What luxury brands should mind when prepping for holiday campaigns

Harrods' Christmas World

Luxury brands such as Harrods and Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton have already begun their holiday campaigns, but the possibility of a double-dip recession should make brands think twice about their holiday plans.

In light of recent economic uncertainties, affluent consumers are reluctant to maintain the spending habits of which they have become re-accustomed. However, as brands begin brainstorming the biggest spending time of the year, they should keep in mind that the market may make or break this holiday season.

“Whatever the outcome of the decision, [next week] is going to have an impact on most brands, especially in the retail area,” said Rex Whisman, president of BrandED Consultants Group, Denver, CO. “Right now, most people are in a holding pattern that makes it a challenge for brands because they can’t just put it on hold.

“The next couple of weeks are going to impact and help set the course for the campaign planning for brands, especially during the holidays,” he said.

Further Christmas
Luxury brands have already started their marketing for the December holidays.

For instance, British department store Harrods has released a video and images to celebrate the opening of its new Christmas store.

Christmas comes early to Harrods

The video entails a security guard chasing an intruder throughout the store, who keeps stealing things.

The guard follows the intruder out to the roof, where he sees Santa Claus wearing luxury apparel and ice skating on top of the department store.

The video was shot on July 27 on the Harrods rooftop, and the video and images of the new Christmas World were released yesterday.

The department store wanted to create a campaign that was both surprising for its customers and also tongue-in-cheek given the nature of launching Christmas in July, according to Harrods.

Harrods’ Christmas World

Harrods is also launching a contest where consumers can count the number of times that Freddie the Christmas Bear is seen in its video.

Consumers are encouraged to email their full name, phone number and number of times they see the bear to christmas@harrods.com.

The winner will get to meet Santa Claus at the Harrods grotto that opens in November.

Additionally, crystal maker Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton has started sending emails to promote savings in-store or online on Christmas tree ornaments and other holiday items.

Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton Christmas email

Thin ice
Since the state of the economy will be uncertain in three or six months, is it rational for brands to start shelling out a lot of money on campaigns if they may not get return revenue?

“Brands are in a tough spot right now,” Mr. Whisman said. “How do you predict what is going to happen?

“However, gut instinct says that it is going to be a year where people cut back,” he said.

Therefore, brands could advertise in ways that are minimal but are still keeping them aligned with core values.

“Some companies run the risk of sending out a double message,” Mr. Whisman said. “They’ll be saying that we should tighten our belts, but still spend money.”

However, it could be dangerous, especially in the luxury industry, if brands do not push ahead with business as usual.

Consumer confidence may be slipping and the economy around the holidays is uncertain (see story), but this does not mean that it will affect the luxury industry as much as other industries.

Even in the throws of the recession in 2008, the most affluent consumers were never actually affected.

“The industry did not entirely collapse during the worst of the economic crisis, and there were those who even saw positive growth because they focused on building stronger relationships with its core customers,” said Courtney Albert, consultant on marketing and branding for Parker Avery, Atlanta.

“The way of managing luxury for a long time was not to adapt to the times and there was not an urgent need to be more innovative with marketing, if they had a marketing strategy at all,” she said. “This recent crisis taught us all that if businesses are going to survive, they have to differentiate themselves even more than just at the product level or through traditional advertising outlets.

“There has been a sharp increase within the luxury industry, with many brands leading the way in terms of effective marketing campaigns, and focusing more on the individual customer rather trying to create a generic experience or a one-size-fits-all approach.”

Final Take
Rachel Lamb, associate reporter on Luxury Daily, New York

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Tags: BrandED Consultants Group, Christmas, Courtney Albert, Harrods, holiday campaigns, Internet, luxury, luxury marketing, Multichannel, Parker Avery, Rex Whisman, social media, Waterford Wedgwood Royal Doulton