December 1, 2016

Content Christmas: The Best Festive Campaigns

By Figaro Digital

During the festive season, brands are prone to investing huge amounts of money into their festive campaigns, hoping for them to transform into an annual event that consumers eagerly await year upon year.
From John Lewis to Starbucks, here’s a rundown of some of this year’s best Christmas campaigns.

Spread the Happy by Nutella

adweekCredit: @Adweek

While Nutella hasn’t traditionally targeted the festive season, it’s very first branded content series aims to touch the hearts of even the iciest of snowman this year.
Telling the story of the cupcake and the bin man (or garbage man depending on which side of the pond you’re reading from), the campaign is “looking to celebrate real people and real stories” with the tagline “Spread the Happy”.
With a new episode being released throughout the month of December via the brand’s YouTube channel, the brains behind the content have stated that all out advertisement is not the modus operandi of the series; instead they hope to communicate a message of happiness and honesty by removing as much branding as possible.
The content appears to tap into the feelings of genuine generosity that is traditionally associated with Christmas, with the majority of the series focusing on young children hoping to “Spread the Happy” in their daily lives.

The Christmas Cup, Starbucks

 

A photo posted by mikipon (@mkpn6) on


During last year’s Christmas campaign, Starbucks accidentally caused an uproar with its attempts to avoid insulting the world’s religions during the festive season.
Undertaking a minimalist design on its traditional Christmas cup, many customers were outraged at the lack of snowmen, reindeer and Santas.
This year however, the popular coffee chain has brought back the festivities and included designs based on their own customers’ doodles to the disposable cups.
The clever marketing ploy has ensured inclusivity without causing offence, with the brand even playing on last year’s controversy in their PR campaign which you can view here.

Buster the Boxer, John Lewis

 

A photo posted by Nirvana CPH (@nirvanacph) on

It wouldn’t be an accurate rundown of Christmas campaigns without this year’s much anticipated John Lewis advert.
Featuring the wonderful Buster the Boxer, the retail giants have avoided their usual sentimental tone and opted for a much more fun and friendly approach with an excitable pup enjoying a trampoline on Christmas morning.
Many have been quick to criticise the store’s history of inducing heartbreak via their campaigns in recent years, and so the image of the household pet excitedly sprinting past his human family is a refreshingly heartfelt message after such a turbulent year.

History of Burberry, Burberry

burberry

Credit@ MarketingWeek

Burberry have brought out the big guns this year with an array of stars featuring in a mini movie depicting the history of the brand’s founder Thomas Burberry.
With visuals that could rival any Hollywood blockbuster and having been directed by Oscar winner Asif Kapadia, this celebration of 160 years at the forefront of fashion is very on trend and has the feel of the period dramas that have dominated TV viewing this year.

biscuits

This year’s festive campaigns have been an exceptional addition to the tradition, and with more and more of the budget being dedicated to the Christmas season, we can only hope to see more sweet and sentimental campaigns to come

If you’d like to read more on creative campaigns and strategies, take a look at our blogs below. Otherwise, Merry Christmas from us here at Figaro.


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By Figaro Digital