‘Tis the season to be tired

Christmas is fast approaching and that means you have to order a cake. A pretty cake that tastes good at a reasonable price. But the important decision in selecting just the right cake hinges on something other than design, taste or price: promotional gift items that come with the cake.

Several years ago, Starbucks Korea launched a premium marketing campaign with mini luggages called “summer ready bags.” To get their hands on these reward bags, Korean consumers poured cup after cup of coffee into their jittery stomachs to collect points or begged others to transfer their points to them. But points alone were not enough. The bags in limited quantities were doled out on a first-come first-served basis, so you had to stand in line at the crack of dawn to get one, albeit not in a color of your choice. These bags became so rare and highly prized that they became popular new or used items on online marketplaces. Sold out, like hotcakes. Strangely, I have yet to see a single person carrying one of these bags. But utility was hardly their purpose. Bragging on social media was.

Christmas is the season when this type of frenzy over promotional items peaks. The internet is rife with triumphant stories of hard-earned gifts. Lamps, trays, blankets and dolls. What do you do with all these reward items? Please allow me to say it again: promotional freebies are for posting on social media. If you’re lucky or diligent enough to nab the goods in popular colors, the number of “likes” you receive doubles.

This year is no exception, and enticing goods backed by persuasive marketing abound. To capture the warm glow of the holiday season, you need a golden table lamp. This humidifier will give you peace of mind amid your hectic schedule. And you absolutely cannot host a Christmas gathering without a 3-tiered party tray. And what’s better for catching the holiday spirit than a plushy bag with a teddy bear charm dangling from it? Cakes, after all, are pretty much the same. You can find a fresh cream, chocolate or red velvet cake at any bakery. But you can’t score the gift items you want at just any place.

Any item can be had at a price. But not just any price for some items. If you want to decorate your social media page with a cake from a fancy hotel, you need to cough up an amount that’s enough to feed a family of four for a dinner out. Many, including myself, think our social media is important enough to spend this kind of money.

I don’t know exactly when it started, but my schedule during the holiday season has become quite busy. I wait in lines to get free gifts, in lines to buy toys, and in lines to take Christmas pictures. I can only hope that someday, all this frenzied activity will quiet down and a silent night in the true spirit of Christmas can descend upon us all.

Translator: Culture Flipper English Team
Original Content in Korean: cultureflipper.com/blog/tis-the-season-to-be-tired-ko
Japanese Translation: cultureflipper.com/blog/tis-the-season-to-be-tired-ja