Sainsbury's declaration of war: #ChristmasIsForSharing

Commemorative WW1 chocolate: picture from The Guardian

What can we say about Sainsbury's 2014 Christmas TV commercial?

1. It has almost no product placement (like John Lewis);
2. At nearly 4 minutes, it is much longer than John Lewis);
3. It tugs at the emotional heartstrings (like John Lewis);
4. It "might not drive footfall directly, but it will build brand love and strengthen the consumer connection" (Marketing magazine), (just like John Lewis).

Or, as The Independent's headline put it, "Sainsbury's Christmas advert is like a 4-minute 'f*** you' to John Lewis and Monty the penguin".  At the time of writing the video on YouTube is being watched around 150,000 times every hour. In the 24 hours since the ad was screened 100,000 people have 'liked it' on Facebook.  There are 200 comments being posted about it on Twitter every hour.

The 2014 Sainsbury's Christmas advertisement replays the episode, almost 100 years ago, when enemies on the front line in World War I suspended hostilities on Christmas Day and joined in spontaneous acts of friendship with 'the enemy'.  It taps into growing public interest in the anniversary of the start of the war, and builds on a long-term 'Corporate Social Responsibility' (CSR) link that the company has with the Royal British Legion.

So is this all about John Lewis?  According to the press, yes.  Sainsbury's learned from John Lewis in 2013 that when you build brand, trust and emotional engagement, this translates into sales.  Sainsbury's shares the same sort of customer demographic as John Lewis, but has been losing market share throughout 2014.  The biggest spender on advertising in 2013 was Tesco, but their sales dropped over the crucial Christmas period.  Sainsbury's will engage with its audience: that's the plan, at least.

The small piece of product placement in the advertisement is a bar of chocolate.  It is available in stores for a modest £1.  The chocolate is made in Ypres, Belgium, the centre of some of the most bloody fighting in WW1.  All profits are being donated to the Royal British Legion which has historically looked after the interests of ex-servicemen.  The gesture looks generous alongside John Lewis's merchandising of Monty the Penguin.  Their £95 replica of Monty sold out in hours, but there was no associated charitable giving.

No doubt this stunning piece of film is going to win Sainsbury's and their creative team some advertising awards.  It is likely to win the hearts and minds of many who watch the advertisement.  The choice of war is a risky one: who wants to be reminded of its horrors?  But, as the press reminds us, supermarkets are engaged in their own battles and this campaign is one that Sainsbury's hope will go their way.

Postscript: in the hour that it has taken to write this post, Sainsburys's advertisement has been viewed nearly 200,000 times on YouTube.