Need a boost of holiday spirit to fuel your online shopping addiction? Then look no further! This year’s list of holiday campaigns focus on the season of gift giving.
The top ads tapped into our pathos and featured brands decking the halls while ramping up the festive cheer. It’s that familiar time of year when brands try to get us to spend our hard earned money by turning up the holiday spirit to the max. Amazon stood out from the crowd and stole the number 1 position by a large margin for promoting small business at a time when most retailers and local shops went into lockdown.
Whether it’s a tech giant teaming up with one of our favourite rappers, or a soft drink brand taking us on a journey through jungles, tundras and oceans, ads are a little bit better this time of year. Check out the list below.
Ads That Caught Your Attention This Holiday Season
Apple
Coming in at number 3 this year is Apple with their The Magic of Mini campaign featuring Philadelphia-area rapper Tierra Whack. Apple followed this year’s theme of the joy and inspiration that products can bring to our lives during difficult times.
The 2 minute 30 second ad features Tierra suffering from a case of the holiday/quarantine blues until she gets home and turns on her HomePod Mini. Once the HomePod turns on, a brightly dressed and pint-sized Tierra pops out of the device to stir up some holiday cheer. The spot was directed by Calmatic, who received a Grammy in 2020 for directing the music video for Old Town Road.
Hobby Lobby
Almost every brand played the emotion card this season, instilling feel-good vibes to cheer up holiday shoppers. Hobby Lobby, a brand known for arts and crafts, is no exception this year with their spot. After gifting knick-knacks and Christmas ornaments in each other’s mailboxes over the span of a few days, two neighbours finally meet and we realize it was the elderly neighbours across the street who’ve been making the trinkets in order to set them up.
Coca-Cola
Rounding out our list of holiday ads is Coca-Cola’s campaign, The Letter. The ad marks Coca-Cola’s 100th year of Christmas advertising and they spared no expense. The cinematic spot is directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Taika Waititi (Jojo Rabbit) in his home country of New Zealand. The beautifully shot short-film is about a father making sure his daughter’s Christmas dreams come true. He travels across oceans, cliffs and tundras before trying to reach the North Pole to give Santa his daughter’s letter. Watch the full clip to see how it ends.
Here’s the Top 10 Most Viewed Video Ads:
| Rank | Brand | Campaign Name | Total Views | Link |
| 1 | Amazon | Give big, shop small businesses | 63,421,352 | WATCH NOW |
| 2 | Hobby Lobby | Do It Together | 25,534,319 | WATCH NOW |
| 3 | Apple | The magic of mini | 25,486,545 | WATCH NOW |
| 4 | ULTA Beauty | See the Joy | 14,343,419 | WATCH NOW |
| 5 | Hobby Lobby | Christmas Is What You Make It | 11,896,532 | WATCH NOW |
| 6 | Frito-Lay | Share Your Favorite Things | 10,736,616 | WATCH NOW |
| 7 | Nordstrom | Make Merry | 10,570,617 | WATCH NOW |
| 8 | Shopper’s Drug Mart | Find Your Joy | 8,155,094 | WATCH NOW |
| 9 | Burlington Coat Factory | Burlington Customer | 7,801,842 | WATCH NOW |
| 10 | Coca-Cola | The Letter | 6,773,071 | WATCH NOW |
Connect with us!
What have been your favorite brand moments? Get in touch to chat capturing viewer attention using video advertising and sign up for our newsletter to get more Acuity Insights delivered straight to your inbox! To check out more festive ads, check out our top picks for the Most Viewed 4th of July Ads for 2021, The 2021 Tokyo Olympics, and Hispanic Heritage Month for 2021.
