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Company: The Home Depot with MSL and Hartmann Studios, Atlanta, Georgia
Nomination Submitted by: MSL
Company Description: The Home Depot is the world’s largest home improvement retailer. Since its founding in 1978, The Home Depot has been committed to “Doing the Right Thing.” As a values-driven company, The Home Depot has found success through consistently putting its customers and associates first.
Nomination Category: Corporate Communications, Investor Relations, & Public Relations Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Communications or PR Campaign of the Year - Media Relations
 Nomination Title: The Home Depot Sleighs Halloween & Holiday 2021
- Which will you submit for this nomination, a video of up to five (5) minutes in length about the nominated PR campaign or program, or written answers to the questions? (Choose one):
Written answers to the questions
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the nominated video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this first question: Specify the date on which this campaign or program was launched:
April 2021
- Optional: Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 250 words used.
PR efforts reached a highly valued audience with strategic, targeted media outreach and thoughtful, trend-forward messaging, generating a total of 3.2 billion media impressions. The 8-month campaign elevated The Home Depot as a seasonal retailer of choice and yielded significant ROI in many areas.
The Home Depot was featured in 981 pieces of earned media coverage in outlets such as Buzzfeed, The TODAY Show, Business Insider, Better Homes & Gardens, Martha Stewart, The New York Times | Wirecutter, Mashable, USA Today, Access Hollywood and more, including 166 headline mentions. This increase in overall earned media placements when compared to the 2020 Halloween and Holiday program represented an improvement of 65 percent year over year.
Targeted broadcast outreach resulted in the team securing dedicated segments with Access Hollywood (in October and December) and LIVE with Kelly and Ryan [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION]
The virtual media events attracted 225 total attendees hailing from publications such as Better Homes & Gardens, Good Housekeeping, HGTV Magazine, and more.
The Home Depot experts Lance Allen, Senior Decorative Holiday Merchant, and Sarah Fishburne, Director of Trend and Design, were successfully positioned as go-to sources of insight and inspiration for the Halloween and holiday season, with specific quotes in 35+ media placements, including Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal and Morning Brew.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this third question: Describe the development of the campaign or program: the planning process, the goal setting, the creative and media development, the scheduling, etc. (up to 250 words):
Total 250 words used.
The Home Depot PR team anticipated other retailers’ holiday announcements and launched its holiday showcase event earlier in July to break through the crowded market and establish itself as a leader and innovator for the season. This was part of the broader Halloween and Holiday program, inclusive of an integrated PR strategy, always-on storytelling cadence, marquee virtual media events, subject matter expert interviews with merchants and associates, strategic industry partnerships, and a philanthropic component.
[REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION]
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this fourth question: Outline the activities and concrete results of this campaign or program since the beginning of 2020. Even if your initiative started before 2020, limit your response to activities and results since the beginning of 2020 only (up to 250 words):
Total 249 words used.
In 2021, people were looking forward to the holidays and spending expectations were high. The National Retail Federation predicted holiday sales growth at a whopping 11.5 percent over 2020. However, retailers and consumers were concerned about the supply chain and inventory during the continued global pandemic. These concerns coupled with the potential to shatter previous holiday spending records meant it was crucial to promote and encourage an early holiday shopping season with The Home Depot.
Research and insights supported this, suggesting that the best time to reach consumers for the holidays in 2021 was as early in the season as possible. Pinterest noted that “brands who start their holiday campaigns earlier in the season see better results on Pinterest.” Additionally reported by Pinterest, every year, the majority of holiday sales influenced by the social platform are complete by Cyber Monday, indicating that consumers would be searching for holiday ideas earlier than they ever had – much earlier – during the holidays. Furthermore, consumer interest in the holidays remained widespread. According to a 2021 online survey of Nextdoor users in the U.S., 90 percent of respondents planned to decorate for the holiday season. Time and time again, the interest in decorating early filtered to the top as a way for consumers to create joy this holiday season. And tapping into this insight paid off. In The Home Depot Q3 FY 2021 earnings call, representatives from The Home Depot reported revenue that beat analysts’ forecasts and exceeded expectations.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this second question: Describe the genesis of the nominated campaign or program: the reasons it was initiated, the challenges it was created to address, the problems it was developed to solve, etc. (up to 250 words):
Total 167 words used.
While The Home Depot is known as the world’s largest home improvement retailer, it is also a top provider of seasonal products – including Halloween and Holiday. With consumers smitten with The Home Depot’s 12-Foot Giant Skeleton with LifeEyes (or, as he is affectionately known by many, “Skelly”), which debuted [REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION] in 2020, The Home Depot had to build on the success for Halloween and Holiday 2021 and deliver big. To do so, the team latched onto the growing consumer interest in celebrating bigger than ever and a newfound respect and enjoyment for e-commerce and curated digital experiences.
[REDACTED FOR PUBLICATION] The program was built to capture both widespread media coverage and consumer interest, reaching target audiences earlier in the season than ever.
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