The most emotionally engaging ad of the 2024 holiday season is a Teleflora ad featuring a hospitalized boy and a magical snowman.
According to research by DAIVID, the ad inspired the highest levels of positivity among viewers.
The Power of Wishes ad was created by The Wonderful Agency and encourages donations to help grant transformative wishes for children with critical illnesses.
Alongside Teleflora are nine other brands that also elicited the most positive emotions to create emotionally engaging ads.
1. The Power Of Wishes By Teleflora
As the video’s description says, “Believe in the power of wishes. This holiday season, Teleflora is proud to partner with @MakeAWish. Learn how you can show your support on Teleflora.com/wish and watch our new film.”
DAIVID’s analysis found that 57.1% of viewers experienced an intense positive reaction to the campaign, securing its top spot on the platform’s holiday ad rankings.
2. Your Spark Can Light Up The World By Erste Group
In second place is Erste Group’s ad “Your spark can light up the world,” which celebrates the origin story of the Christmas carol “Silent Night.”
As the video’s description says, “Get inspired by Silent Night and let your spark light up the world.”
And 56.4% of viewers were likely to feel intense positive emotions.
3. The Gifting Hour By John Lewis
“The Gifting Hour,” a John Lewis Christmas ad, is the final chapter in a trilogy by Saatchi & Saatchi. It came in third place with its touching tale of two sisters on a magical gift-finding quest.
It’s worth noting that the video’s description is more than 800 words long – and reads like a screenplay.
And, with 56.4% of viewers likely to feel intense positive emotions, this makes “The Gifting Hour” one of the most emotionally engaging Christmas ad by John Lewis in six years.
4. The Journey By Marks & Spencer
“The Journey” by UK retailer Marks & Spencer (M&S) took fourth place.
In the ad, comedian Dawn French reprised her role as the Christmas Fairy, reluctantly hosting a holiday party for her neighbors.
It generated intense positive feelings in 55.4% of viewers.
5. Amazon Midnight Opus By Amazon
“Amazon Midnight Opus – Holiday 2024” took fifth place with a description that says, “Make dreams happen this season, with a little holiday magic from Amazon.”
The 90-second version of the ad generated intense positive feelings in 55.2% of viewers.
I’ve also seen the 30-second version of the commercial on TV, and it loses much of its emotional impact. The longer version is much better.
6. The Sanctuary By Chevrolet
“The Sanctuary,” a 2024 holiday commercial by Chevrolet, is in sixth place.
The video’s description says, “This holiday season, remember none of us can get where we want to go without the support of another, especially from those we cherished most.
Watch as a father and son come together on the bench of their family’s 1978 Chevy Silverado C10 to look back on their shared past and how it continues to drive them forward.”
The ad generated intense positive feelings in 54.9% of viewers.
7. Una Historia De Navidad By Suchard
Suchard’s “Una historia de Navidad” is in seventh place as “A story that shows that Christmas comes anywhere.”
This ad generated intense positive feelings in 54.7% of viewers.
8. Waldo Anthom By Etsy
The Etsy holiday commercial “Waldo Anthem” is in eighth place. The video’s description merely discloses an enigmatic Where’s Waldo?
Nevertheless, 54.6% of viewers were likely to feel intense positive emotions.
9. 40 Years Of Christmas On The Nations’s Network By Vodafone UK
Vodafone UK is in ninth place with their 40 years of Christmas. And shows the journey from the first mobile phone in 1984 and a nostalgic view of technology through 40 years.
The video’s description says: “Our advert for 2024 shows how technology has changed, but the feeling of connecting with loved ones at Christmas remains the same. ”
The ad generated intense positive feelings in 54.5% of viewers.
10. A Magical Christmas By Lidl
And finally, “Lidl Presents: A Magical Christmas” is in 10th place and encourages viewers to gift a toy to Lidl’s Toy Bank and “share the magic.”
And 53.7% of viewers were likely to feel intense positive emotions.
The Christmas Big Emotions
Now that you’ve seen the most emotionally engaging Christmas ads for this year, what do you notice? What do you wonder?
For festive ads, the common themes that resonate with audiences will always be the staple emotions: warmth, joy, and excitement.
And this year, the big winner – nostalgia.
According to the CEO of DAIVID. Around 85% of ads tested this year scored above average for that emotion.
Nostalgia
In alignment with the data, I noticed that 9 out of the 10 ads above tapped into nostalgia, ranking it as one of their top 5 emotions.
Reminding people about the ghosts of Christmas past will always be a winner. It’s an easy way for brands to access a lot of emotions in a very short time, making it very powerful.
Brands that did well this year include:
- Chevrolet – 162% higher.
- Vodafone – 152% higher.
- John Lewis – 95% higher feelings.
These are just some of the notable examples.
Read more about the 39 Emotions Digital Marketers Can Use In Advertising and Nostalgia Marketing & What We Can Learn From John Lewis Ads.
Sadness
But brands that sprinkle other emotions into the mix tend to do better. This is why Teleflora’s “The Power of Wishes,” which is almost five times sadder than the average ad, outperformed other emotional ads at Christmas.
Now, there was a time when “Sadvertising” was a huge trend at Christmas, but not so much this year. I wonder if brands are trying to cheer us up after such a horrible year.
It’s worth noting that only 12 of the 125 ads that DAIVID tested scored higher than the norm for sadness.
Don’t get me wrong – there were brands that made us cry.
For example, the ad that made us cry the most was World of Our Own from Shelter. The ad generated intense sadness among 31% of viewers, well ahead of any other ad this year and more than five times sadder than the industry average.
Others that made us tear up include “PETA’s Christmas Ad.” As the video’s description warns us, “PETA’s 2024 Christmas advert is here – and this cow’s story will break your heart.”
And then there’s #FeedYourChristmasSpirit from Tesco. But the ad’s attempt to be bittersweet comes off as weird.
Amusement
Making people laugh has also been a key theme this year. Again, I think brands and their agencies are trying to cheer us up.
A notable example of this in the top 10 is “The Journey” from M&S. Dawn French is a UK national treasure – and much loved.
However, the funniest Holiday ads this year did not quite make the top 10.
The ad most likely to make people laugh is “A Watt Holiday Classic” from DICK’s Sporting Goods.
It features former NFL player J.J. Watt, who recreates scenes from iconic festive films after being trapped in a Dick’s store after closing. The ad made 37% of viewers laugh, which is well above the industry norm.
Another festive ad to make us laugh this year is a spot from a British supermarket chain called “Sweet Suspicion: A Waitrose Mystery” by Waitrose. This ad made 34.1% of viewers laugh out loud.
Sprinkle Some Magic
A lot of magic was used this year. This was a very common theme throughout the chart. Do you think people are trying to forget what the world is like right now?
But there was a lack of celebs. I think there is only one (Dawn French) in the top 10. That makes festive advertising very different than Super Bowl ads. But that’s a topic for another day.
Methodology
A total of 125 holiday advertisements from across the globe were analyzed in the study. The ads were evaluated based on the percentage of viewers expected to experience strong positive emotions in response to the content. As noted, DAIVID measures 39 distinct emotions, with their intensity rated on a scale from 1 to 10. Scores between 8 and 10 are classified as “intense.” The data for the chart was collected at 7:00 AM on December 3, 2024.
More Resources:
- Coca-Cola’s AI Holiday Campaign Fails To Engage Viewers Emotionally
- 14 Mistakes To Avoid In Holiday Marketing Campaigns
- A Complete Guide To Holiday Marketing
Featured Image: Nicoleta Ionescu/Shutterstock
