- They actually rebrand Santa in their corporate colours. Yes, Coca-Cola did it originally and now WestJet has turned him blue.
- They've done this before so it's become part of the Christmas tradition with customers and people who like to share cute videos on social media looking out for it.
- Nearly 3 million people have viewed it on Youtube, with over 8,000 likes and only 232 bah humbug dislikes.
- Comments on Youtube are in a whole host of languages showing that this ad has achieved a great global reach.
- Although it cost them to create the ad and supply gifts, they fly to the location anyway and their staff did all the legwork - the amount of amazing PR and impressions they get more than pays for the expenses.
- Corporate storytelling is a powerful medium that builds stimulus for consumers and supports the consumer decision-making process.
- It aligns itself with traditional fairy tales and storytelling with a narrator and a link to a well-known Christmas poem. We know it's going to have a happy ending and it promotes good corporate values.
- It also promotes Christian values, which can be important for Canadian and US firms.
- It's a significant part of their CSR (corporate social responsibility) programme.
- It has changed people's behaviour - comments such as 'this would be my airline of choice if I'm in the region' have been posted.
- They fly to the Dominican Republic so it reinforces our understanding of their service and also encourages us to think about going to a hot country for Christmas.
- It is a universal message so works well as a standardised communication.
Finally, it leaves you with a tear in your eye (even if you try very hard not to succumb) and that's what good Christmas advertising is all about!
Happy Christmas from your No Balls Bloggers!
