Holidays Are Coming! Celebrate the Festive Season Now | Clapboard Ad Archive

It’s finally time… Holidays are coming!

Description

Coca-Cola’s 2023 festive campaign, It’s finally time… Holidays are coming!, orchestrated by WPP in the United Kingdom, marks the joyful return of the brand’s iconic Christmas truck, a symbol deeply embedded in holiday tradition and consumer nostalgia. This film medium campaign taps into the emotional resonance and anticipation that the holiday season inherently carries, leveraging the universal excitement associated with the “Holidays are coming” message. By emphasizing “The wait is over,” the campaign effectively builds suspense and triggers consumer anticipation, reinforcing Coca-Cola’s positioning as an integral part of holiday celebrations. The use of vibrant and festive imagery, combined with the familiar visuals of the Christmas truck, creates a compelling visual narrative that aligns with Coca-Cola’s long-standing ethos of spreading joy and togetherness. The campaign strategically employs popular hashtags such as #HolidaysAreComing, #CocaColaChristmas, #RealMagic, and #CocaCola to ensure broad digital engagement and encourage user interaction, thereby amplifying its reach beyond traditional media channels. The timing of the launch in November is impeccable, coinciding with the onset of holiday preparations and shopping, ensuring high relevance and visibility. This approach not only enhances brand recall but also strengthens emotional connections with consumers at a time when brand loyalty can be most influential. Overall, the campaign masterfully combines nostalgic elements with contemporary digital engagement strategies to create a festive experience that resonates across diverse audiences in the competitive non-alcoholic drinks market, reminding consumers that Coca-Cola remains a timeless companion during the holiday season.

Credits

Client

Coca-Cola

Agency

WPP

Campaign Proposition

Coca-Cola’s 2023 UK campaign, “It’s finally time… Holidays are coming!”, leverages the brand’s long-standing association with festive cheer and seasonal nostalgia. The campaign’s central proposition hinges on rekindling the emotional connection consumers have with the holiday season, encapsulated in the anticipation and magic symbolized by the iconic Coca-Cola Christmas truck. By signaling the return of this widely recognized emblem, the campaign promises a return to joyful, shared seasonal experiences, positioning Coca-Cola as an integral part of holiday traditions. From a market strategy perspective, the campaign taps into a culturally embedded sentiment: the excitement and warmth tied to the festive period in the UK. It employs a familiar and highly resonant creative asset—the Christmas truck—to immediately evoke feelings of nostalgia and anticipation. The timing, released in November, aligns strategically with the onset of holiday preparations and celebrations, maximizing relevance and engagement. This targeted approach focuses on consumers who associate Coca-Cola with positive holiday memories, effectively bridging past brand experiences with present emotions. The use of succinct, anticipatory messaging (“The wait is over...”) alongside visual cues works to reignite consumer excitement and encourage active attention (“Keep an eye out”), fostering a sense of communal celebration. Overall, the campaign highlights Coca-Cola’s strategic use of iconic seasonal imagery blended with timely messaging to strengthen brand salience during a peak consumer moment. The creative angle underscores authentic emotional resonance rather than product features, reinforcing Coca-Cola’s role as a catalyst of festive joy in the non-alcoholic drinks category.

Creative Device

FORMAT#8 ONGOING CHARACTERS OR CELEBRITIES — Uses a recurring personality or celebrity for brand recall. This campaign most closely fits FORMAT#8, as it centers on the return of Coca-Cola’s iconic Christmas truck—an enduring brand character symbolic of the holiday season. There is no explicit problem/solution framing, no narrative-driven story, or presenter testimonial. The anticipation around "the return" and phrases like "keep an eye out" signal an event-like reappearance of a beloved recurring brand element, much like a celebrity or mascot. The Christmas truck characterizes Coca-Cola’s ongoing festive campaigns and evokes strong seasonal brand recall, making "Ongoing Characters or Celebrities" the best match. ADVERTISING FORMATS EXPLAINED: https://www.clapboard.com/blog/branding-and-advertising/brand-strategy/12-advertising-creative-formats