Instead of telling the people a nice Christmas story, we confronted them with the harsh reality: especially the elderly are often forced to spend Christmas alone! Above all in a society, in which families are often spread across continents, this insight was more than just relevant. It met the zeitgeist. And we used it as a trigger to encourage everyone to go home for Christmas and celebrate with their loved ones again.

The integrated campaign #heimkommen (coming home) started with a film that was launched on YouTube and Facebook, on TV and in cinemas.

Additionally, we used print ads, out of home posters and a raffle to encourage people to celebrate Christmas at home. At the point of sale, vouchers were provided to help families to come together for Christmas. Furthermore online channels such as banners and social media were used to ask for people’s own #heimkommen story.

The campaign struck a chord. And it triggered an international debate about the issue. People joined in and shared their personal #heimkommen story on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Consequently, #heimkommen developed its own dynamic. News and press reports all over the world covered the campaign. Already on the first day it achieved over 15 Million views on YouTube and Facebook. So far, the film earned almost 160 million views and has been shared on Facebook over four million times. This makes EDEKA one of the most-shared brands worldwide. There are over 100.000 posts and comments and the EDEKA fan community grew by 20 percent. Furthermore there were a lot of parodies.

According to Unruly, #heimkommen was the most successful Christmas campaign of all time.