Keeping It Real At Christmas Is A Lesson For All Brands (As Seen On TV!)

In a world where we can’t want to be seen as opulent anymore, making a connection on an emotional level and representing authenticity is key for any brand to reach out.

This is demonstrated to us all during December with the various Christmas retailer ad campaigns. Gone are the lavish celebrity endorsements (well apart from Delia and Heston’s ‘empty warehouse’ Waitrose ad) and in its place is a new world where all brands are looking to be in touch with their customers.

Who can afford to be over generous during Christmas 2012? We’ve had the Olympics and the Jubilee celebrations lets get back to reality.

With Chancellor George Osborne’s admittance that curbing the UK’s financial deficit is ‘taking longer’ than anticipated to families seeing fuel bills rise by an average of £80 to £1,336 a year, it’s not necessarily a world of hope as we move into 2013.

The key themes to all Christmas ads from Asda to Boots to Morrisons to Tescos is that by connecting with an audience, you don’t alienate your brand by showcasing a lifestyle that consumers simply can’t have or aspire too.

What this has in common with building your own brand is that by representing a human level by having an empathy with your audience goes a long way to being seeing as a credible resource to know, like and trust. This is many miles away from a blatant ‘look at us, aren’t we good at what we do?’ A sense of humility will always win.

As we move into 2013, what we’re seeing is that the brands that will succeed are those that appear down to earth and champion the customer. Over delivering your value is the main focus here.

Connecting with your audience via emotion is demonstrated none better than John Lewis, and their ‘give a little more love this Christmas’ campaign,’ with the onus on putting effort into finding the ideal gift for our loved ones, not a lets spend loads this Christmas. This represents a clear message that a brand stands behind. Here’s the advert to watch.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0N8axp9nHNU[/youtube]

The current Christmas brand campaigns reflect the mood of the nation with a sense of empathy with consumers. This can be adopted by your brand in terms of building an understanding and affinity with your audience and an appreciation that you stand for what is right.