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Making the Holiday’s “Bearable” – The Power of Digital Marketing

Who needs a calendar when every year, without fail, your television and local department stores signal the official start to the holiday season. Children have hardly crashed from their Halloween candy sugar high before the pumpkins are replaced with mistletoe and your television is flooded with Black Friday deals. Queue stress: “What happened to Thanksgiving? Do I need to start holiday shopping already? I will miss out on all the deals if I don’t!”

While marketing and advertising certainly add to the holiday pressure, let’s also take a moment to appreciate how powerful a few creative minds can be to elicit such a range of emotions. Whether it’s sadness, joy, or even indifference, every marketing campaign makes us feel something during the holiday season. The #BusterTheBoxer campaign reminds us not to forget a gift for the family pet and also to find humor in the holiday stress. The Edeka supermarket commercial emphasizes the importance of family. However, among all the brilliant marketing campaigns, I am continuously drawn to one: Heathrow Airport’s “Coming Home for Christmas” commercial.

The one-minute advert shares the story of two adorable teddy bears coming home for Christmas. For nearly 50 seconds, the bears navigate the woes that accompany holiday travel, hand in hand. They have to take the courageous leap to ride the escalator and require help when they’re unable to reach their luggage on the carousel. Viewers are left admiring the adorableness of the bears and chuckling at the relatable travel mishaps.

That is, until the bears reach passenger pickup and spot two young children in the crowd. As the children run to hug the bears, the bears are transformed into an elderly couple and viewers see grandparents and grandchildren reunite. [Pause for necessary tissue break].

If I take a step back and put on my marketing cap, I am left to admire the brilliance of this commercial. And, this commercial has distinct qualities l that you would be wise to mimic for your next holiday campaign.

  1. There’s broad audience appeal – Who doesn’t love an adorable, dog-eared teddy bear? Even the family dog may be drawn in.
  2. It’s relatable – Struggling through holiday travel and the joy of being reunited with family is something nearly everyone can relate to.
  3. Sealed with a twist – The teddy bear metaphor comes full circle when human grandparents and grandchildren embrace. I didn’t see that coming!

What is your favorite holiday commercial? Help us drum up the holiday spirit and share your favorite advertisement with us in the comments section below! Then, connect with SmartAcre to ensure your campaigns (holiday or not!) are capturing the hearts and minds of your target audience.