Thoughts
Alltel’s Holiday Campaign – Like Getting the Same Present Two Years in a Row
By Kevin Krekeler
Alltel Wireless has brought back its Rankin/Bass-inspired stop-motion ad series for another holiday season. The three national television spots feature the four “Sales Guys” made famous in other Alltel ads on a mission to stop Chad from spreading holiday cheer through Alltel’s popular “My Circle” unlimited-calling plan and low-priced handsets.
The campaign’s first ad features Santa Claus seeking advice from Chad on what cool phones he can get the good boys and girls for the holidays. He also notes which kids (the “Sales Guys”) won’t be getting anything. Naturally, the “Sales Guys” make themselves look silly, and the voiceover mentions the BOGO handset deal.
The second ad shows the “Sales Guys” after they’ve stolen Santa’s letters. Santa comes to the rescue and puts the “Sales Guys” to work licking envelopes in a special part of the North Pole. The spot ends highlighting the “My Circle” plan and its flexible options.
Finally, the third ad features Santa and Chad in the sleigh bringing handsets to all. The “Sales Guys,” up to their antics again, attempt to steal the phones during a “fly-by” in their van. The flying van runs out of power and falls from the sky. The evening is saved, and Santa and Chad continue on giving out phones. The spot ends highlighting the deal for the handset.
So, if you’ve seen these spots or if you can visualize my mediocre summaries in your head, what do you think? Do you think they were effective? I know I can tell you this. The spots, though predictable, are rather entertaining. The “Sales Guys” are sure to make you chuckle, and pulling at the heartstrings of Rankin/Bass classic “Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer” is a sure way to get someone in the holiday spirit. And if that doesn’t work, well shoot, maybe a free phone will!
The production value of this campaign is great. Alltel’s team did a nice job of taking the likenesses of the real-life characters made familiar through other Alltel campaigns and putting them into animation. Alltel captured the holiday spirit without being too cliché and showcased some good deals on its handsets.
The only problem I have with the campaign is that its spots look very familiar. Could it be because Alltel created a similar campaign last year? Yes, it is! Alltel ran the same campaign with similar spots during last year’s holiday season. Although there are no rules against it, it is kind of like getting Christmas sweaters two years in a row. No matter how nice that second Christmas sweater is, the novelty of it is gone. Don’t get me wrong, sticking with what works isn’t a bad idea at all; however, in such a competitive landscape, I need to know something is new for me to really pay attention to it.
Although Alltel’s spots are pretty entertaining in a season typically overloaded with holiday-themed clichés, using the same concept from last year just makes me want to say, “Chad, you’re a ding-dong!”
E-mail the author: Kevin Kerkeler
