Creatives share the advertising cheat codes they’re deploying to win a make-or-break Christmas
There’s a lot riding on Christmas 2021, with many still reeling from the muted celebrations of 2020. As part of The Drum’s Retail Deep Dive, The Drum probed top agency creatives for their cheat codes, to share how they’re giving it their all to reignite the Christmas love.
Creatives share their tips for a profitable festive season
In 2020, advertisers were expected to spend £725m less than Christmas 2019 – amid logistical nightmares and clouded forecasts, for some the solution was simply to spend less. This time around, there’s a greater hesitancy to miss out on such a lucrative quarter again.
The consumer is hungry – for Christmas at least. As per eBay’s data, gift-buying started earlier than ever this year, but the day itself will be a long shot from normal. Someone should tell that to the 60% of eBay survey respondents optimistically anticipating a return to festivities as usual this year. A more sensible 45% are likely to hold off making any firm plans until circumstances become clear. Celebrants are divided – and that’s not great news for the marketers reaching them. An IPA survey also confirms this great divide.
51% of UK adults said they’ll enjoy the festivities more this year (including eating and drinking out, shopping and visiting attractions) due to missing out last year. That rose to 72% of 18-24-year-olds. Half of UK adults simply are not expecting to enjoy the festivities more than they did in 2020. They can’t all be correct.
Our gifting habits have changed too. Teads data suggests people will be more likely to gift experiences, pampering and dining after so long trapped at home. Almost three in five UK consumers considering giving them as Christmas presents. Good news for Groupon. Similarly, these respondents expect a lot from the coming slate of ads. 72% of Brits find see Christmas ads as an enjoyable part of the big day, but 81% are hoping for creative ads that contain real messages this year.
With some data to lay the groundwork, it’s time to look at how top agency minds are looking to turn the yuletide. And make no bones, there’s real competition ahead – one top retailer asked its agency to retract its advice submitted to The Drum in fear it might spoil the coming creative and grant an advantage to competitors. At 1,500 words, The Drum was in a position to comply, but we’re expecting big things from you this Christmas, dear guarded retailer.
Transition year
Jon Evans, chief executive of ad performance analysis firm System1, expects advertisers to tap into generosity, seasonal magic and nostalgia in what will amount to a “transition” year.
Throughout 2021, marketers have stuck to short-term thinking and have put a greater emphasis on purpose. But his data (it’s extensive, I’ve seen the spreadsheets and scoring systems) suggests “that the typical brand-building creative is doing better and direct response slightly worse”.
He urges advertisers to avoid “the C-word” because in Christmas 2020, every single advertiser that referred to Covid-19, even implicitly, saw its rating decline v the previous year. He adds: “There’s a reason we haven’t seen Kevin the carrot on a Zoom call with his mates.”
Stick to what makes Christmas so special, he urges, while ticking off the fundamentals of effective advertising: “A good story arc, strong characters, a decent soundtrack – and use your distinctive assets.”
The more things change, the more they stay the same, he concludes: “John Lewis will make a new ad. Coke will run an old ad. Aldi will make the best ad.”
Make up for the ‘Lost Christmas’
Raquel Chicourel, chief strategy officer of Grey, says last year showed that the status quo wasn’t as immovable as we might have thought. Even Christmas was malleable.
This year, we’re ready. Retailers have come out the gate early and media spend is up 11.4% v 2020, which will mean more competition for attention. She explains: “We have already seen Aldi going out with mince pies in June for ‘Junemas’, allegedly as a response to the lockdown bans lifts.”
People will be urged to make up for the ‘lost Christmas’ or more accurately catch up on those lost sales. But advertisers shouldn’t get bogged down in talking about a return to normality either. She reminds marketers that “91% of us don’t want life to go back as it once was” – most instead opt for a simpler life.
Focus on the big family reunion and tap into that.
She adds: “I wholeheartedly believe in the irrefutable truth that, at Christmas, all we want is to be merry. This year more than ever, our job is to warm the cockles of the nation’s heart.”
Most advertisers won’t have the budget of an Amazon or John Lewis: “If you can’t outspend, you need to outsmart.” If fame’s the goal, is a TV spot necessarily the right approach? She wonders who will come out with a “big idea worth advertising, that would truly unite the nation”.
Chicourel expects a more lighthearted and tongue-in-cheek Christmas than ever before. “No one wants the tissue box out for Christmas ads, we’ve cried enough this year already.”
Embrace ‘Cuddlemas’
Stu Outhwaite-Noel, chief creative officer and co-founder of Creature, was excited to be out on his first shoot of the year when answering the questions. He may not have taken the brief entirely seriously, but his enthusiasm is infectious and the insight’s certainly still there.
He says to expect lots of hugging in the ads. And one or two hugs with a running start and a jump. “One ad will feature an oil rig worker surprising their kids... with open arms. Another ad will feature someone falling asleep in front of a Christmas film... in someone’s arms. There will be a quick cutaway to a robot/doll embrace and then back to Cuddlemas. Yep, ‘Cuddlemas’, some smug bugger will call it that too.”
And he’s not having any talk of caution or anxiety either. He’s all in on ’Cuddlemas’.
“Sure, there’ll be a smattering of wariness, and God knows we all need to be taking the mental health fallout so seriously, but when it comes to big telly, unapologetic optimism is the tonic we need after two years on the gin.”
From a tone perspective, the output has an “It’s a Wonderful Life starring The Late Late Show’s James Corden” – tut and hiss if you wish, this is what the British public at large wants. They just don’t know it yet.
He speaks as someone who can’t really remember a single 2020 Christmas ad and concludes: ”I guess that’s the lesson, try doing something genuinely memorable, make a mark, be better than the shows you interrupt.”
Less branding, more humor?
Tom Drew, executive creative director of Wunderman Thompson, thinks that amid all of the ‘coming together’ sentiment, branding will take a backseat (you could make a game of guessing them, he suggests).
He noticed in 2020 that the tone of the ads didn’t align with public mood because the ads were produced during a ‘party mode’ summer in London during that brief burst when the city reopened. This might have impacted the tone of the ads that came later that year. Those that didn’t acknowledge the situation even slightly might have looked a bit out of touch.
There are difficulties in acknowledging a situation without it overwhelming the spot. He adds that humor had a “minor comeback” in 2020. He hopes that continues.
More purposeful?
Al Mackie, chief creative officer at Rapp, says that the role of Christmas as a season of excess is coming to a head, with increasing sentiment for more sustainable and purpose-driven work.
“Morrisons, Waitrose and John Lewis banned glitter from their Christmas products last year to reduce plastic waste, and I suspect this year we’ll see a more sustainable glitz.”
We’ll see more of these efforts going forward. The season of plastic rubbish is coming to an end – perhaps. But no matter the situation, retailers have a lot of work ahead.
“Everyone is hopeful that we’ll avoid more restrictions, not least a lockdown, but big retailers will still need to need to work hard to get customers in store this year. A joined-up approach to all comms will be absolutely essential, and engaging digital customer experiences should be central to this approach.“
Don’t be generic
Nick Stickland, founder and executive creative director of Odd, is hoping for an eclectic creative response after a lackluster 2020.
“Last Christmas, a lot of the creative ended up looking and feeling the same. Brands and agencies were walking that tightrope between striking the right tone – responding to what people were going through – and saying something meaningful that would service the brand. Arguably it was the brand that lost out. And of course, there were the shooting constraints that meant we saw a lot of animation and CGI.”
While we don’t know how Christmas will pan out, “joy, celebration, release, the heart-warming feeling of togetherness: all of these emotions will feature... but knowing how quickly things can change, will these reflect the general mood come November, December?”
He anticipates a harder push on product because after a “write-off” 2020 “brands need to motivate people to choose them, now”.
This year the narrative thread for all our brands is one of hope, and promise for the future. As opposed to a slightly more subservient, and politically mindful, approach.
And if you’re looking for more guidance, last year Kevin Chesters, a partner at Harbour, questioned whether advertisers would embrace either reality or escapism. “How do we deal with the C-word?” he asked.