December 4th, 2013

Ads of the Week: h.h. gregg’s “Black Friday Weekend” & Duracell’s “Very Special Batteries”

Author

Ace Metrix

Last week was not only a big week in retail, it was also our biggest week so far for holiday ads. It should be no surprise then that both ads this week are holiday-themed—one focusing on Black Friday and the other full of the Christmas spirit.

Ad of the Week: Category Overachiever
Since it was such a big week in retail, it is only fitting that electronics and appliance retailer h.h. gregg earn this week’s title of Category Overachiever. Their Black Friday spot “Black Friday Weekend” received an Ace Score of 590, a score over 20% above the Other Stores – Retail category norm. At first glance, this ad may seem like a common retail commercial—flashy sales, a strong voiceover, the latest products—however, a dive into the analytics reveals specific elements that made this spot so successful.

h.h. gregg aired two other Black Friday commercials that were nearly identical to “Black Friday Weekend”, and while the ads scored well, they still scored below this winning spot. The major difference between each ad? The description of when the Black Friday sale was taking place.

In one of the other Black Friday ads, it mentioned that the sale “starts Thursday at 8 PM.” As you may already be concluding, over 6% of respondents who left an optional verbatim negatively cited that the sale was starting on Thanksgiving. However, in “Black Friday Weekend” the voiceover says the sale “continues through Saturday,” without mentioning when it begins; consequently, many consumers positively noticed that h.h. gregg was extending its Black Friday prices through Saturday.

“Black Friday Weekend” ample sale hours and product pricing helped boost Information and Desire scores.

Men and women ages 21–35 and 36–49 were particularly responsive to h.h. gregg’s Black Friday deals as they rated the ad over 20% and 14% higher, respectively, than consumers ages 50+.

Now that the turkey’s carved and Black Friday has come and gone, we are expecting to see exponential growth in holiday-focused advertising. Which is why we’re not surprised both winning ads this week have holiday-themed creative.

Watch this year’s winning Ads of the Week by Category Overachievers.

Ad of the Week: Top Ace Score
The holidays are a magical time. Twinkling lights, children’s smiling faces, gently falling snowflakes and gifts galore are just a few things that get people in that happy holiday mood. This week Duracell has managed to take all of those holiday essentials and fit them into a winning 30-second spot. “Very Special Batteries” debuted last week with an Ace Score of 658, which not only makes it the highest scoring Ad of the Week but also the #1 rated holiday ad to debut so far.

This heart-felt spot is certainly not the first philanthropic ad Duracell has created. Duracell is unique in that nearly every ad it airs includes the mention of giving back. This creative feature seems to work wonders with consumers. Duracell has made appearances in two of our past Top Holiday Ads lists taking 3rd in 2012 and 5th in 2011.

Women powered this spot to the top, rating it over 8% higher, on average, than men.

While the Duracell brand has always been strong on our Emotional Sentiment index, “Very Special Batteries” really moved the needle emotionally. Charming Christmas-y visuals combined with the charitable message increased the Emotional Sentiment score nearly 32% above the brand’s average and 63% above the average ad.

Consumers who rated this ad were not only impressed by this ad’s visuals and message but also with the Duracell Company as a whole.

With this ad, we’re proud to have Duracell top our lists once again. And, for those who are taking notes, this is the second altruistic-minded holiday ad to win Ad of the Week this season. Will the theme of philanthropy continue as we head into the sparkling-Santa-filled depths of holiday advertising?

Watch this year’s winning Ads of the Week by Ace Score.

AD TITLE

{{ title }}

BRAND

CATEGORY

{{ category }}

AIR DATE

{{ date }}

ACE SCORE

{{ rank }}

Scroll To Top