Walking in a Web Wonderland
Tis’ the season to hook your marketing wagon to the holiday star, so this month we decided to check out the online tie-ins – or lack thereof – for several mainstream holiday campaigns.
First up is the “Love, Peace, Gap” campaign playing out on television screens and in mailboxes near you. A visit to http://www.gap.com brings up a bright spot of seasonal synergy, as the gold-hued theme decks out the home page nicely. Visitors can easily link to suggested gift items, and read the “Gap Girl’s Guide to the Holidays” for fashion tips.
Next was Nickelodeon, which inserted a nifty little holiday shopping guide into Sunday papers Thanksgiving weekend plugging their collection of “Timeless Toys.” The cover featured an old-fashioned tableau with two tykes who could have stepped out of “A Christmas Story” peering in a window at a display of holiday cheer.
Inside was more what you’d expect from Nick—modern looking toys featuring Dora the Explorer, SpongeBob Squarepants and the like. The spreads were dotted with random bits of interesting trivia (the first action figure was released in 1964; the first public skating rink opened in 1866 in Newport, RI).
But when you go to the accompanying URL, http://www.nick.com/timelesstoys, there’s no immediate tie-in, other than a small link to a holiday shop that looks no more festive than the main page.
If you’ve dined in Burger King lately, you’ve probably seen huge posters inviting you to “Give yourself the gift of beef” by buying a BK Crown Card. A visit to http://www.burgerking.com finds a plethora of information under the banner “Load it. Use it. It’s the King’s gift to you.” There, visitors can buy the gift cards singly, in bulk or check their balance.
Franklin Covey sent out a nifty postcard recently that opens up like an origami present. Inside was an offer to save $20 on any $100 purchase. The timing could have been a bit better—I had already recycled the most recent FC catalog that had arrived a week earlier—but still it was a eyecatching piece. Sadly, no synergy when you arrived at http://www.franklincovey.com.
Finally, we’ve got Staples, which is centering its holiday marketing on a campaign featuring “The Department of Unexpected Gifts.” In the television ads, shoppers are advised by members of the department – including Sweater Lady (a stocking stuffer expert), Taste Maker (a style-obsessed fashionista) and Englebert Humperdink (yes, the Englebert Humperdink)—about what to buy their loved ones this season.
The Department does indeed have an office on Staples.com, where visitors can access profiles of all the members (Englebert is an expert on digital cameras, love songs and sideburns, FYI); video from the commercials; and of course, gift ideas.
To steal their own line, for Staples, holiday marketing synergy was …easy.
