Wiggle, wiggle

The new holiday campaign from Ocean Spray is the best.

It begins with a glum, drably dressed family sitting silently around the Thanksgiving table. Then dad brings out a tray of Ocean Spray’s Jellied Cranberry Sauce. As he sets the tray down, the jelly begins to jiggle – whereupon mayhem ensues.

The music and dancing is a metaphor for a key set of product attributes. According to the art director and senior copywriter at Orchard Creative, "Cranberry sauce is intense. It has a wildly tart taste, it looks brighter than any other beige food on a holiday table, and it can move. We wanted to make that power the star of a holiday dinner.”

And there is an emotional benefit that comes to life here, too.  As the chief creative officer of the agency put it,“There’s something hypnotic and captivating about watching jelly jiggle. It’s hard to be mad when you see it. We took that truth and followed it to its illogical conclusion.”

In other words, it’s a great example of how a metaphor can bring a chain of meaning to life. And, to top it off, it is so fun and memorable. When you see the cranberry sauce on the table this holiday season, it will be hard not to think about this ad.  And because Ocean Spray is such an iconic cranberry brand, you won’t forget who the ad is for, either.