 |
| Game on? |
For years advertisers have included Santa Claus in Christmas ads. After all, with only a couple of exceptions, Santa is a free and safe celebrity endorsement. Santa drinking a Coke or riding a Norelco is advertising history.
This Christmas season had some great Santa ads. Who doesn't love the big guy with a workshop full of Mercedes? Also, Santa selling Chevy was fun and gave Saint Nick an everyday working-guy appeal.
The one exception to the season's fun ads was the “Game on Santa” campaign by Best Buy. Somewhere in last summer's creative meetings, Best Buy and its advertising agency, CP+B, decided they would challenge Santa and beat him at his own game. Granted, it got people talking and was a brilliant piece of production by CP+B (who in my opinion is one of the best).
Production value aside, what are the effects of the Santa challenge on the Best Buy brand? Keep in mind, Best Buy had a couple of fumbles this holiday season. Most notably, delaying shipment or not filling some online Black Friday orders. Judging from numerous consumer comments, Best Buy lost some serious points to St. Nick in the delivery category with the below holiday greeting.
“Due to overwhelming demand of hot product offerings on BestBuy.com during the November and December time period, we have encountered a situation that has affected redemption of some of our customers’ online orders. We are very sorry for the inconvenience this has caused, and we have notified the affected customers.”
Perhaps having commoditized the home electronic business, Best Buy is trying to do the same to Christmas? Implying Santa adds no value to the holiday experience. Why the thought is just plain naughty!
Remember Best Buy, you have to deliver on your promises to earn points with the consumer and Santa. For Christmas 2011, I'll say “Game, set and match to Santa!”
What will next year's campaign be? Perhaps a Geek Squad member holding Saint Nick down while a khaki-wearing soccer mom tosses him a beating?
As another holiday shopping season rides into the dust, I'm hoping Best Buy stays on the “nice list” by leaving Santa alone and sticking to selling extended warranties.
Post-Season's Greetings
No comments:
Post a Comment