Being a Marketer Kinda Makes the Holidays Taste Like Sour Eggnog
‘Tis the season to be reminding everyone else in the world that ’tis the season to buy your shit.
Starbucks had its “12 Days of Sharing”
Modcloth had its “12 Days in Giftland”
Yelp did “12 Days of Yelpmas” in my last email newsletter
And this kitten-themed site not only enjoyed the obvious pun (“CATmas!”) but also delights us with “snow-falling” javascript and background music. You were warned about the background music.
Marketers love to talk about Christmas. Just like we love to bring up Valentine’s Day and Presidents’ Day and Memorial Day and the 4th of July and the Summer Olympics and Back-to-School and Spring Break!! and any other reason we can use to remind you how our product fits into your daily life.
Marketers also hate January, especially now that “The Big Game” is in Feb (we’re not allowed to say “Superbowl“). I don’t really mind it during all those other times of year. Writing a blog post about Mother’s Day sales is the perfect way to remember to buy something for my own mom.
But like…I’m not going to forget about Christmas.
And now that I’m on the other end of the sales coin (that’s an expression, right?), I spend my holidays thinking up Christmas tweets and blog posts and campaigns and then it dawns on me that I’m actually using Christmas for personal and job-related gain.
(DID YOU HEAR ME? I’M USING CHRISTMAS!!).
And it’s not just me – it’s all of us marketers. Those Coolwhip commercials I used to adore (remember? the dog had reindeer antlers!), the chimney flavored latte at my local coffee chain, seasonal discounts, candy-cane-covered socks they sell at Target, ABC holiday specials, even the funky Google easter eggs – they no longer glow with the magic of selfless holiday cheer. Those companies all have Megans too, planning and developing events and products to coincide with the emotional high of the holidays.
Sneaky, sneaky marketers. It’s a shocker no one is on to us yet.
