Best Buy’s War on Santa
The Best Buy advertising campaign for this year’s Christmas season is a bit disturbing.
And arrogant.
And just plain mean.
While the famous store is trying to show off its supposedly low prices for certain items and price matching guarantee, the way that the shoppers rub it into Santa’s face in the commercials is downright awful.
Best Buy TV commercial — Game On, Santa — Gifts Under $100
The commercial starts with a shopper and Best Buy store worker talking about all of the trendy gifts priced under $100. No problems there. But once the store worker mentions that, “Santa better watch out,” things take a serious turn.
The commercial then cuts to Christmas Eve and Santa arriving in the shopper’s home, surprised to find that the stockings are already filled with presents. Standing in the doorway and watching is the same woman we saw shopping in the store. Instead of greeting Santa and being glad that he’s paying her home a visit, she instead becomes a bitch and belittles him, commenting that she didn’t leave any room for his presents in her family’s stockings.
Oh, but she does offer Santa some advice. Her little puppy is holding a tiny stocking, and she tells Santa that he’s more than welcome to fill his little stocking.
What . . . a . . . bitch!
It’s a wonder that Santa didn’t rip her stocking off the mantle and fill it with reindeer droppings.
Best Buy TV commercial — Game On, Santa — Price Match Guarantee
The other Best buy commercial starts out with a different woman shopper talking to a Best Buy worker about price matching. Again, no problems there. Price matching is a great way to stay competitive in the industry. But after the store worker says, “Look out, Santa,” things take another arrogant turn for the worse.
This time around we see Santa leaving some cologne for the father. But as he’s placing it underneath the Christmas tree, the woman turns on the brand new 40″ LCD HDTV and surprises him. She shakes her head and tells him that his simple but no less thoughtful gift is unwanted. Since Santa wasn’t delivering the latest electronic gadgets, his gifts are basically junk. Garbage. Refuse. You get the picture.
Again we’re seeing the bitchiness of what are portrayed as Best Buy shoppers.
These recent Best Buy TV commercials have successfully helped destroy the spirit of giving and reiterated the current downward theme of materialism over family values.
It’s no secret that Christmas time means big business for the retail stores. I don’t have any problems with that or purchasing gifts for family and friends. However, I am a big believer that American society as a whole has shifted way too far to the materialism side of the holiday season versus spending time and being there for the ones you love. But that’s a different issue entirely.
What Best Buy has shown is that their marketing department has poor taste with Christmas humor. Ironically, despite portraying Santa and welcoming the Christmas shoppers with open arms, you’ll be hard pressed to hear workers wish you a Merry Christmas. If they say anything it’s usually that generic, politically correct “Happy Holidays!” crap repeated over and over and over by waaaaaay too many people and advertisements.
I’m glad that Best Buy appears to have declared war on Santa Claus. I was never a big fan of their stores (their everyday prices are too expensive), and now I have a great reason to never step another foot inside of one. Sometimes I have a hard time deciding where to spend my hard earned money. At least Best Buy crossed themselves off my list. Thanks!
Seriously, Best Buy, don’t screw around with Santa. Your commercials aren’t funny, and based on many comments that I’ve seen online, lots of parents are upset when their children see the commercials and take the bad jokes against Santa the wrong way.
Re: Best Buy’s War on Santa Article
I agree with so much stated in that article. When I first saw the commercials I was immediately put off for several reasons: 1) Because they portray women who have shopped at Best Buy as smart-ass know-it-all bitches. 2) Of those commercials I’ve seen so far it’s always a woman being the “meanie.” [Oh, oh, that's right, excuse me, men don't shop at Christmas time and/or during the Holiday Season at Best Buy (or anytime or anywhere else for that matter). They just give their "wish lists" to their mothers, aunts, sisters, girlfriends, wives, or mistresses. Men would never ever go shopping to buy something for someone else, and they certainly wouldn't be trying to find any "bargins" like "Game On, Santa" Gifts under $100. They don't need to; generally, they make more money than women do.] 3) The Best Buy advertising campaign for this year’s Christmas season is just plain “MEAN SPIRTIED.”
Way to go Best Buy! You’ve just totally alienated another person who may have been a potential customer. Yes, person, a citizen of this country. Not merely a “consumer.” A person with “awareness,” who pays attention to things and can judge for themselves whether something offends them or not. Not just some mindless zombie with a credit card looking to ease the seasonal and perpetual frantic bombardment of cultural and commercial pressures to buy, buy, buy, and spend, spend, spend beyond our means by putting money we don’t have into the coffers of Best Buy and other Corporations we no longer like in the least or trust. Something to think about. Are any of your offerings made in the USA? What percentage if any? Are you a U.S. owned company? Just wondering.
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