Insight

John Lewis wins nation’s heart for second year in a row

John Lewis wins nation’s heart for second year in a row

The ‘Monty the Penguin’ advert has been seen by 59% of UK adults so far this year, beating the adverts from Sainsbury’s (51%), Aldi (46%) and Marks and Spencer (45%). The trend from last year has continued, with a larger number of women than men recalling seeing John Lewis’s ad (66% of women vs 51% of men).

John Lewis stays as the nation’s favourite

Not only has John Lewis won the battle to get recognized, but they have also produced the nation’s favourite yet again, with 39% of those having seen an advert this year saying ‘Monty the penguin’ was their favourite.

John Lewis wins nation's heart for second year in a row

However, Sainsbury’s did make a good running this year, with a quarter (26%) picking it as their favourite advert, significantly higher than the 9% that said Sainsbury’s ad was their favourite last year. Still, this did not stop just under half (46%) of women choosing ‘Monty the Penguin’ as their favourite, giving John Lewis’ contribution a clear lead and securing the advert as this year’s winner.

“Christmas is for sharing” hits the right note

The popularity of the Sainsbury’s advert “Christmas is for sharing” this year seems at least partly down to hitting the right note with viewers, with 73% that have seen it saying it was thoughtful and moving.

Only 25% believing it was disrespectful to the use the imagery, and although many believe it could have been in bad taste, 43% thought the supermarket’s partnership with the Royal British Legion made the advert acceptable.

John Lewis wins nation's heart for second year in a row

Have a look at the race for best Christmas ad from last year in this report.

Opinium Research carried out an online survey of 2,002 UK adults. Results have been weighted to nationally representative criteria. The research was conducted from 21st to 25th November 2014.