When you think about the big man in red, you might think about his sleigh or how he manages to deliver every present across the entire world in one night. Or even how on earth he fits down the chimney after a mince pie at every single house!

But, people don’t necessarily think about the power he pulls in the marketing scene – when you start piecing it all together, Santa is actually an expert in marketing.

Coca Cola

A lot of people will say Christmas hasn’t begun until they see the Coca Cola truck rolling through town and this is probably the most widely recognised use of Santa in marketing.

It’s not only that advert where Coca Cola use Santa to its advantage, their Christmas ad for this year is all about him too. If you’ve not seen it, we’ve compiled all of 2023’s best Christmas ads.

Santa on the Big Screen

If you think Margot Robbie & Ryan Gosling are this year’s biggest movie stars, you’d be wrong! If we counted how many films Santa has appeared in, Christmas would have been and gone.

Cinema schedules in December are overflowing with Christmas movies, from household favourites like The Grinch to new additions – the festive season offers many unique ways for brands to advertise themselves.

Old School Santa

It’s not just in recent years that Santa has been seen promoting the most wonderful time of year.

The image below is from 1915 and it’s one of the first known uses of Santa Claus to market a product. The big man in red, black and white can be seen riding a sleigh full of White Rock water and different toys.

Image credit: White Rock

Santa Merchandise

Want a t-shirt with Santa on it? You’ve got it! A big inflatable Santa that is half the size of your house? That’s yours!

You name it and you can almost guarantee you’ll be able to find a product that involves Santa in one way or another. Santa merchandise is a real money spinner at this time of year, with almost every shop selling something with Santa or another Christmassy delight on it.

It is predicted that in the UK this year (according to VoucherCodes) shoppers are going to part with £84.9 billion on their festive shopping – you can just imagine how much of this has gone on Santa merch.

Conclusion

As our last blog of 2023 draws to a close, we want to recognise the true marketing expert, Santa. From the big screen to social campaigns, the big man in red has done it all.

All of the ads creative solutions team would like to wish you a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. We look forward to producing more articles in 2024.