November 7, 2014
This might be the best Christmas commercial ever
The RetailWire Christmas Commercial Challenge is a domestic affair by intent. That doesn’t mean, however, that great work isn’t being done outside the borders of the U.S. In fact, there can probably be an argument made that the most creatively effective work is found in other markets. A case in point is a new spot, with accompanying marketing campaign, from the John Lewis department store chain in the UK.
As the retailer’s website explains, the commercial is about a little boy named Sam and his BFF (best feathered friend), Monty the Penguin. The spot is "a tale of friendship, love and giving someone the gift they’ve been dreaming of this Christmas." The commercial has already gone viral, with more than 4.2 million views on YouTube.
![[Image: Monty the Penguin]](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxIDEiIHdpZHRoPSIxIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjEiIGRhdGEtdT0iJTJGcHVibGljJTJGaW1hZ2VzJTJGZGlzY3Vzc2lvbnMlMkYxNzg5NiUyRm1vbnR5LXN0aWxsLmpwZyIgZGF0YS13PSIxIiBkYXRhLWg9IjEiIGRhdGEtYmlwPSIiPjwvc3ZnPg==)
The commercial is not just a one-off, but a part of a full Monty (yes, that was intentional) campaign. There’s a Monty’s Den (developed with Samsung) with Monty merchandise in each of the chain’s stores, including a stuffed Monty doll and Monty’s Christmas, a children’s print book with an audio version narrated by Dermot O’Leary. John Lewis is donating 89p to World Wildlife Federation to protect the habitat of the Adélie penguin for every CD sold of the Tom Odell song, Real Love, which is the musical track for the commercial. Monty merchandise isn’t just limited to consumers in the UK, as John Lewis points out that the company now delivers to 33 countries around the globe including the U.S. and Canada.
As an Adweek article points out, a sure sign of the success of the Monty campaign is that parodies of the spot have begun to surface, including a laugh out loud version (IMO) from Redshirt Films.
![[Image: Monty the Penguin Parody]](data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZpZXdCb3g9IjAgMCAxIDEiIHdpZHRoPSIxIiBoZWlnaHQ9IjEiIGRhdGEtdT0iJTJGcHVibGljJTJGaW1hZ2VzJTJGZGlzY3Vzc2lvbnMlMkYxNzg5NiUyRm1vbnR5LXBhcm9keS1zdGlsbC5qcGciIGRhdGEtdz0iMSIgZGF0YS1oPSIxIiBkYXRhLWJpcD0iIj48L3N2Zz4=)
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Recent Discussions
Discussion Questions
What is your critique of the Monty the Penguin spot from John Lewis? What is your assessment of the marketing and merchandising campaign around the spot?
Poll
Great spot. Tugs on the heartstrings. Perfect for the holidays. My personal wish is that the folks at John Lewis had not completely commercialized the Monty character with an over-the-top merchandising campaign that cheapens the spot and the emotions behind it.
Not knowing about Monty the Penguin (I know, somewhat ironic for a person with the name Montgomery), I enjoyed the commercial but wondered what it was trying to sell until the very end. Please note: I watched the commercial before reading the article.
One of the things I did like is that it involved the use of imagination on the part of the child rather than having him passively entertained by an electronic device. It also showed the spirit of Christmas in that it featured the boy getting a friend for his toy rather than directly for himself — a stretch, I know, but I believe the spot pulled it off.
I agree the success of the campaign can be shown by it being parodied. While John Lewis might not like the parody, they have to enjoy the publicity it brings to the commercial and their stores.
This ad succeeds in tugging the heartstrings without being cloyingly sentimental, a neat trick. Is Monty a real penguin? Whoever trained him must be a genius (or a wizard of digital animation, or both).
It’s less easy to handicap the Monty & Mabel-themed merchandising that goes with this campaign. The 42 offered items seem delightful for younger children (and some childlike adults). Unfortunately all the plush penguins and some socks and pajamas showed out-of-stock on the website this morning.
Overall, I’d say this ad campaign burnishes the John Lewis brand.
I viewed the ad and it was good. Very sweet and reflected a less commercial side of the holidays. However, the fact that this thing went viral made it a super smart move! Unfortunately we usually can’t predict virality.
And of course, now that I know that they have a whole array of Monty stuff to sell, it seems less sweet and more commercial.
But the bottom line—for my two cents, it works!
My only critique would be that by showing a boy with a real penguin gives some people the idea that they could be terrific domesticated pets. Other than that, this is a great commercial, touches on all the sentiments for Christmas—love, giving, being with others.
I believe John Lewis does what it does best—pull at you heartstrings and think about what Christmas is all about. I look forward to their adverts each year and yes, they are often parodied because they are so good.
Not a bad deal….
Lewis’ Christmas campaigns have become an annual tradition in the UK. Perhaps not too dissimilar from the Neiman Marcus Holiday Catalogue in the US.
Emotion trumps product. Few do it better than John Lewis.
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Great spot. Tugs on the heartstrings. Perfect for the holidays. My personal wish is that the folks at John Lewis had not completely commercialized the Monty character with an over-the-top merchandising campaign that cheapens the spot and the emotions behind it.
Not knowing about Monty the Penguin (I know, somewhat ironic for a person with the name Montgomery), I enjoyed the commercial but wondered what it was trying to sell until the very end. Please note: I watched the commercial before reading the article.
One of the things I did like is that it involved the use of imagination on the part of the child rather than having him passively entertained by an electronic device. It also showed the spirit of Christmas in that it featured the boy getting a friend for his toy rather than directly for himself — a stretch, I know, but I believe the spot pulled it off.
I agree the success of the campaign can be shown by it being parodied. While John Lewis might not like the parody, they have to enjoy the publicity it brings to the commercial and their stores.
This ad succeeds in tugging the heartstrings without being cloyingly sentimental, a neat trick. Is Monty a real penguin? Whoever trained him must be a genius (or a wizard of digital animation, or both).
It’s less easy to handicap the Monty & Mabel-themed merchandising that goes with this campaign. The 42 offered items seem delightful for younger children (and some childlike adults). Unfortunately all the plush penguins and some socks and pajamas showed out-of-stock on the website this morning.
Overall, I’d say this ad campaign burnishes the John Lewis brand.
I viewed the ad and it was good. Very sweet and reflected a less commercial side of the holidays. However, the fact that this thing went viral made it a super smart move! Unfortunately we usually can’t predict virality.
And of course, now that I know that they have a whole array of Monty stuff to sell, it seems less sweet and more commercial.
But the bottom line—for my two cents, it works!
My only critique would be that by showing a boy with a real penguin gives some people the idea that they could be terrific domesticated pets. Other than that, this is a great commercial, touches on all the sentiments for Christmas—love, giving, being with others.
I believe John Lewis does what it does best—pull at you heartstrings and think about what Christmas is all about. I look forward to their adverts each year and yes, they are often parodied because they are so good.
Not a bad deal….
Lewis’ Christmas campaigns have become an annual tradition in the UK. Perhaps not too dissimilar from the Neiman Marcus Holiday Catalogue in the US.
Emotion trumps product. Few do it better than John Lewis.