Christmas-themed ads are just as much a part of the festive atmosphere as the decorations, the lights, and Mariah Carey belting out "All I want for Christmas" from every speaker on the high street.
But for every delightful piece of Christmas-themed copy, there are ten "'Tis the seasons", "Ho, Ho, Hos", and "All wrapped ups".
Now, we're not saying clichés don't have their place in copywriting. Because they're such familiar phrases, they can be an efficient way of getting your point across.
But when you're jostling for customers' attention during peak shopping season, you need to stand out. And using the same phrases everyone else is using is a surefire way of making sure that doesn't happen.
So how do you come up with festive copy that hits the mark, without relying on the same old tropes?
Here are our top tips to help get your creative juices flowing.
Keep it current
What's happened throughout the year?
Big events, pop culture phenomena, and catchphrases that have entered our collective lexicon can all make excellent starting points for your festive copy.
Tesco — who, to be fair, always excel at capturing the public mood — did this brilliantly this year, borrowing Covid-19 lingo and giving it a humorous twist.
The phrases in these ads have been used and abused all year, to the point where they've become clichés in their own right. But they work in this context because they're clearly tongue-in-cheek and also get a key benefit of each product across
Now, you may be saying, when it comes to catchphrases and events you can draw inspiration from in place of the usual clichés, 2020 was err... unprecedented. To which we'd counter that, well, inspiration is everywhere. Even in places that might not be that obvious when coming up with a Christmas-themed concept.
Case in point, Air New Zealand's 2018 Christmas ad spoofed Donald Trump's behaviour at the infamous United Nations meeting that took place that September.
And if political satire feels too risqué, in 2019 — the year of Game of Thrones' polarising finale — John Lewis' Excitable Edgar Christmas ad felt very much like a surprisingly wholesome take on the series. So much so, that it even sparked a social media conversation about the upcoming Game of Thrones prequel.
Put a new spin on a well-worn cliché
The problem with Christmas clichés is that, because everyone uses them — and uses them in similar ways — it becomes hard for customers to distinguish one piece of copy from another. This leads to forgettable results.
But what if you could give a cliché a fresh new twist?
Walkers did exactly this in 2019.
In their ad, Mariah Carey takes a break from recording a music video for — you guessed it — "All I want for Christmas", just in time to catch an elf dipping into her personal Walkers stash. She gets him to drop the packet he was about to scoff by hitting a very high note.
Granted, the ad is a bit meta. But it's funny, original, and familiar. And it does a bit of influencer marketing too: even Mariah loves Walkers!
Of course, not everyone can afford to hire Mariah Carey to star in their Christmas ad. But, that doesn't mean you can't come up with an original take on what others are doing.
Take this poster from Pepsi:
Like the Walkers ad, it feels fresh and original even though "All I want for Christmas" has been done to death, because it's tongue-in-cheek and topical.
If it means an end to social distancing, lockdowns, tiers, bubbles, and other restrictions, we can all agree 2020 can get in the bin, right?
Go with the uncommon
Many Christmas copy clichés are based on popular Christmas songs:
"All I want for Christmas", which for the statisticians among you has now racked up its fourth mention in this post
'"Deck the Halls"
"The 12 days of Christmas"
You get the idea...
There's a logic to this. Because you want as many people as possible to get the pun, you can't use something obscure. You need a play on something that's reasonably familiar to most.
Thing is, there are dozens, possibly hundreds of carols and Christmas-themed songs we all know but which aren't as commonly used in festive copy. The trick is to pick one that fits naturally with what you're selling, instead of trying to shoehorn something in just for the sake of it.
This ad from Red Candy UK, for instance, hits all the right notes:
It plays on the lesser-used, but still well-known carol "Oh come all ye faithful". But, more importantly, it's not gratuitous. The benefit comes across loud and clear — these Christmas tree baubles are for those among us who like their festive decorations to have a dash of quirk.
Dig deeper
Yes, Christmas is about snow, gift-giving, carols, and Santa. But the holiday season is also about many other things — rest and relaxation, family, solidarity, community... the list goes on.
Digging a little deeper into what Christmas means for you and, more importantly, for your customers, can help you capture the spirit of the season without falling into the trap of stating the obvious.
Take Sainsbury's 2018 ad "The Big Night" for instance.
They could've gone with an office party or the family Christmas day dinner. Instead, they picked the kids' school recital. The result is an ad that delivers a powerful message while still being cute and light-hearted.
Similarly, this ad from B&Q creates a festive atmosphere and gets across a key benefit by drawing on that most treacherous of family activities — putting up the Christmas decorations. And without even needing to use a Christmas pun.
Have fun with your Christmas copy, but stay true
If you want your Christmas copy to stand out, it pays to keep your ear to the ground throughout the year, go beyond the obvious, and try and think outside the box.
But, before we wrap up (see what we did there), here's one final thought.
Ultimately, your copy has one goal and one goal only, regardless of the season: to persuade those who read it to take the action you want them to take.
So, here's our parting shot: don't force it. If you chuck a Christmas pun into your copy just for the sake of it, even though it doesn't work, you risk doing more harm than good.
To paraphrase the great John Caples, it's better to be clear than clever. If your copy is relevant and communicates your benefits in a compelling way, it'll succeed any time of the year.
Need help crafting persuasive copy that captures the spirit of the season?
