“We've been busy on a media tour and the founders of Elf On The Shelf Chanda Bell and Christa Pitts were interviewed on Channel 5 this week!”‍

Overview
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Mason Williams launched The Elf on the Shelf in the UK in 2016, growing it from virtually unknown brand to household name and treasured Christmas tradition across Great Britain.
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When we started working with the brand, it had virtually zero presence in the UK, consumers just looked upon it as just another Christmas elf or decoration. We needed to establish The Elf on the Shelf as more than just a ‘doll’ or book, our objective was for it to become a treasured family tradition.
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It was our job to not only increase brand awareness and drive sales but to educate consumers and media around the magic of the brand and what set it apart from other elves on the market. We needed to create such a hype and buzz around the brand that in the eyes of parents and their children, no other elf will do! Quite simply, there is only one magical elf that reports to Santa and that is The Elf on the Shelf official Scout Elf.

Idea
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Our strategy over the last five seasons has been to place The Elf on the Shelf at the forefront of all things Christmas to its family target audience. We have done this through multi-touch point campaigns that included intense media relations, educating the UK press on the magic of the brand; experiential events; retailer events; author tours; and celebrity and influencer engagement.

Our core objectives have been to:
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• Create consume awareness and media conversation around The Elf on The Shelf
• Educate the consumer on the story behind the Scout Elf and the Christmas Tradition that is The Elf on The Shelf
• Encourage the creation of fun, family moments at Christmas time
• Celebrity outreach to spread the word widely
• Create experientials memorable events – Winter Wonderland and events at Hamleys and other key retailers
• Establish Chanda Bell, the Creator of the brand as a Celebrity Author/Spokesperson within the UK
• Encourage the creation of fun, family moments at Christmas time
• Encourage the creation of fun, family moments at Christmas time

Part of the agency’s role has also involved crisis and issues management – educating consumers and media on the official The Elf on the Shelf product versus counterfeits and copycats. As part of this crisis management, we had over 350 press articles amended to remove all inaccurate references to the brand. The agency has played a pivotal role in upholding the specials rules around the brand which make it so magical to consumers.Highlights of the campaign included a screening event with Universal to celebrate the new The Elf on the Shelf animated special; dedicated family days for the brand at Winter Wonderland; a UK media author tour with the creator which resulted in interviews on This Morning and BBC Radio 2.

‍KEY RESULTS
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• Between 2017 – 2019 there was a 50% growth in the UK, which is a higher growth than in previous three years.
• Almost one in two UK parents surveyed have top of mind awareness of The Elf on the Shelf, second only to Santa
• In the UK, the search phrase “The Elf on the Shelf” had more search volume than Santa Claus and Father Christmas during the 2019 Holiday season (Source: Google Trends Nov 2019)
• The 2021 campaign alone generated 1,178 pieces of coverage, 380,115,989 Social Reach, 906.2k Total Social Engagements and 3.1b Total Monthly Unique Website Visitors.
• Celebrity social media mentions including the Beckhams, Holly Willoughby, Rochelle Humes, Paloma Faith and Emma Willis to name a few (secured at no cost!)
• Prime National TV placements with This Morning and Lorraine.‍