5 SMS Marketing Lessons from Our Favourite Christmas Ads

Every Christmas, there is one commercial advertising campaign that stands out above all others. Multinational brands such as Coca-Cola with its iconic truck and McDonald’s, who have perfectly captured the essence of ‘Driving home for Christmas’ are amongst those who stand out from the crowd year after year. But what are the five of the most popular ever Christmas advertising campaigns, and what takeaways can we use to make our SMS Marketing more effective than ever? Our experts take a look.
1. Coca-Cola
Who is not familiar with that iconic truck and the accompanying jingle ‘Holidays are coming’? And then there is the familiar face of a jolly, merry Santa Claus. Rumour has it that Coca-Cola was even responsible for the modern day image of Father Christmas, although there is little evidence to substantiate this. Regardless, one thing Coca-Cola certainly can take credit for is not just making Christmas something that their brand celebrates – with Coca-Cola, the brand has become the very embodiment of Christmas itself.
You may not have the budget to compete at the same kind of level, but consider how you can adopt an SMS Marketing strategy that does something more than simply honour an unspoken obligation to ‘be Christmassy’ – instead, try to create a campaign in which your brand becomes a part of what Christmas is all about. How can you convince your customers that Christmas just wouldn’t be the same without you? It’s no easy task, but it will certainly pay dividends if you can pull it off.
2. John Lewis
John Lewis is a name that comes up on the favourites list again and again – often for different adverts. So what is the magical touch that consistently wins over the hearts of audiences old and young? One thing that they manage to use to great effect is the idea of playing with our perception – in 2011’s ‘The Long Wait’ campaign, for example, our hearts were won over by the depiction of a young boy and his excitement about giving a gift to his mum. The following year’s ‘The Journey’ campaign sees another great play on our perception of all things Christmas as we follow a snowman’s epic quest to win the heart of his female counterpart.
Can you put a fresh twist on your SMS Marketing campaign this Christmas by finding a new angle on your product or service? Can you work a story into your wider marketing strategy that can be played on through your SMS Marketing?
3. Sainsburys
Although considered by some to be controversial and in bad taste, it is hard not to consider the 2014 Christmas advert by Sainsbury’s as a top candidate on any list of favourite Christmas ads. To coincide with the centenary of World War One, they released the famous ‘Christmas is for Sharing’ campaign, telling the heart-warming tale of opposing soldiers on the front line during the famous Christmas Eve truce. Although audiences were divided, it was a much-loved advert that beat its biggest rival – John Lewis – to become the favourite of the year and also one of the most popular to date.
The key message in this campaign was that Christmas is a unique time of year that brings people together despite their differences. Think about how you could capture this sense of togetherness in your SMS Marketing Campaign. Does your product or service lend itself to sharing?
4. Marks & Spencer
Another all-time favourite Christmas advert is Marks & Spencer’s 2006 ‘Not Just Christmas Food’. The advert didn’t just feature the brand’s Christmas lines – it combined a sultry voice-over with mouth-watering images that made the idea of popping into your local store simply irresistible.
Whilst the limitations of an SMS message prevent you from achieving quite the same, it is nonetheless possible to recreate this effect with the careful use of language. Think about how you can use descriptive language to play on the imagination and help your customers visualize the experience of your product or service, as well as create evocative images of Christmas.
5. Yellow Pages
Although it might seem to be a stark contrast on a list that is decidedly weighted to retail, it would seem wrong to complete a list of top Christmas adverts without mentioning 1992’s brilliant ‘Mistletoe’ advert for the Yellow Pages, coming to the rescue in a wordless interaction between a boy and the somewhat taller girl stood below the mistletoe.
The brilliance of this advert lies in the ingenious use of the product to achieve an outcome far removed from its actual purpose – and capturing our hearts in the process. Could your product or service have a similarly unique functionality this Christmas that you’d never thought of?
Although it can be hard to capture the full impact of some of these festive favourites through SMS Marketing alone, there is certainly plenty of food for thought to help you start thinking outside of the box. And remember – SMS Marketing doesn’t have to be used on its own – it is a great solution to incorporate as part of your wider marketing strategy, giving you many more options to unleash your creativity.
To find out more about how SMS Marketing can help your business this Christmas or to get set up and ready to start your SMS Marketing campaign today, call our team of experts now on 0800 954 5305.
Related Articles
Should You Use an App or SMS Messaging? Or both?
It's an app world out there. The average mobile owner has about 40 apps installed at any one time. But they usually use approximately 15 regularly. Personally, that's about right. Though I would bet I've had many more than 40 apps before, but I get around to deleting some eventually.
Older Generations and SMS Messaging
50% of people between 55 and 64 own a smartphone and 18% of people over 65 do too. If you’re trying to reach out to these older demographics, it might be time to consider mobile marketing. But what kind should you choose?
Using SMS to support drive-to-web strategies
4 Basic Metrics for Your SMS Marketing Campaigns
One key to successful marketing is to know when you’re doing it right. And when you’re doing it wrong. The great thing about SMS marketing is you can get that information pretty quickly. But to understand how your messages are performing, you need to do a little maths. Thankfully, it’s all rather simple once you see it.
Avoiding Fraud on Mobile Coupons in Your SMS Marketing
SMS coupons have redemption rates ten times email coupons. Averages run around 30%, but they could be as high as 45% for personalised messages. Even with those great numbers, retailers can still lose money to fraud. Find out how make sure customers only redeem your coupon once.
Why SMS Messaging is the Future of Marketing…
Since the first ever mobile ad was sent out via text back in 2000, SMS marketing has become hugely popular. What's more, it's a successful technique that an increasing number of marketeers are taking advantage of. So why is it the future? Here are a few reasons...
How A/B Testing Works in SMS Messaging
A/B testing in SMS messaging is something that sounds vague and possibly complicated. But with a little knowledge it’s something you can do for your organisation. We make it simple to understand and share some tools to make it easy to do.
Work 24/7 Without Being in The Office! The Benefits of SMS Scheduling
In our demanding, 24/7 world it is difficult to stay on top of your SMS marketing campaign but with scheduling you can ensure you are getting your message to your audience whatever the time.
Using Perfectly Timed SMS Marketing to Engage Customers
One of the greatest advantages of SMS marketing is the ability to be personal. This gives the opportunity to engage customers based on any number of actions such as purchases and registrations. Some people call this kind of marketing "just-in-time" which describes the concept really well.
Why SMS Marketing Can Be More Effective Than Mobile Banner Advertising
A recent eMarketer article on the effectiveness of mobile banner advertising reports the main reason people don't click is because they aren't interested in the offer. In fact, only 24% of those surveyed say they clicked on a mobile banner on a website in the last three months.