Top 9 Companies That Nail Holiday Content
As retailers rush to prepare for the flood of holiday shoppers, marketing departments are working in full swing to develop creative Christmas marketing strategies for their customers. The holidays are a great opportunity to add a special touch to marketing campaigns, and there are certain companies that have truly nailed the holiday touch of web content for 2014.
Nine Companies That Hit the Mark on Awesome Holiday Content
What companies were really in the spirit this season? Here is a list of Christmas marketing campaigns that are sure to catch your eye.
1. John Lewis – Monty The Penguin
John Lewis is a one-stop shop for electronics, furniture, home décor, and more. This UK based company has created a Christmas marketing campaign involving a little boy named Sam and his best friend Monty the penguin. Their TV commercial tells the sweet story of the duo doing all kinds of activities together, from feeding ducks at the park to decorating the Christmas tree. Monty begins to feel empty because he’s looking for love, and he’s in store for a surprise Christmas morning. However, the viewer might be in for a bigger surprise.
This Christmas campaign is brilliant for three reasons: it connects to the viewer on an emotional level, it tells a story, and the penguin is adorable. See for yourself:
The story of Monty does not end with the commercial. On the John Lewis website, there is an entire section dedicated to Sam and Monty. The Monty section has a variety of interactive elements, including a 360-degree panoramic world of Sam and Monty. There are various scenes that kids can explore, with most of them stemming straight from the commercial.
Fans of Monty also have an opportunity to buy a book and a stuffed replica.
Monty: A Penguin That Tweets
Want to know what Monty is up to at every minute? You are in luck – Monty the penguin also happens to have his very own Twitter account. What is it exactly that a penguin tweets about? Find out by following him on Twitter.
There are a lot of great holiday campaigns, but John Lewis hits the Christmas marketing aspect from every angle possible. Few companies go as far as creating tangible items based on their Christmas campaign. There is a lot of competition here with John Lewis, and Monty the penguin (complete with his own hash tag #MontyThePengiun) is going to be a tough act to follow.
2. Kmart – Jingle Bellies
Kmart’s new Christmas ad featuring the ‘Jingle Bellies’ is a promo for Joe Boxer. Kmart had a similar commercial last year called ‘Show Your Joe’ that went viral on Youtube with over 18 million views.
This year, Kmart played off of the 2013 commercial with the new Jingle Bellies. This ad has a few guys drumming to the beat of popular Christmas music using their bellies, with a pair of silver Joe Boxer boxers making their debut at the end.
The ad has been posted on Youtube for about a week now, and it already has over 1 million views. Maybe the Jingle Bellies have a chance of going viral, too?
Bath and Body Works Nails Visual Merchandising and Display
If any retailer hammers home the holidays in their products, it’s Bath and Body Works. The soap and lotion retailer has a knack for visual merchandising in their stores, and their window displays really help lure you in to check out more.
Once you enter the store, there is even more holiday set up that grabs the eye.
Bath and Body Works really works with the visual aspect of marketing, and it really works for their products in store.
However, Bath and Body Works also jazzed up their website for 2014’s Christmas season.
They gave their logo a holiday overhaul by stringing lights through the latters of their name. The polar bear background also rotates to showcase more holiday product, where they play on words to emphasize the holidays.
Lastly, Bath and Body Works holiday products always stand out in terms of visual appearance. They go big during the holidays with bright colors, metallic finishes, and some products contain glitter to give that true holiday sparkle.
4. Marks and Spencer – Follow The Fairies
British companies are upping their game this year with Christmas advertising, and Marks and Spencer is no exception. As a competitor of John Lewis, Marks and Spencer’s holiday campaign features fairies that dust an entire town with sparkle, helping people find lost pets, and bringing children outside to play in the snow. The campaign is called ‘Follow the Fairies’, and they are following in the footsteps of John Lewis by using social media elements (#FollowTheFairies) to tie their Christmas campaign together.
You can watch the video on The Guardian website.
Evidence of the fairies campaign exists on the Marks and Spencer website, but it does not have its own dedicated section like Monty the Penguin.
Marks and Spencer adds touches to the campaign instead, adding the fairies to the gift finder section. I think they could have played up the fairies a bit more on their website, but it is still a cute concept overall.
5. Old Navy
Old Navy usually has fun Christmas campaigns, and this year they are decking out their website to prep for Black Friday. Their header graphic features a count down to the days left to the biggest shopping day of the year, and their homepage is filled to the brink with deals for the big day.
6. Target’s Wish List App is Great For Kids
Target is another company that usually has decent Christmas marketing campaigns, and their website for 2014 is decked out for the holidays. Their holiday website design elements are on the subtle side, with golden stars adding a bit of sparkle to their homepage.
Target also offers a wish list app where kids can build lists directly on smartphones and tablets.
When you open the app, pop ups appear on the home screen that announces deals and freebies.
The app is divided into two sections: adults and children. You have to enter the name of a child in order to create a wish list account on the app.
The adult view of the wish list is comparable to what you would see on the website. However, the child’s wish list account is a little more magical.
Kids can pick their own character, ranging from elves to gingerbread and snowmen to help build their wish list. Once they select a character, they move on to another interactive scene where they can build a wish list from the wishing headquarters and decorate individual rooms.
This app is a great option for kids building a wish list that enjoy gaming and interactive elements of Christmas.
Target’s Christmas commercial features Alice in Marshmallow Land, where a small girl goes through Alice in Wonderland inspired adventures, including falling through a Target logo rabbit hole and eating marshmallows to grow smaller. Target usually has great holiday commercials, and their 2014 commercial is perfect for the Christmas season.
7. Starbucks – Sparkly Holiday Gifts
When you think about Christmas shopping, most likely Starbucks does not pop into your head. However, similar to Bath and Body Works, Starbucks adds sparkle and shine to their products for the holidays.
Starbucks’ home page features a graphic to guide you into their holiday tumbler and product selection. Their holiday collection shop is filled with metallic mugs featuring Christmas trees, ornaments, and gift sets.
Starbucks’ website presentation and graphics really hit the spot for extra holiday cheer.
8. Cardstore.com Candid Christmas Cards Contest
Cardstore has a funny contest running right now called the Candid Christmas Cards Contests. Cardstore is looking for candid Christmas photos that capture the ‘real life’ aspect of Christmas – kids crying on Santa’s lap, holiday mishaps, and any other occasions that are candidly caught on camera.
Have any holiday photos like this? Cardstore might just make you a winner.
9. Petsmart’s Holiday Moments and Save a Life Campaign
Don’t forget your pets this holiday season. Petsmart has quite a few holiday elements happening on their website right now, and it is not just all about buying treats and toys for your pet. Petsmart has a Holiday Moment widget, where they feature customers tweeting holiday photos of their pets.
Petsmart’s Pinterest is also decked out for the holidays, with a board solely dedicated to pet gift inspiration. One of their most popular pins features a Christmas wreath made entirely from Christmas dog collars.
Of course, there is always the opportunity to save a life through Petsmart this year. Petsmart offers toys with proceeds helping homeless animals, direct options to donate, or even adopting a pet of your very own for the holidays.
As the season progresses, there are bound to be even more companies that are putting out genius holiday content. There are always the companies that consistently put out great holiday content every year, such as Budweiser and Coke. However, there always seems to be a company that surprises everyone with a tearjerker campaign or something super creative. Who will that company be this year?
Featured photo credit: chestnutphoto / iStock