kinds of ads as part of overall brand advertising and creating some “goodwill”. But this is another case where small businesses should not copy what they see companies like John Lewis and Marks & Spencer doing. Arguably, M&S should think twice about spending an estimated £20 million given their ongoing problems (see my recent post “Marketing Thoughts About Marks & Spencer Restructuring”).
So, in this “Season of Goodwill” enjoy the ads (well, the good ones at least)…but remember that “goodwill” doesn’t pay the bills. The smart approach to advertising is the direct response model where you can actually track your results and be sure of what return you’re getting for your money.