Let’s make Christmas more social

Christmas needs to be more social.

Not the forced fun, having to see distant relatives kind of social. But rather, the social that engages shoppers and gets them following, interacting with, and purchasing brands online.

And what a treat of opportunities we have with this year’s battle of the Christmas ads. With episodic formats from Marks & Spencer and John Lewis to give us more developed stories, the return of family favourites such as Aldi's Kevin the Carrot and an all-inclusive girl power ad from Boots, brands have upped their festive game this year.

Brands are investing big bucks to stand out from their competitors during this peak season, taking the time to introduce new characters to us such as Waitrose’s star-studded whodunnit (and the mystery solved) and Asda’s cheeky family of elves – but many are missing the opportunity to make the most of these personalities. With the limitations of a 30-second ad – let’s face it, they’re there to sell products – brands should look to develop and extend their Christmas campaigns and seasonal characters on social platforms, because, as we know, the customer is on social.

Too many brands make the mistake of approaching their festive campaigns in isolation: a TV ad, a social media campaign, OOH work. 

While many brands are embracing social media to share Christmas content, there is a lack of cohesiveness when it comes to their festive TV ad. But by taking ‘the power of 360’ approach it can be everything where the audience is: digital and social and content. Christmas TV ads are now a cultural moment. They are discussed online whether part of the media plan or not. Brands need to be part of the conversation, part of the online cultural discourse, and any work should have this strand considered at the creative brief stage because that conversation will happen whether the advertiser has planned for it or not.

It’s not just a matter of showing the ad on social media, brands need to ask themselves how they are going to bring this to life.

There is humour in many of this year's Christmas ads, and the laughter should continue online too. This crop of high-profile festive advertisers could do worse than learn from Curry’s. It has cut through on social media with its authentic joyful and funny content. Its strategy has been to “embrace the weirdness” with videos like its version of ‘Gen Z wrote the marketing script’ trend.

Asda’s family of gnomes (Max, Gnicky, Gnibbles, Gnarla and Gnorma, if you were wondering) have made regular appearances on the brand’s social channels and continued the playful element of the heart of its campaign. The supermarket’s tiny Christmas market in London, made especially for gnomes, and how to win a free Gnome Delivery, was used to share content on social media – from the gnome’s POV of course. Asda has made sure the essence of its festive ad is clear, no matter what the platform. And by extending its campaign to social media, people have another opportunity to fall in love with the cheeky gnomes, which allows Asda to make these characters a regular feature all year round – if it so desires.

Beyond comedy, social media allows brands to say what they didn’t have the space to in their TV ad – the time to explore more facets of the campaign, be it pop-ups, charity partnerships, associated merchandise and more. Brands have complete creative control over how they develop their personality on social media. Yet many put it in a silo, with their TV ads and social activity working as two separate entities.

Barbour has understood the assignment. Its Shaun the Sheep ad is one of my favourites this year. Admittedly, there isn’t much you can say about the actual products in an ad featuring sheep and a mumbling farmer, so the brand recognised that socials were the place to bring the campaign to life. In a series of videos across TikTok and Instagram, Barbour launched a charity shop treasure hunt with 20 limited-edition ‘Baabour’ jackets hidden in Oxfam shops across the UK to raise funds for the charity. And who doesn’t love a behind-the-scenes? It also lifted the curtain to show how the brilliant Aardman team created the ad. It was a perfect way to build and build on a great creative idea, giving it life in different forms, and ensuring longevity for its campaign across the festive period.

A scan of the main brands' social platforms since their Christmas ads have dropped, shows just how few have gone beyond simply pinning their ad to the top of their profiles. Brands can do better and unleash the power of social media with a liberal sprinkling of festive cheer. What better time for brands to grow their social media followings and engagement? Christmas has become a rare moment in our over-cluttered lives when adverts are eagerly anticipated.