The stars are shining for M&S

It seems M&S has replaced Coca Cola as the brand whose advertising we look forward to each year, becoming itself the spirit of Xmas. In the £10 million ad campaign, which broke on TV on 11th November, a plethora of stars come out in force to rejoice in the festive spirit.

Faces appearing include Stephen Fry, James Nesbitt, Phillip Glenister together with the ‘AbFab’ legends Jennifer Saunders and Joanna Lumley. Wallace & Gromit also appear joining M&S commercial regulars Twiggy, Myleene and Noemie.

The ad, which uses the line “Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without ...” pushes products including mince pies, clothing, their online shopping service and of course “that perfect little black dress”.

It takes a humorous look at what makes Christmas perfect and keeps the warm tone so closely associated with M&S advertising. From Fry’s “A little mince. Well it’s only once a year” , Glenister’s cheeky “That girl prancing around in her underwear”, (which received a small handful of complaints to the ASA for his misogynistic Gene Hunt-esque turn) to Lumley’s “Stuffing….your face sweetie” the ad uses iconic British celebrities.

The TV campaign has been a roaring success with Index and Buzz scores significantly higher over the last fortnight compared to the preceding two weeks. A couple of days before the campaign launched the Buzz score was 35, a week later it increased 5 points to 40.

Interestingly, earlier scores in the month may well cast a shadow over the increasing trend to use ads that compare prices to competitors. At the beginning of November, M&S launched a series of press ads that compared the prices of its products with Waitrose’s Essentials range. The ads carried the strapline: “Price checked against Waitrose Essentials. Quality checked by M&S”. Waitrose experienced its highest sales growth in a normal trading week since 2006 the same week these ads were published.

Buzz scores for Waitrose increased from 19 points on 30th October to 24 points by 4th November, however it reverted back to 19 points a week later.

Buzz scores for M&S modestly increased from 31 points on 30th October to 32 points by 4th November, however bucked the trend Waitrose experienced and continued climbing to an impressive 37 points a week later.

As Christmas approaches, M&S will be hoping that its adverts encourage footfall to be in a strong position to give its rivals a run for their money over the festive period.

Marks & Spencer vs. Waitrose