The Power of Storytelling

With their famous annual unveiling, the John Lewis Christmas advert has, somehow, become a national event. The department store chain’s adverts have become entwined in the Christmas tradition thanks to Adam & Eve’s ability to create emotional ads year after year, including Monty the penguin, the sad tale of a lonely man on the moon and Moz the monster. This year the agency sifted through 300 scripts before alighting on one that unites two quintessentially British treasures to spur Christmas shoppers into action at a time when the high street is under mounting pressure.

In a time when the retail industry is experiencing unprecedented turmoil, it seems odd that John Lewis would chose to invest the alleged 5 million into one advert. This year it is reported that TV advertising is expected to decline by £44m to £1.43bn, and cash is instead being diverted to ads on social media. However, John Lewis says its blockbuster Christmas ads are an important investment and thus far have been among the “most effective marketing campaigns in the industry”.

Titled The Boy & The Piano, the ad tells the true story of how a Christmas gift – a piano belonging to Elton's grandmother – went on to inspire the music icon's life, working backwards chronologically from the present day to the moment he received the present from his mum as a young child. One scene, in which an actor nervously plays at a school recital, is expected to bring tears to the eyes of thousands of parents of would-be musicians. The tag line at the end reads, "Some gifts are more than just a gift". The ad reminds customers of that special moment when they’ve given a gift at Christmas time that they know will be treasured forever.

For the first time, the advert is interactive as the dressing room, recording studio and living room sets used in the ad will be open to visitors on the 3rd floor of John Lewis's Oxford Street store. John Lewis have also released a collection of associated merchandise and gifts, including branching out into selling pianos for the first time.

One of the most widely discussed and undeniably meaningful Christmas adverts of the year has surprisingly come from supermarket Iceland, who used their advert to raise awareness of the effects that palm oil plantations can have on forests and the animal species that live in them. With almost four and a half million views on YouTube, there was no question that this advert would have a far reaching effect on its viewers.

The ad wasn't approved because the advert was originally made by the environmental organisation Greenpeace and by law political advertising isn't allowed on TV. Clearcast advised that Greenpeace had to show it wasn't a "political advertiser" before the ad could be approved - but unfortunately wasn't able to do that. The ad has since gone viral on social media, with 13 million views on its Facebook page and more than 90,000 retweets from its Twitter handle. A petition on change.org to "release Iceland's banned Christmas advert on TV" has more than 750,000 signatures.

Whilst these two adverts are wildly different, they both tell a highly emotive story that tug on the heart strings and speak of more than just Christmas. They remind us of the things that make us human – our relationships with one another and the world around us. Using story telling in marketing isn’t a new technique, in fact it’s been around for years. Storytelling has remained a powerful marketing tool because stories communicate messages in highly specific and emotionally impactful ways. They’re memorable, and they give us something to identify with and hold on to. The simple fact of the matter is: every human decision is influenced by emotion and this is why stories sell.