TV

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Marketing Monday: Merry Kissmas

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In the most recent Friday Find I shared one of my favorite holiday treats. (The non-edible kind. For the edible kind I might need to start a whole new year-round blog. Have you heard of these things called pigs-in-a-blanket?) (Pigs-in-blankets?) Today I'm talking about another favorite holiday treat that also happens to be a marketing spot. And it's food!

Surely most of us are familiar with it: The simplicity that is the genius of turning a classic thing into something it's not, and setting it to music. 

I remember when this ad first came out in 1989, and how fun and different I thought it was, even as a kid. I was captivated. I've enjoyed seeing it every year since, but I otherwise knew nothing about it until I stumbled across this case study that gives a bit of the background and nails what the ad means for me:

"With each passing year, the ad triggers feelings of nostalgia—you can remember when you first saw it, and associate memories of holidays past, making it a tradition in itself.

What may be most impressive, though, is how in just 16 seconds' time, Hershey's somehow gets you into the holiday spirit—and makes you think about grabbing a bag of chocolate Kisses—without saying a single word out loud."

I'm clearly not alone in my nostalgia: 

That's some truly timeless marketing. What's more impressive, possibly, is that the ad only came to be because a marketing exec took a risk and did something he wasn't supposed to do. Check out the Hershey's Archives' story on how the ad came to be. That gamble paid off, and it's now Hershey's longest running commercial to date. It's even inspired tributes (some might say knock-offs).

Bonus #1: It also led me down a rabbit hole of 80s TV commercial nostalgia. Do you remember any of these? I do!

Bonus #2: It also reminded me of these 'give a kiss' ornaments that were all the rage in the 80s. Squeeze their cheeks and Hershey's kiss was waiting for you inside. We had one on our tree growing up, and I want to say it was green. Maybe it was a frog? I don't remember. But man, nostalgia sure will do it every time.

Picture from Pinterest.

Picture from Pinterest.

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Friday Find: Mofongo

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Another New England Friday Find?! 

This week, Red Sox fans all over saw one of the all-time greats play his last game. David Ortiz–better known as Big Papi–walked off the field at Fenway forever. The Sox unfortunately lost, but it matters not. For me, Papi has been synonymous with the Sox for the past 13+ years. I remember in college I started paying more attention to the Sox, going to at least one game every year, and once I was able, going to bars around Fenway when I didn't have a ticket to get in. Perhaps it's no coincidence that it was around the same time that the Sox began their record-shattering sellout streak.  The Red Sox were hot, and being young in Boston to live it was a once in a lifetime experience. 

Big Papi was inseparable from all of that and continued to be the best of Boston long after I left the northeast (I generally keep it clean here, but who among us could forget the magnificent F-bomb he dropped at the game after the marathon bombings?). The only Sox shirt I've ever owned is number 34. So when Papi started showing up on SNL's Weekend Update, I was delighted. Surprised (he can't be that well known to SNL's broad audience, can he?), but delighted. I think these sketches work because he imitates Papi so well, but also because they're funny independent of whether you're familiar with everyone's favorite slugger. 

My husband and I quote these sketches all the time. (Biiiiiig lunch. Mofongo.)

We love you, Papi!

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Friday Find: The Littlest Ninja Warrior

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A friend shared this on Facebook, and I thought it was so sweet. Nicely produced, fun, feel-good, and clearly a dad who loves his kid. What's not to like? It reminded me, too, of the balance beam and bar my own dad built me to help me practice my obsessive love of gymnastics at home when I was a kid.

If you want to help this little girl do more of these, there's a Go Fund Me page set up for donations. I can't vouch for its authenticity or where the money will actually go or any of that, but I thought it was worth mentioning. Happy Friday!