BABY JESUS OR SANTA CLAUS? HOW CZECH CHRISTMAS ADS DIFFER FROM FOREIGN ADVERTISING

23. 12. 2022 | 7 min read Advent marks the beginning of a period when advertisers’ budgets are releasing larger sums of money into TV marketing. This is driven not only by the desire to thank their customers and wish them a prosperous new year, but also by the motivation to catch up with sales targets in the fourth quarter. According to statistics, investment in Christmas advertising rose by a billion in 2021 compared to the previous year. In recent years, many online retailers have joined traditional brand advertisers. TV advertising is valued by consumers as a great source of inspiration for Christmas shopping and also tops the charts in terms of relevance of recommendations and trust in the quality and value of products. In recent years, Christmas campaigns have also often been an unofficial competition to see who can film the spot that captures the audience’s heart, sticks best in their mind or (even) goes viral. TV ADVERTISING IS THE MOST CRUCIAL IN INFLUENCING CHRISTMAS SHOPPING BEHAVIOUR According to RTU, Christmas advertising has a big influence on what gifts people buy for their loved ones. According to research by Nielsen Admosphere, almost two-thirds of Czechs are influenced by Christmas advertising and the percentage of women is higher than men. Of course, with the popularity of social networks, customers are also inspired by other platforms, but they are only third on the scale. In the second place there’s the good old fashioned 'word of mouth', i.e. a recommendation from someone we know. But TV spots are still the best advisor when deciding on a gift for our loved ones. CZECH CHRISTMAS ADVERTISING HAS ITS SPECIFICS Most of the Czech commercials have one factor in common - fun. In the past, brands were often afraid to go down this route, but this tendency has been visibly modified in the Czech environment in recent years, and the domestic scene is gravitating towards funny ads. Czech creatives are not too keen on theatrical film environments and deeply moving advertising. Maybe it is due to a different culture or a limited budget, but as the creators of the 2006 spot for Vodafone with Petr Čtvrtníček proved, even with a small budget, Czechs can make funny and functional advertising that then goes viral on the Internet. NARRATIVE COMMERCIALS LIKE THE BRITISH ARE RARELY SEEN IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC Although Czech advertising (not only Christmas advertising) is to some extent influenced by foreign countries, it still keeps the Czech distinctive mentality at the forefront. Unlike the Czechs, British marketers try to create mostly touching and emotional content for Christmas. The preparation, execution and processing of advertising, which relies primarily on the story and the overall atmosphere, requires precise execution as well as a high budget. To make commercials such as those created by John Lewis, a legend of Christmas advertising, is a very high standard in terms of Czech budgets. Although it is not impossible, domestic filmmakers more often bet on easier (cheaper) forms of the concept.

TYPICALLY CZECH CHRISTMAS. IN THE CZECH REPUBLIC, HOLIDAY ADVERTISING IS HANDLED DIFFERENTLY, THE CREATORS ARE NOT AFRAID OF CONTROVERSIAL HUMOUR OR SERIOUS MESSAGES

8. 12. 2022 | 16 min read Czech Christmas ads are a category in themselves. It’s quite possible that abroad they would look in disbelief and awe at, for example, a Kofola pig, while for us the ad is the epitome of Christmas spirit. Of course, Czechs are no strangers to classically emotional and serious spots, and even excel at them. But the big domestic specificity is the fact that the most memorable advertising achievements are largely humorous pieces. Even so, they combine what we always look forward to at Christmas. The two categories then complement each other beautifully on the screen, creating a commercial mix that suggests that Christmas really is just around the corner! THE UNDYING LEGEND: KOFOLA - THE GOLDEN PIGGY Even Czechs have their own advertising that de facto heralds Christmas. Just as the UK has their John Lewis, we have our wild boar, but it lacks something to the golden one. The legendary Christmas advert doesn't seem to have aged at all since 2003, when it first appeared on TV screens. Unlike John Lewis, who year after year comes up with new original spots exquisitely rich in narrative, this domestic gem has made do with a few basic remasters and adaptations over nearly twenty years. The spot brilliantly combines honoring popular Christmas traditions with typical Czech situational humor. The main role here is played by the superstition of the golden pig that appears to those who fast on Christmas Eve. The popular catchphrase "No, I don't have to, I can see it already." is proof that this superstition can take on a whole new dimension when you go into the woods. This year, however, the re-launch of the ad will have a sad touch - on 1 November, its author Robert Peňažka died after a long illness. But for this achievement alone he will certainly never be forgotten, even though he himself admitted that no one expected the ad to become such a success. "With Kofola, the intention was not to create a legendary campaign at all, but to come up with a good Christmas campaign. That's the main ingredient. If you do it right, it will pay off and it has a chance to become a legend," he recalled in 2020. Well, in this case, he succeeded brilliantly.

WHY E-COMMERCE MARKETERS SHOULD EXPERIMENT WITH FORMATS & WORK WITH CREATIVE PARTNERS

6. 12. 2022 | 5 min read TV advertising has returned as a desirable marketing format post-pandemic. New research from Thinkbox shares why it’s proving so successful, its cost efficiency and how marketers can embrace this change.

CHRISTMAS TV ADS 2022

1. 12. 2022 | 2 min read Thinkbox made a list, checked it twice, and created a gallery to fulfil your Christmas ad wishes.

CANADA STUDY: INSPIRATION FOR BUYING CHRISTMAS PRESENTS IS DELIVERD FROM TV ADS

28. 11. 2022 | 1 min read Recent research realized by Cint has confirmed that 89% of people pay attention to Christmas adverts on TV, and a large nr of people also take inspiration from these adverts to buy Christmas presents.

WHY MARKETERS NEED TO OPTIMISE MEDIA INVESTMENT IN THE COST-OF-LIVING CRISIS

26. 11. 2022 | 6 min read The cost-of-living crisis presents marketers with perhaps an even bigger challenge than the pandemic. They will need to optimise media investment, writes Azerion’s Paul Lowrey.

THE FESTIVE SEASON IN BRITISH RETAIL GOT OFF TO AN EARLY START THIS YEAR

25. 11. 2022 | 2 min read It´s Christmass already knocking on the door and the holiday season in british retail has started early this year. The cost of living crisis is forcing struggling shoppers to spread their Christmas shopping over a longer period and supermarkets are responding by deploying festive campaigns earlier.

PRIMA WILL AGAIN PRESENT A COMEDY AT HOME ON CHRISTMAS EVE

25. 11. 2022 | 1 min read The Christmas broadcast of television Prima is based on traditional programmes, on Christmas eve it will broadcast a comedy alone at home.

NOVA DEPLOYS THREE PEANUTS FOR CINDERELLA, VOYO KING OF ŠUMAVA AT CHRISTMAS

11. 11. 2022 | 2 min read The main Christmas fairy tale on TV Nova will be the fairy tale Three nuts for Cinderella. the video platform Voyo will premiere the miniseries King of Šumava.

WHY METAPHORS IN ADS CONTRIBUTE TO BETTER MEMORABILITY

30. 10. 2022 | 2 min read As consumers are exposed to thousands of advertisements daily, researchers have sought to understand what makes people remember certain brands better than they remember others.

TV IS THE MOST MEMORABLE FORM OF ADVERTISING

28. 10. 2022 | 1 min read This month’s Chart of the Month draws on Thinkbox new ‘Adnormal Behaviour’ study - a refreshed version of our landmark ‘Ad Nation’ report from a decade ago. The study explores the differences in media attitudes and behaviours between those who work in media and the average person in the UK. The last wave of the study (conducted in 2016) uncovered a chasm between the media consumption habits of the UK public and media professionals. We commissioned Ipsos to see whether this has changed.

CREATING MEMORABLE CHARACTERS IN ADVERTISING

25. 10. 2022 | 6 min read How character fluent devices support long-term brand building?

UNDERSTANDING THE CREATIVITY OF CANNES WINNERS

16. 9. 2022 | 4 min read Most of the Cannes Lions award-winning campaigns share a similar anatomy, says Neuro-Insight’s Peter Pynta: they lean on the art of storytelling and build creative tension to light up the brain’s emotional centres and drive memorability.

WHEN MUSIC IS THE LAST STEP TO PERFECTION: THE WORLD’S TOP 10 ADS THAT BET ON THE POWER MUSIC

6. 9. 2022 | 12 min read Although it may seem at first glance that visual play the primary role in TV advertising, this is not so true. By the very nature of television as an audiovisual medium, it is obvious that the audio component has a firm and irreplaceable place in advertising. Music is one of the essential ingredients for success. This is something that many advertisements constantly convince us of, and which we are unable to put out of our minds for a long time afterwards. Sometimes commercials even even herald new music trends, sometimes they are the birth of global superstars. The following ten examples show the creative possibilities of working with music in advertising. All of them are united by the fact that they have an unquestionable place in the golden fund of television advertising. UNITED AIRLINES - RHAPSODY IN BLUE (1995; 2013) Opinions on air travel vary - some love planes, others have an unimaginable horror of them. But whichever one of these two groups you belong to, you can't deny this mode of transport a certain poetry and harmony that takes hold of you when you look out of the boarding window. Since the 1990s, United Airlines has been relying on this aspect of travel, urging its customers to „fly towards the friendly skies”. The campaign, which first drew attention to the fact that flying is actually a matter of customer comfort, has to some extent set the course for the airline industry. It's no wonder that United Airlines revived it a few years ago to the same success, banking mainly on the nostalgia of those who remember the original iteration. But time-tested things are not to be changed, which is why the original musical identity has been retained. Indeed, United Airlines is already so closely associated with American composer George Gershwin's symphony Rhapsody In Blue that it can hardly be claimed by anyone else - despite the fact that since the composer's death, the time limit for retaining the original copyright has passed. For it is hard to argue that the combination of Gershwin and planes criss-crossing the blue sky is not a visual symphony in itself.

PRIMA WANTS TO INCREASE MARKET SHARE WITH AUTUMN SCHEME

29. 8. 2022 | 12 min read New shows in the autumn schedule of TV Prima's main channel should contribute to a further increase in the Prima Group's share of the TV market, believes CEO Marek Singer.

SERIOUSLY FUNNY: CAN HUMOUR HELP BRANDS THROUGH AN ECONOMIC CRISIS?

15. 8. 2022 From 2020 till now, it seems the bad news is never-ending. From a pandemic to a war, now we have to contend with the cost-of-living crisis. Aye, yai, yai. What next?! We all sigh, deliberately not clicking on the latest monkeypox article. To quote TikTok, we do not have the capacity.

SERIOUSLY FUNNY: CAN HUMOUR HELP BRANDS THROUGH AN ECONOMIC CRISIS?

9. 8. 2022 | 8 min read Loren Cook and Bronwyn Sweeney are Creative Directors at MullenLowe and certified funny people (according to them). They share their thoughts on why, in the darkest of times, brands should keep looking on the bright side of life.

THE SECRET TO SURVIVING A RECESSION? KEEP ADVERTISING – HERE’S HOW

5. 8. 2022 | 7 min read One popular disinfectant brand came under scrutiny in September of 2020 for launching ads that glorified a return to the office — at a time when many people were still quarantining or enjoying work-from-home life.