Working in marketing means much excitement this time of year, and not for the interest in who’s going to win XFactor or I’m a Celebrity. Christmas brings a whole lot of advertising spend to our screens, so we give a rundown of what we think of some of this year’s efforts.
First up Aldi, starring Kevin the Carrot. After their fantastic performance last year, with their parody, following in the footsteps of John Lewis, this year they beat the giants by releasing their festive advert first. Using storytelling, Aldi use a carefully rhymed narrative, told by Jim Broadbent, of a carrot finding its way across a festive dinner table on a mission to meet Santa. Not only did that get everyone talking, but shortly after Buster the Boxer hit the social media headlines, Aldi released their follow up, with Kevin the Carrot watching the TV event of the year. Our score 6/10.
Talking of Buster the Boxer; up next is John Lewis. Extending over 2 minutes long, the story tells us of Bridget, a young girl who wakes on Christmas morning to find a trampoline in her garden. She soon discovers she isn’t the only one who loves to bounce though, and the brand ends with the tagline ‘gifts that everyone will love’. If you haven’t seen the ad yet, where have you been? Our score 7/10
Side note – Both Aldi and John Lewis will have this year’s TV mascots available to buy in cuddly form from their stores, supporting individual charities. We wonder who thought of that first?
Argos then broke onto our screens, complete with brightly coloured yetis skating through the streets. Costing over a staggering £30k each, (yes each), the yetis travel up to speeds of 40mph. Argos hope the advert shows how they aim to be market leaders in speed, skill and precision in Christmas shopping for families this year. And, not wishing to miss out on all the John Lewis hype, they soon followed the retailer with their very own parody, showcasing a trampolining yeti. Our score 6/10 See it here
Then there is M&S, and what a storm they’ve kicked up this year. Epitomising the meaning of ‘girl power’, Mrs Claus saves the day and delivers Anna’s surprise present, a pair of sparkling red glittery trainers. M&S reveal that the advert aims to demonstrate the effort people put in to making the festive season special and represents the love and togetherness that people want to feel at Christmas. A truly heart-warming emotional bit of marketing! Our score 8/10
Amazon Prime have also released their advert showing a Vicar and Imam enjoying a cup of tea, talking of the ailments of age and the knee pains endured as a result of kneeling for prayer. Despite no mention of Christmas, the advert tells a touching tale, and evokes the gift giving spirit of the holiday season. Our score 9/10
Imagine a world where Christmas is forgotten… That’s the theme Alzheimer’s Research have taken for their appeal this year, with theiradvert, narrated by Stephen Fry. Telling the heartbreaking story of Freya, and a long-forgotten Santa Claus, ridden with dementia, Alzheimer’s touches on the emotions faced by someone with dementia and the story delivers the message that with enough funding, Alzheimer’s is curable. Affecting 1 in 6 people aged over 80, the disease affects many families, but as the advert shows, is fixable. Help support them this Christmas! Our score 10/10
But that’s not all. There’s also Boots effort; focusing on the 500m women who work on Christmas Day, TK Maxx celebrate the joy of surprises with a gurgling gran, House of Fraser warn Christmas is sneaking up using a remix of the iconic ‘Ready or Not’ soundtrack, and Heathrow tug on the heartstrings with an ad telling us that going home is the best gift at all at! We’d love to hear what you think, and which tops your list.