Christmas adverts have fast become a staple part of the festive build up, so much so it’s hard to believe that it has only been nearly six years since John Lewis first released their iconic video ‘The Long Wait’, which seemingly spearheaded the start of the Christmas advert revolution!
Back in 2011, the advert featuring a boy who couldn’t wait for Christmas to give his parents a special gift, received almost 500k online views, and was celebrated as a great success. Fast forward to last year’s helping of ‘Buster the Boxer’, which enjoyed a huge 25 million views, the popularity of Christmas adverts has become almost unavoidable.
And like me, you may be surprised to learn that it’s not John Lewis, but rather Sainsbury’s that has achieved the most viewed Christmas advert to date with their helping of ‘Mog’s Christmas Calamity’ in 2015! This has racked up a colossal over 37 million views!
The team at consumer pr team at Escapade sit down and watch allllll of the Christmas adverts every year, and pick our favourites to share! From the mainstream to the ever so niche… And yep, we even endured Peacocks helping of Honey G and Jedward… So who’s winning in 2017?
“For me, Debenhams has taken the Christmas advert crown this year (with maybe McDonald’s in a close second)! The modern Cinderella love story starts on a train with a lady dropping her sparkly shoe, for the man sat opposite to try and find her through social media. Of course at the end, they reunite in the snow to fall in love in time for Christmas. The ad includes all of the basics of a typical December in England with Christmas transport chaos, a children’s play and obviously a bit of rain. And there’s a bonus for Ewan McGregor fans, he also makes a cameo!” Charlotte Davies, Junior Account Executive
“I actually found the Boots ad one of the more emotional and heart-warming this year, probably as I have two older sisters so could really relate to it! They have cleverly tapped into the key to Christmas – family! Although not everyone has a sister, I think everyone can definitely relate to choosing, giving and receiving meaningful gifts for the people you love most. Essential to any campaign, their unique hashtag #ShowThemYouKnowThem fits very well and has successfully encouraged consumers to take to social media to share their Christmas shopping successes. Although I am guilty of “just getting vouchers” for my sisters some years, thanks to Boots for reminding me not to this year!” Beth Glover, Senior Account Executive
“As someone who is (despite my age) always the first to celebrate leaving a carrot out for Rudolph, for me the McDonald’s advert really hits the spot this year. It’s no secret that the fast food chain has come under pressure, and is working hard to demonstrate product provenance by backing British, dispelling myths about ingredients, reducing salt, and offering healthier sides to the norm. While not everyone may buy into substituting fries for apples and carrots, I’m pretty sure that Santa’s reindeer (and the firm) will benefit from the Reindeer Treats being left our across the country come Christmas Eve. I for one am #ReindeerReady.” Naomi Barry, Account Director
“I am left feeling a little underwhelmed by this year’s Christmas adverts. I quite like the modern twist and happy ending that the Debenhams ad provides and applaud McDonalds for cleverly matching one of its key messages with authentic Christmas activity. But for me, much to the amusement or perhaps bemusement of the team, the Sky Cinema advert resonates most strongly. Childhood memories of singing along to The Sound of Music with friends, year after year, often with sheets and towels as dressing up and twirling props, make me smile, inside and out. A few decades later, these same friends and I, relive those happy memories with a chorus or two of our favourite ‘things’ (songs), whenever we meet and particularly when in the festive spirit. We are still all word perfect too!” Lynne Goddard, Managing Director
And for me, I am definitely disappointed by the lack of animals taking centre stage this year, as that’s what normally sways my choice massively… So my choice this year goes with Sainsbury’s, featuring “real people” warbling, dancing and generally getting stupidly festively merry to the annoyingly catchy sound of #everybitofchristmas! Christmas with the simple things; food, drink, family, presents and friends… But for me, these are things I look forward to most, and I like that Sainsbury’s have wrapped up this little gem of a tune to take over the TV this year… “I’ll bring the pigs and you bring the blankets…!”
Let us know your favourites!
Our consumer PR team specialise in connecting everyday brands with everyday people across four core sectors; Consumer Lifestyle PR, Food PR, Consumer Technology PR and Sport, Wellbeing an Fitness PR. More information on these areas of knowledge can be found at www.escapadepr.com/about-us.
