It's beginning to look at lot like Christmas...
...The John Lewis ad is out!
When I first moved to London I discovered a lot about British culture and traditions. But once I got past the fact that Yorkshire puddings aren’t actually a dessert and are delicious with a roast, I thought I had it all under control. And then, as we got closer to Christmas, came the John Lewis ad. We didn’t have a TV in our flat at the time, so I don’t think I ever saw it, but boy was I aware of it. Everyone was talking about it. Of course, Christmas has long become the most commercialised holiday between the gifts, the food and decorations, the jumpers and party frocks. But still, I was amazed that an ad for a department store could be so intrinsically linked to a holiday. (No, at the time I didn’t understand the John Lewis / Waitrose place in the English psyche)
Naturally, all major retailers have since followed suit. They are all spending an unfathomable amount of their marketing budgets outdoing each other to see who can get us to well up at the child making a present for his parents or who will make us laugh at the adventures of a carrot! The big win will be for those who can spin-off any merchandise… But, John Lewis remains THE ad, the one that is anticipated, that has articles written ahead of its release.
This year is no different despite the current climate. Or maybe especially because of the current climate. No surprise to anyone I spend a lot of time on LinkedIn, and in September I saw a post that caught my eye (sorry I didn’t have plans for a blog back then so I didn’t save it). Simply put this woman was telling John Lewis that with everything going on in the world they really needed to bring their A-game with the Christmas ad. Her comment stuck with me; because having lived in the UK for over 10 years now, unconsciously this ad is also synonymous with upcoming festivities for me. At work we would get together and watch the John Lewis ad. We would then watch all the other major ones too and comment on which ones got the right tone, production levels, what brands were featured... I work in marketing so I might be excused for this odd exercise. The point is that it was as much part of the festive feeling as were the mince pies and tubs of quality street dotted around the office and that Mariah Carey song.
While I barely watch any live TV – it’s mostly Netflix for us – I knew that I would find out once the ad dropped. And indeed last Friday morning I woke up to a link in my WhatsApp group asking what we all thought of this year's ad.
Here are my thoughts on it, bearing in mind that I have only seen the YouTube version, so I don’t know if there are shorter edits for different TV spots.
In an odd way, it reminds me of those 3min shorts that Pixar make. Although I found the first transition a bit jarring, by the end of it I really like the mix of media used especially as they do close the loop; back to film and the boy at the end.
In terms of the story, I really like that it wasn’t actually about the one person. Most of these ads focus on one person, there is a sense of loss of the “spirit of Christmas” and then somehow it comes back to them and everyone is happy again - cue the tears. But in this case, it's more about the community and spreading kindness and in a way, it’s not even about Christmas – remove the snow and decorations and it could work any time of year.
Last but not least, I loved the fact that they highlight their chosen charities in the ad. I personally love a brand with a mission so this really resonated with me. And remember what I said about the merchandise; well true to form John Lewis have a range of “Give A Little Love” items with all the profits going to the two charities.
While I read some comments that people were expecting more, for example showing zoom dance parties, etc… I don’t need to see more images of us clapping at windows or awkward face time with the parents who can’t figure out where the camera on their phone is, because we’ve all lived it and still are. Instead, I say well done John Lewis, I think you really delivered this year.
Bring on the hope and give a little love.
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| I bought said merchandise |
First day I saw it, it was without sound (stupid, I know!) and I was somehow disappointed... then I watched it with sound and the lyrics really made a difference! Agree with you that they've done great to actually put into perspective the reality we are all facing these days and, not only they show that reality, but also they are doing something about it with charities behind - agree, well done them! (jealous of your pin! :o) )
ReplyDeleteI'll need to watch it again and pay more attention to the music. I wrote this on my first impression and must say I didn't single out the music at that time, though no doubt it plays a big role.
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