Christmas is a uniquely emotional time, it’s a time when we remember the things that matter most to us, BBDO, with our clients from around the world have used this occasion to tell stories that matter.

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SMART
A Very Merry BBDO
Christmas 2017

2. G E T A D V E R T I S I N G S M A R T
A Very Merry BBDO Christmas 2017
In the world of advertising, it’s officially Christmas. Every year, the first week of November
sparks the release of Christmas advertising, and in the UK in particular, the highly
anticipated festive ad battle. For the past decade, Christmas adverts have got better and
more competitive every year, leading to an annual debate about who has created the
most compelling advert, or more appropriately, who won Christmas. And it’s not just
among those in the industry, consumers love the competition as much as the those who
work in the field do, with a third of Brits more excited for the Christmas ads than movie
releases this year – impressive considering this year, releases include the hotly anticipated
Star Wars
1
.
This excitement has meant that ad spend continues to grow, with a record £6bn predicted
to be spent on Christmas advertising in 2017 in the UK alone
2
. This is a time of intense
competition and fierce debate – not entering the festive ad battle is a dangerous move:
“A lot of businesses don’t have much of an option other than
to go for it. Some brands get to grow, but most are trying to
offset the growth of others.”
Craig Mawdsley, Chief Strategy Officer at AMV BBDO3
However, against the backdrop of such intense competition and an ever raising standard
of excellence, there is the suggestion that many of this year’s ads in the UK have failed to
deliver – arguably an inevitable consequence of an industry that kept pushing boundaries.
3,800 readers voted on the Telegraph’s poll of the favourite John Lewis adverts over the
years, and just 2% selected this years ad – against 26% voting for 2007’s Shadows.
4
Meanwhile, we increasingly see a more global trend to create advertising that says
something special at Christmas, and this year, much of it has been released earlier than
ever before, with brands in the US and Australia in particular taking a leaf out of the UK’s
book to launch early November. So this year, we decided to look at BBDO Christmas
advertising from around the world; advertising that we think would compete with the best
Christmas ads from course of the last decade’s festive battles.
1
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/11/08/record-christmas-spend-has-third-brits-more-excited-the-ads-movies
2
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/11/08/record-christmas-spend-has-third-brits-more-excited-the-ads-movies
2
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/11/08/record-christmas-spend-has-third-brits-more-excited-the-ads-movies
3
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-41933877
4
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/christmas/0/john-lewis-christmas-adverts-watch-rank/

3. G E T A D V E R T I S I N G S M A R T
A Very Merry BBDO Christmas 2017
HP – Reinvent Giving (BBDO San
Francisco)
HP continued to encourage viewers to ‘Reinvent Giving’,
following on from last year’s emotive Christmas spot
about a musician helping his deaf brother to appreciate
music. As Jim Lesser, President & CEO at BBDO San
Francisco explained, “This campaign is all about
cultivating wonder. HP products help provide you with the tools you need to cultivate
more wonder in the world — not just for your loved ones but for everyone around you.”
This year’s advert shows a woman seizing an opportunity to give a young neighbour an
experience she will never forget, using her state-of-the-art HP technology to co-ordinate
other neighbours to put on a show of dancing dolls and snow falling - resulting in a
moment of pure magic.
Currys PC World – (AMV BBDO)
Currys PC World opted for a humorous approach for its
Christmas adverts. The ‘Get It Right’ campaign brings to
life the company’s initiative to allow employees to test
products at home, ensuring customers get the best
possible advice in store. One ad shows a father going
for a run – adorned in Apple technology – and later
coming back and collapsing, comedically, on the floor from exhaustion. Georgina Bramall,
head of brand and advertising at the Dixons Carphone group, explains; “our stance is to
try and use humour and those real life situations to cut through what we see as being
quite a competitive landscape at Christmas – everyone releases their big ads, and for us
using those light-hearted moment really helps tell our story as a brand. It makes us feel a
bit more human, more relevant, more real."
5
Toys R Us – Naughty List Is Not an
Option (BBDO NY)
BBDO New York’s Christmas campaign for Toys R Us
documents behaviour that nearly all parents can
recognise, and that Toy R Us want to encourage - “Our
mission is to set play free and unleash kids’ creativity
and imaginations. And as grownups, we all know that
5
https://www.campaignlive.co.uk/article/currys-pc-world-puts-employees-frame-christmas-campaign/1448864

4. G E T A D V E R T I S I N G S M A R T
A Very Merry BBDO Christmas 2017
during the holidays kids use every bit of creativity to ensure they stay in their parents’
good graces and on the nice list to get the toys they really want,” said Carla Hassan,
Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer at Toys R Us. Its Christmas ad
campaign, ‘The Naughty List Is Not An Option’, contains more than 20 spots featuring
children eager to complete tasks they would otherwise avoid – from taking out the trash,
to vacuuming the carpet, to fanning their mother while she work-outs - with a marked up
copy of the Toys R Us catalogue.
Myer – Elf’s Journey (Clemenger BBDO)
Using well loved characters from past adverts, Myer follows
the journey of an elf walking through his neighborhood in
order to avoid his bothersome friends, only to return to
them in the end because he realizes that is where he wants
to be. The ad demonstrates that ‘There’s Nothing Like
Christmas Together’, and for every share of the ad, Myer will donate $1 to the Salvation
Army. Clemenger BBDO Melbourne executive creative director Stephen de Wolf, said,
“The heart of this year’s story is the meaning of togetherness at Christmas. And at a time
of year when many Australians and their families may be finding it tough, the hope is the
important partnership between Myer and the Salvation Army can make their Christmas
together a little better.”
6
MACY’S - LIGHTHOUSE (BBDO NY)
In BBDO’s debut ad for Macy’s, a young boy extends a hand
of kindness to a father and daughter who are spending their
Christmas alone, since the passing of the girl’s mother. The
boy sends a Morse code message through his bedroom
window using the light he received for Christmas, inviting
them over for his family’s Christmas dinner, demonstrating that the best presents bring
people together. Danilo Boer and Marcos Kotihar, the BBDO executive creative directors
of their spot, said, “In a moment where there is so much division in our world, we wanted
to tell a story of generosity and people coming together. This is what the holidays are all
about.”
7
6
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/11/14/myer-brings-christmas-decorations-life-festive-campaign
7
http://www.thedrum.com/news/2017/11/14/holiday-debut-lighthouse-spot-macys-and-bbdo-remind-us-the-perfect-gift-
brings

5. G E T A D V E R T I S I N G S M A R T
A Very Merry BBDO Christmas 2017
CHRISTMAS 2017 BY BBDO
BBDO Christmas ads from around the world have brought new meaning to the themes we
see every year in Christmas advertising – togetherness, wonder, laughter, giving and
giving back. Christmas is a uniquely emotional time, a time we all remember the things
that matter most to us, and BBDO and our clients from around the world have used this
opportunity to tell stories that not only matter but that have the potential to build
relationships with their customers well after the festive period has ended.
If you are interested in learning more about the subject of this article, please contact
Sarah Emmerson, Insights Planner, emmersons@bbdoknows.com.
ABOUT BBDO KNOWS
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