Best Holiday Campaigns of 2022
It is that time of year again. Holiday decorations went up two weeks too early, you have already watched Elf, Santa Claus, and The Grinch, and it is not even December 1st yet! Holiday promotions are in full swing, shoving all sorts of advertising, special deals, and merry jingles in your face for the next three weeks. So instead of pummeling you with more winter-related holiday themes you could be practicing, we thought it would be a fun idea to look back on 2022 and choose our favorite holiday campaigns throughout the past year.
World Cup (Christmas)
I know we just poked fun at Christmas marketing, but this one is an exception. Since the beginning of August, the World Cup has been running a different style of advertising than they are used to. Usually, the world’s most famous tournament is played throughout the summer months, but due to the intense heat and humidity in this year’s location (Qatar), the Cup has been pushed to November. With this unique change in schedule, it was only natural for the marketers behind the World Cup to play into the abnormality. They turned Jon Hamm into Santa Claus, made him worry that the Cup might overshadow Christmas, and ran their holiday-related advertising for nearly four straight months. Pure genius.
Kit Kat (Halloween)
During Halloween, it is common to see people leave a bowl by the door with a sign that says “Take One”. Unfortunately, it is just as common to see people take more than one piece of candy, leaving others to come across an empty bowl. Nobody likes to see a sad trick-or-treater, so Kit Kat conjured up a special kind of bowl that has never-ending Kit Kat bars. This never-ending trick-or-treat bowl first appeared in Salem, Massachusetts, then began showing up randomly across the country throughout the month of October. Consumers could follow the bowl on Kit Kat’s Instagram, or by using #KitKatBowl, to see where the mystic bowl might appear next. It was a fun and engaging way for an age-old, timeless brand to connect with their community.
Maltesers (Easter)
Say what you will about ASMR, but these Maltesers meditation commercials could put anyone at ease. Easter can be a hectic time, especially for those with children, and Maltesers honed in on that specific group with their series of satisfying baking videos. By soothing people with sweetness, Maltesers aimed to get on a more personal level, connecting with their potential buyers by reminding them to take some time for themselves, and to eat some chocolate. This form of video marketing speaks directly to a tailored target audience, and by releasing it as a video series, they were able to keep Maltesers front of mind during the holiday season.
Miller Lite (Father’s Day)
Miller Lite created a beer registry this past Father’s Day for all the dads out there. From the Oh Baby! Six-pack, to the Golf Bag Essentials of nine aluminum pints, Miller leaned into the funny with this marketing campaign by playing on all the dad jokes. They even put together a Miller Lite Beer Bond, a beer certificate that takes 21 years to mature before they can be redeemed. By having a deep understanding of who they’re communicating with, Miller Lite was able to tailor their ideas and messaging to play into their audience’s favor. This was a fun and inclusive way to engage with their audience, venturing out from the usual forms of advertising by creating an entire microsite to have some fun with dads old and new.
SodaStream (Earth Day)
Centering a marketing campaign around a holiday can go a long way even for the non-traditional ones. Take SodaStream for example, the PepsiCo brand of sparkling water that teamed up with nonprofit SEE Turtles and David Hasselhoff for an Earth Day campaign. Celebrity and influencer marketing is a classic form that won’t fizzle out any time soon, and finding the right fit for the right campaign is advertising gold. Here’s an image you won’t soon forget; David Hasselhoff saving adorable sea turtles with a SodaStream shaped rescue buoy. Save the earth, enhance your brand, and have fun doing it.
Marketing is all about staying ahead of the trends. By taking a look back through the past few months, hopefully we were able to give you some insight on what has worked for different brands across different holidays, and in turn, help to spark new ideas of your own. Now take this knowledge and get out there to create a unique spin on your own holiday campaigns!
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