Is this the Christmas where AI changed advertising? Perhaps it’s not that simple, but some solid marketing rules make Coke’s AI Christmas truck effort a winner, writes Andrew Tindall, senior vice president of global partnerships, System1.
Coke’s AI-Generated version of “Holidays Are Coming” is a brilliant ad, which performs exceptionally on all three of System1’s major predictive metrics. At least, it is when people don’t know it’s done by AI. The brand has faced industry and press backlash over its version of the classic “Christmas Trucks” ad, but in System1’s tests the ad gets our top mark for long-term effectiveness, a huge 5.9-Stars (on a scale of 1 to 5.9) and Exceptional results for short-term sales and brand recognition. So what’s going on here?
We didn’t tell any of the survey respondents that it was an AI-made ad. They just saw another great Coca-Cola Christmas commercial. But when brands have talked up AI involvement, they’ve sometimes faced a vocal backlash, and ads like Google’s controversial Olympics spot were ultimately withdrawn. That mirrors other consumer studies where people’s willingness to try a service dropped when AI was included in the feature set.
The fact is that while many people are uncomfortable with the concept of AI generated ads, that isn’t rooted in their actual reaction to the work. Once you know an ad is AI, it’s easy to look out for telltale signs – but did any of our respondents complain about Santa’s strange fingers, or the way the trucks’ wheels glide instead of spin? No – not a single person mentioned AI in their comments.
So this leaves brands interested in using AI in their Christmas ads with a tricky festive dilemma. How can brands use AI well? What lessons do Coke – and other brands who’ve made 5-star AI-generated or themed ads, like Hotel Chocolat or Adobe offer? Here are three.
Be consistent: One place to start is creative consistency. What people love about the Coke ad is consistency, not technology. The magic of “Holidays Are Coming” isn’t in the new tricks AI can show – it’s in the old, time-tested ideas. The Coke Trucks have become an unshakeable part of many people’s Christmas – for some, the “Holidays Are Coming” ad is the true start of the festive season. The AI ad works for viewers because it sticks so closely to the brand assets which have been established for almost 30 years – the trucks, the lights, the Christmas trees and Santa himself.
As our recent Compound Creativity report shows, this kind of creative consistency is often the most powerful tool a brand has. So brands using AI well at Christmas should build on their proven characters, Fluent Devices and brand assets. Use the technology to put a fresh spin on what’s already proven to work.
Be human: For brands who are explicit about using AI in their ads, or who are promoting AI services and products, we’ve seen a big range of public response. The key difference is between the ads which show AI as helping humans and those which suggest AI can replace them. So Google’s ad with a man using AI to write a fan letter from his daughter fell flat, but Adobe’s spot with a little girl using it to create her ideal birthday invitation hit 5-Stars with no backlash. The Adobe spot showed a kid bringing her imagination to life – the Google one showed an adult delegating a job that needed real human expression. There’s a world of difference.
Brands can apply this thinking to Christmas ads in lots of ways. Saving time on recipe suggestions or bringing Christmas card ideas to life? Fine. Outsourcing a thank you letter to ChatGPT? Maybe not. The key is to think of ways AI can genuinely enhance the human element of Christmas, not push it out the way.
Additionally, Coca-Cola’s iconic Coke Trucks tour scored an outstanding 4.8 Star Rating on System1’s Test Your Innovation platform—the highest-rated Christmas activation this year. Consumers highlighted the social and fun aspects of these in-person experiences, emphasising the enduring value of real, human moments in their marketing strategy.
While AI plays a central role in their TV campaigns, Coca-Cola has skilfully balanced technological advancements with tangible, human touchpoints, proving the power of blending innovation with tradition.
Be careful: Coke’s maximum score shows that AI can produce work that’s just as emotionally engaging as any other ad – with the right ideas and assets behind it, of course. But at this stage in the technology’s development there is still a whole lot of suspicion out there, and some brands will find it easier to win acceptance than others. For a big brand, there’s pushback around cost savings. As the novelty of AI wears off, people become aware that a main reason to use it is saving money on production, so the ‘costly signalling’ element of a big, lavish campaign can be under threat.
But for small brands this is less of a worry. Nobody expects a small, challenger brand to have money to throw around and AI done right really does offer a “blockbuster on a budget” solution for small brands to bring big ideas to the screen. One great example is Hotel Chocolat, who became the first brand to score 5-Stars with an AI-generated ad early this year. Consumers loved their fantasy-fuelled ad full of inventive graphics – the brand didn’t shout about using AI and there was no detectable backlash to it. So a small brand using the technology carefully has more of a chance of making their Christmas dream come true.
The magic of testing is that it’s objective. If something works, it works, and we’ve seen AI ads like the Coke one perform as well as any Christmas ad we’ve ever tested. But testing is a more important step than ever because there’s so much controversy around the technology. Brands who are consistent, human and careful about using it can get the most out of AI at Christmas, and for small brands especially the opportunities are massive.
