OTTO Christmas Campaign: gift the most precious thing you have

In its campaign, OTTO reminds us of the incalculable value of a free gift – taking time for another person. This short film for Christmas tells the story of a stressful year in the life of a three-person family. Between balancing work, school and other commitments, the protagonists fail to notice that they are always passing each other by. The animated film, by award-winning director Marc Craste (Studio AKA, UK, known for his work on animated movies including Pocahontas), gradually reveals that the family members are moving along the hands of an oversized clock. At the end of the year – by which time the hands of the clock are turning at a dizzyingly fast pace – mother, father and son threaten to drift apart for ever. Only with their combined strength do they manage to stop the clock and unite the family again. It is Christmastime. The message is: ‘Gift the most precious thing you have: time’.

“Christmastime is the most important season in the e-commerce calendar. At no other time of year are customers bombarded with as many advertising messages, which makes it even more important for us to approach our target group with an emotive message and leave a lasting impression with our campaign”, explains Marc Opelt, Member of the OTTO Management Board, Marketing & Sales. “Our wish is for our customers to find plenty of time for themselves and their family, particularly over the festive season.”

Linking in with the online animation, which will be broadcast on TV as a teaser from 22 November onwards, OTTO is also creating an opportunity to spread joy to other people very easily with the launch on 17 November of the‘Gifting Time’ (ZeitGeschenke) microsite. The site offers hundreds of gifting-time ideas, which can be sent to friends via Facebook and other social media channels. In terms of its look and feel, the site ties in with the Christmas animation, taking the user on a journey through the 3D-animated world of the film. Users who login using Facebook Connect will receive highly relevant suggestions for gifting time based on their profile information, which takes into account friends, family members, their location as well as hobbies and interests. The digital idea was brought to life by the agency Artificial Rome.

Key facts about the new OTTO Christmas Campaign at a glance:

Format: online film (120”) on Facebook/YouTube and the microsite; TV trailer (27” and 20”), display ads and pre-rolls
In addition, a microsite on Gifting Time at http://www.otto.de/zeitgeschenke(at otto.de and in the OTTO app)
Campaign period: 22 November – 31 December. TV ad, cut-ins during programmes, display flights, pre-release of animation on social media
Conception: HEIMAT, Berlin
Production: OPTIX / Studio AKA
Media planning: Pilot Hamburg
Director: Marc Craste / Studio AKA, London
Music: self-production / reinterpretation of ‘Time after Time’ by Cindy Lauper, Wiesbaden Women’s Choir. The song will be available for download at otto.de once the campaign starts.
Campaign insight: the most precious thing we have is time. Particularly at Christmastime we should give more of this to those who matter most to us.
An accompanying Christmas competition will be launched at:http://www.otto.de/gewinnspiel once the campaign starts