The business with feeling
Advertising doesn't sell products—it sells emotions—an old adage among PR strategists. At Christmas, advertising is particularly emotional. But that doesn't always yield the desired results.
Every year, TV commercials show families being particularly happy at Christmas and people being kind-hearted. Christmas advertising is usually particularly maudlin. There is a simple reason for this: retailers generate high sales in November and December. And advertising works best when it sells feelings rather than products - an old adage among PR strategists.
Many consumers tend to make purchasing decisions with their gut rather than their mind. Well-known examples: BMW does not advertise with engine performance, but with "driving pleasure". "The idea behind such advertising measures is that the emotions portrayed are transferred to the product and thus associated with it," according to an article published twelve years ago in the journal Gehirn und Geist by psychologists Arnd Florack and Martin Scarabis. And since Christmas is the festival of love, it stands to reason that emotional Christmas advertising is the most effective way of persuading people to buy.
But is that true? Not at all. "It's true that Christmas advertising is polarizing," says market researcher Joachim Netz, who works for the company MediaAnalyzer. Netz and his colleagues specialize in the analysis of advertising impact and marketing. "The emotional impact of the commercials is even more important than usual," says Netz. "Many people find the atmosphere of Christmas advertising very pleasant. However, there is always criticism of the Christmas clichés and the consumer focus, especially when the commercials emphasize the product."
In other words: If the intentional connection between emotion and business is all too obvious, viewers become wary. And not everyone is receptive to clichés in advertising anyway. Some consumer advocates are even trying - quite independently of Christmas - to stop companies from using overly misleading advertising. "Advertising only works if viewers can see themselves in it," says Netz.
The reality of life for many consumers has little in common with the harmonious family life that is often portrayed in advertising. "Singles, for example, don't necessarily feel addressed when television commercials only show happy families," says Netz. His tip for advertising strategists: "Large brands with corresponding budgets should therefore place different commercials to appeal to different target groups." (Carsten Hoefer/DPA/SDA)
