We’re nearing the end of another year. Days are short, nights are long, and the hard work you put into preparing for the holiday rush is finally paying off.
As the December mayhem and madness approaches its final crescendo, it’s time for one of our favorite annual topics. Once again, Mischa Communications has gathered for you some of the most touching, heartwarming campaigns of the past 12 months.
Enjoy!
Our Top 3 Heartwarming Ads of the Year
The One Where We Were All Really, Really Worried About the Dog
“Saving Sawyer,” Amazon’s Super Bowl commercial, gives us a dog’s-eye view of post-pandemic life. Sawyer has grown accustomed to his family being home 24/7. So when they return to school and work, he begins to … act out a bit.
Left to his own devices, the previously good boy can’t seem to keep himself out of mischief. Nothing is safe, from table lamps to desk chairs to the kitchen trash to a very unlucky desk chair. He chews up the remote control and runs down the stairs with what appears to be a painting in his mouth.
Seemingly fed up with his antics, the family gathers around the computer. “I like that one,” a child says. Soon, a new dog crate arrives. Sawyer looks on suspiciously. In the next scene, we see that very same dog crate in the backseat of the car with a dog whining inside it.
What is happening? Is Sawyer going to puppy jail? How dare they?!
Fortunately, the story has a happy ending. The crate was never for Sawyer after all. It was purchased to bring him his new doggy BFF, adopted to keep him company (and presumably out of trouble).
The One Where Chevrolet Makes Everyone Cry
Created with help from the Alzheimer’s Association, Chevrolet’s 2023 holiday ad opens on an elderly man discussing his wife’s declining memory saying that she has bad days and good days, and sometimes she doesn’t even recognize him.
Determined to try to get through to her grandmother, the couple’s granddaughter leads her to a 70’s-era Chevy Suburban in the garage, telling her “Let’s make it a good day.”
As she chauffeurs Grandma around town to Bob Denver’s Sunshine on My Shoulders, the light begins to come back into the older woman’s eyes. They pass the places where she grew up, went to school, and fell in love. As grandmother and granddaughter have a conversation about the older woman’s first kiss, she suddenly remembers her husband. “Bill! I need to see Bill!” Returning home, Grandma rushes to Grandpa’s arms and they share a tender kiss as tears run down their faces and the rest of us sob along.
If you look up the definition of bittersweet in the dictionary, we’re pretty sure it’s just a link to this commercial. Better still? It’s actually a fantastic example of “reminiscence therapy” for Alzheimer’s patients.
The One Where Amazon (Literally) Saves Grandma’s Butt
Set to an instrumental version of The Beatles’ In My Life, Amazon’s holiday spot opens on three elderly women sitting on a park bench watching children whiz down a sledding hill. It’s clear from the nostalgia in their eyes that they wish they were among them.
Suddenly, an idea sparks, and the lead character begins to smile. Pulling up the Amazon app on her smartphone, she promptly orders seat cushions, which arrive the very next day.
After some initial confusion from her two friends, the purpose for the seat cushions becomes clear, and they follow her to the top of the hill, place the cushions in their sleds and relieve their childhoods, complete with a flashback of their younger selves on that same hill many years ago.
It’s Time to Get Inspired!
While you likely don’t have the advertising budget of Amazon or Chevrolet, there’s no reason you can’t create your own awe-inspiring marketing campaign on a smaller scale. All it takes is a lot of creativity and a little help from your favorite marketing partner!
Are you ready to get your business on a best-of list like this one? Mischa Communications can help! Let us inspire you!