Written by Paul Whybrow
I absolutely adore the Christmas season. Growing up in London, I know almost all my friends loved the magic that Christmas brought: the amazing message of hope of the Christmas story, the carols everywhere, the lights turning shops and high streets into beacons of fun, the widely-anticipated Christmas TV specials and the excitement of Santa coming to my home to personally deliver the exact gift I had been dreaming of for the previous six months.
As an adult, Christmas can turn into many things far from the fun of Christmas as a child. Crushed deadlines on projects to complete before the end of the year, the stress of split families and the logistics of getting together with those you love. There are the commercial traps of gift-giving, the parties you may want to avoid and the shopping treks which are far from a fun-filled adventure!
Christmas does seem to be adding one more tradition in the media world and that is the heart-warming TV advert. In the UK, with the winter evenings the Christmas period has always been the most viewed season of the year, with Christmas specials for regular TV shows always rating amazingly. On the commercial channels, there have always been the ads made to entice shoppers to spend on gifts for family and friends and all the food, drink and extras to make a magical Christmas at home.
In the last decade the ads for the main department stores and food shops have become their own blockbuster events. They have become their own award-winning entertaining stories with characters and personalities that have become famous in their own right and spanning all demographics and social groups with emotional cut-through that most marketers can only dream of in the rest of the year. Most of the time they do this without even mentioning the brand until the end and very rarely are they ever selling individual products with actual pricing. In fact, they are so anticipated that this year there were complaints from viewers when the ad didn’t appear at the advertised time. To put that in perspective, this is the launch of an ad we are talking about not the launch of a multi-million-dollar TV series!
As I love Christmas, it is natural I love them all…well almost all. In the mood of festive fun here is my personal viewing list of the 2018 12 days of Christmas adverts for you to enjoy.
12th day of Christmas
Kicking off the celebration advertising mix with a simple reminder from Myer that the kids need to chip in and help to make Christmas truly merry for parents.
11th day of Christmas
A stylish slant on how wandering around in underwear can look cool in summer – Bonds Christmas in the Summer although I am not sure I have what it takes to be called up to be a model for the next ad!
10th day of Christmas
The first advert from the UK is Marks and Spencer must haves for Christmas , a simple message of the reminders for the Christmas plans in the UK.
9th day of Christmas
Harrods in London bring a bit of animated class to the very wealthy mice that live in the Harrods world.
8th day of Christmas
The Sainsbury supermarket in the UK has used a singalong track to inspire the love of the end of year school play – personally I like the fun but not sure I get much emotional buy-in.
7th day of Christmas
Aldi Kevin the Carrot in the UK is a campaign of stories that has stretched over several years. I do love the way they link a good narrative with blatant retail information on prices.
6th day of Christmas
The Feel the love with Target ad has some upbeat fun mixed with the message of getting a Christmas present for your mum.
5th day of Christmas
Air New Zealand have put New Zealand at the centre of saving Christmas whilst poking some fun at Australia too!
4th day of Christmas
NRMA Naughty or Nice reminds us that we get more from life spending more time on what is important to us and stay safe on the roads at the same time!
3rd day of Christmas
Aldi in Australia has taken a very different style this year, with Santa Crashes Christmas which I think is fantastic in mixing the retail and brand together really well in outback Australia.
2nd day of Christmas
It could be that I grew up with Elton John as a big star or that I just love the creative concept of going back in time to where it all again. Or just that Elton John Christmas ad for John Lewis gives great sentimental satisfaction.
First day of Christmas
This is my number one choice – Christmas Love. Really this is a cheat as it is not a real advert, but one that was made as a heart-warming story by videographer Phil Beastall in the UK to create a tear-jerker on under $100 – which it personally I believe it does very well.
Whatever 2019 may bring, whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I hope you find lots of creative fun in the coming new year and that at the end of 2019 there is an even wider selection of Christmas advertising to either enjoy or cringe at! Happy Christmas.
Paul Whybrow is the Managing Director for Varda Creative Leadership a boutique business connecting people, skills, ideas and technology for actions, attitudes and skills that bridge the diverse and deep specialisms in the Advanced Digital Economy. Our purpose is to be the change agent to support you imagining the possibilities and crafting the practical, to succeed in life.
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