Stuart Elliott: What's the Fate of the Christmas Economy?

Many marketers retailers agencies and media companies live for now when they make the mad dash for the Christmas pot of gold at the end of the calendar amp160They39re working as hard as Santa39s elves on holiday campaigns hoping those seasonal sales spiels can cajole consumers into opening their purses and wallets to spend spend and spend some moreSo far this year there39s a fair amount of pitches infused with warm emotion such as a commercial from Macy39s set in a lighthouse about a boy trying to cheer up a girl who has lost her mother amp160There also are the usual hardcharging campaigns that wrap themselves in red and green such as a spot featuring Jan the Toyota dealership receptionist declaring quotThe most magical time of the season to me is Toyotathonquot not to mention all the ads that enlist Kris Kringle as an endorser amp160Here39s looking at you CocaColaOf course no American Christmas would be complete without corny appeals like those from Friskies urging cat owners to quotSave now on their favorites for Friskmasquot and from Bed Bath ampamp Beyond promoting its ubiquitous 20percentoff coupons with print ads carrying the headline quotMerry ClipmasquotTo date the marketing tactics appear to be working for instance a record 659 billion was spent on Nov 27 Cyber Monday up 1 billion from last year39s cybertally amp160Consumer confidence also plays a big part in determining how eager people are to spend but whether the entreaties from Madison Avenue are working can make a differenceSo far so good right amp160But even if 2017 ends on a high note it39s not unreasonable to ask what39s in store for future holiday shopping seasonsFor one thing consumers are getting accustomed to being enticed with deals 365 days a year not just on Black Friday or the 24 hours before Dec 25 amp160Whether it39s shopping online where the sales seemingly never end frequenting dollar stores where discounts are taken for granted or buying from bargaincentric chains like TJ Maxx Marshalls and Nordstrom Rack people are shaking off the belief instilled in them over decades that they have to hurry in quotNowquot before the low prices disappear amp160That urgency was a powerful tool amp160What happens without itAnother concern is the growing difficulties for department stores whose Christmastime ads Santa lands and holiday windows once regularly and reliably stimulated demand for merchandise amp160The diminishing profile of such retailers can39t be good news for those who rely on Christmas to help them finish the year in the blackFor example after Christmas 2018 the Lord ampamp Taylor flagship store in midtown Manhattan will be pared to a quarter of its current size with the rest of the space being taken over by the officesharing firm WeWork amp160quotThe famous Christmas windows should survivequot the New York Times reported but what if they don39t amp160What if all the extensive holiday promotional efforts by department stores disappearOne can imagine watching streaming video on a Thanksgiving some years in the future and hearing the announcers welcome viewers to quotthe annual Amazon Thanksgiving Day ParadequotquotBe sure to stay tuned for the end of the paradequot the announcers will say quotwhen the float bearing Santa Claus and Mrs Claus arrives at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in Edison New Jersey followed by thousands of FedEx UPS and USPS trucks all carrying items ordered by shoppers from amazoncom And if you subscribe to Amazon Prime Ultra Platinum you may want to attend the parade in person your package could be delivered to you wherever you39re standing in the crowd by Amazon DronequotThat39s not a hearty helping of the holiday spirit amp160That39s a dose of bah humbug right out of the Pottersville altuniverse from It39s a Wonderful LifeYet more retailers look as if they39re borrowing a page from the Amazon playbook this season replacing feelgood Christmas ads that tell stories with harderworking promotional campaigns centered on exclusives and loyalty programsDon39t get me wrong I39m not a fan of the overcommercialization of the holidays amp160One of my favorites this time of the year is quotGreen Chritmaquot the humorist Stan Freberg39s mocking of the holiday huckstersBut when so much of the nation39s economy is reliant on consumer spending and so many jobs are derived from brickandmortar retailers I worry about anything that tones down or curtails the holiday cheer that emanates from advertisingSo what the heck bring on the Santa dashing through the snow on a Norelco shaver the Christmas cheer from Miller beeramp160and the Yuletide versions of the Coke polar bearsHappy holidays and a Happy New YearLook for the next Stuart Elliott Report on Wednesday Jan 11Click the social buttons above or below to share this story with your friends and colleaguesThe opinions and points of view expressed in this content are exclusively the views of the author andor subjects and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet Inc management or associated writersamp160amp160amp160amp160amp160amp160amp160amp160amp160amp160

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Stuart Elliott: What's the Fate of the Christmas Economy?

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Stuart Elliott: What's the Fate of the Christmas Economy?

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