Christmas Advertising: Festivity, Gifts and Responsibility

Advertising is at its most powerful around Christmas – what do people think of Christmas ads and what responsibility does the industry have during the festive period?

George Grant, Credos Editor

Most of us who celebrate Christmas can agree that it is a holiday about family and connection. But it is also about the traditions and customs we look forward to once the temperature drops and the nights start to draw in. Christmas exists in the festive mix of spices – cinnamon, cloves, star anise, cardamom; it exists in the sudden appearance of fir trees in the local garden centre and the first bite of a mince pie; and, yes, it exists in the Christmas adverts that we see on our TVs, our streets, and our newspapers.

Adverts are a strong part of that unique Christmas medley. From the moment we notice the first Christmas ad (“surely not, we’re only just taking down the Halloween decorations!”) to the inevitable fighting back of tears while watching the annual John Lewis masterpiece, adverts are a very real part of the Christmas experience.

And adverts have played a similarly important role in the shaping of Christmas today as we know it: following the Victorian era, during which family and gift-giving became central themes of the celebration, mass advertising allowed businesses to use the festive season to sell their products.

Christmas advertising today

The magic of Christmas is such that businesses place huge value and importance on the holiday every year. Data from the Advertising Association/WARC shows that in the UK £9.5 billion is set to be spent on advertising over this year’s Christmas period, representing a 4.8% increase on last year’s record £9 billion, with television retaining £1.5 billion in the quarter. Advertising spend around Christmas has been steadily increasing since records began, and the season has come to play a pivotal role in advertisers’ annual planning strategies. 2023’s rise comes despite Britons having £3 billion less to spend this Christmas. In such a difficult economic climate, brands will be looking to advertising more than ever to stake their claim for the public’s hard-earned pounds this year.

It goes without saying, then, that advertising at Christmas is loved by businesses, but what about the public? To investigate public opinion of Christmas ads, the Advertising Association worked with ‘Opinion Matters’ to conduct a survey of a 2000-strong sample representative of the UK’s regional, age and gender balance. The survey asked people two simple questions: “do Christmas adverts help you get in the mood for the festive season?” and “do they help you with ideas of what presents to give to people?” The results are in, and the story is clear: for many of us, Christmas ads foster festive spirit and help us buy the perfect presents.

Fostering festivity

Our survey found that, of those who celebrate Christmas, 63% think that Christmas ads help them get in the mood for Christmas, particularly women, with almost two in three (66%) agreeing with the statement. Young adults (25-34) are especially affected by Christmas ads, with 74% of those who celebrate Christmas saying that the ads help them get in the mood. This may be due to the age group being linked to early parenthood when Christmas magic is at its strongest. This group has also grown up with the advent of the famous John Lewis ads, an annual tradition that has led to a Christmas campaign renaissance in the UK.

Picking presents

Just under half of us (48%) believe that Christmas ads help us pick out the right presents and, interestingly, that figure is even higher among the 16-34 age groups: combined, 64% of them find that Christmas ads help them with their gift-giving decisions. It makes sense that advertising helps in this way – after all, two of advertising’s primary functions are to help customers choose between products and to find new ideas. Whether that be an outdoor ad for a local Christmas gift fair, or a big budget campaign for this season’s must-have toy, advertising lets people know about the options, new and familiar, available to them.

Advertising’s responsibility

As much as advertising has positive influences over the festive season, it also bears considerable responsibility, especially during a period in which some can feel pressured into spending beyond their means. Credos found in its most recent quarterly survey into public trust in advertising that one-third of people can feel that advertising puts pressure on them to spend money. Interestingly, these views towards Christmas advertising are in line with the ‘fostering festivity’ and ‘picking presents’ findings, with younger people feeling more positive than older respondents: only a quarter of 18-34-year-olds felt pressure to spend, compared to 40% of 55-74-year-olds and 58% of over-75s.

The ASA and Clearcast have clear rules on what brands and advertisers can and can’t do around the Christmas season to curb as much of this pressure as possible. It is our responsibility to make sure that we are conscientious about messaging, and following those rules is fundamental to this.

ASA and Clearcast Christmas rules

Excessive spending

This first one relates specifically to Credos’ finding about pressure to spend at Christmas. The ASA stresses that, especially during such a financially tough year, it is advertisers’ duty not to encourage excessive spending. ‘Buy now pay later’ schemes need particular caution, to ensure that advertisers do not encourage excessive spending through the use of credit.

Alcohol advertising at Christmas

According to the Bank of England, in the UK, spend on alcohol increases markedly in December compared to the average month. Parties and family gatherings inevitably lead to a jump in sales, but the ASA and Clearcast both have very clear rules on the portrayal of excessive or irresponsible drinking at Christmas. CAP rules are require that no one looks, or is, under 25 in alcohol advertising, while the ASA stress that depictions of irresponsible quantities of alcohol being served or consumed have caused campaigns to be pulled for breaching their rules.

Christmas imagery

There are some images advertisers frequently call on to invoke the spirit of Christmas. Snowball fights, crackling fires and carol singers, while popular images and traditions, have been earmarked by Clearcast as potential hazards for advertisers. No snowballs should be thrown in the face of innocent bystanders, decorations shouldn’t be hung over lit fires, and carols must not be shown sung alongside gambling, alcohol, or violence.

Remember your audience

Christmas is an especially magical time for children, so advertisers must be particularly thoughtful during the period. The ASA line on kids is very clear: “Advertisers must ensure that any ads targeting or featuring children are not exploiting their credulity, loyalty, vulnerability, or lack of experience by making them feel inferior for not buying (or encouraging others to buy) an advertised product”.

Respecting Father Christmas

Somewhere between adolescence and adulthood, people can pick up the misconception that Santa Claus might not be real. Any adverts containing this message – that Santa Claus is a myth and doesn’t exist – are kept firmly away from younger viewers by Clearcast. As Clearcast quite rightly say: “don’t ruin the magic”.

A Christmas Conclusion

Christmas is a time when the advertising industry is reminded of its powerful role in society, and the responsibility that this brings. Our work brings genuine joy to millions and can be a great tool for helping people choose gifts for one another as well as a crucial lever for businesses to capitalise on increased market activity. But clearly there is a line to be walked to ensure that people aren’t pressured into buying items they can’t afford. We should be grateful for the good work that the ASA and Clearcast do and encourage advertisers to keep working with our regulators to make sure that every Christmas ad is as responsible as it is magical.