Labor Day Video Ad Inspiration

Are your Labor Day Campaigns up and running yet? We’ve seen our fair share of great (and less great) ads in our day and we’ve learned a thing or two along the way. Read on for our hot takes!

Today, we’re highlighting ads by Overstock, capitalizing big time on customer empathy; MSC Cruises, as they reignite our Covid-weary love of adventure; and Carhartt, who put the “labor” back in “labor day,” while pulling at the old heart strings.

How will you make your mark this year?

Read on for inspiration! 👇

Overstock.com: Labor Day Blowout

In a world where customization has rapidly shifted from nice-to-have to basic consumer expectation, customer research and empathy are more important than ever. Overstock’s Labor Day ad this year hit the nail on the head by creating a simple ad with clear CTAs and solutions to widely shared shopping challenges. Eliciting an emotional response in viewers is by far the best way to remain top of mind - even more than discounts or fancy camera work. That’s why evoking common, universally challenging experiences (in this case, balancing giant sofas on tiny cars) is such a great way to frame your Labor Day campaigns and yielding both major brand affinity and solid performance triggers. Way to go!

Carhartt: Hey Rookie

In honor of Carhartt’s 130th birthday and to celebrate hardworking men and women everywhere, America’s premium workwear brand closed its stores for Labor Day in 2019.

Celebrating brand heritage while maintaining product relevance can be challenging, but Carhartt hit a bull’s eye with their Turning Rookies Into Veterans Since 1889 campaign, directed by award winning director Peter Berg. The ad showcases Carhartt’s rugged, traditional values and design sensibility, while highlighting a new kind of “working man” ideal - the rookie! AS part of both a century long tradition and forging a path for the future, the “rookie” is the new Carhartt customer, promising to carry the torch is forebears are passing on… and continuing to rely on sturdy Carhartt products long term.

Beyond ad creative Carhartt is putting their money where their mouth is though the work of their Carhartt for Workers (CFW) platform, which works to close the gap in skilled trades and advocating for skilled workers. Partners of this initiative include SkillsUSA, Team Rubicon, and Future Farmers of America (FFA).

A great example to follow for Labor Day!

MSC Cruises: Labor Day Special Offer

Right as Summer is coming to a close, MSC Cruises has us planning for our next adventure already!

This ad creative, part of a larger omni-channel marketing campaign cheekily named Time to MSC Cruise again, yielded record breaking results for the cruise brand last year, both in upsales and first-time passenger booking.

How? Much like the folks at Overstock, the MSC team chose to capitalize (implicitly, in this case) on a shared challenge (Covid) to elicit an emotional response, while making sure to finish their ad with a clear value proposition and CTA: discover our new island and get a discount. Boom. How could we resist?!

Want to learn more about Labor Day marketing on CTV? Learn more on the Vibe Insights page!