Naughty Elves, Tea Bagging & Pricks. How One Company Is Nailing The Double Entendre.

It's been brought to our attention that Poundland is NAILING the Twittersphere!

(↑A true representation of the TWC staff as they scroll through the Twitter account in question ↑)

If you have a quick scroll through their Twitter feed you'll most probably, cringe, cry and laugh… there's something there for everyone. Brilliantly tapping into popular culture in a way rarely seen for worry of offence to the masses! No, we wouldn't recommend that every company take this approach - a cheeky, don't give a damn kind of attitude is needed in buckets! They seem to have hit the nail on the head with this one!

Tapping into the mischievous 'Elf on a shelf' culture, Poundland has taken it somewhere that is somewhat darker than you’d expect from what is undeniably a well-known brand! Their elf has found himself in some pretty precarious situations, touching on an array of brilliant pop-culture references and, of course, the festive time of year!

The naughty elf is the protagonist of these tweets, and just so happens to be on sale in Poundland who have spent the season asking for customers take on the #ElfBehavingBad. So, starting on December 1st the seemingly innocent Twitter account took a dive into the depths of depravity, all for a Christmas chuckle!

So, without further ado, here are some of the best and most recent examples of what Poundland are doing.

"How do you take your tea? One lump or two?"

So.... this speaks for itself does it not? Okay, if you really are that innocent we'll explain. One lump or two colloquially refers to the amount of sugar you take NOT how many times you want an elf to bash you in the face with a suggestively placed tea bag... Tea bag? Tea bagging? Get it? We're not going into that much detail.... They are also including some product placement here. Obviously, the teabag of choice is a Twinings!

"Oh Elf, we know it's nippy outside but not that kind of nippy #ElfBehavingBadly"

Okay, maybe it's a bit crude... this one is actually not as bad as they get but TWC would be suffering from an intense collective blushing if we included the "First come, first served" Tweet (we'll leave that one to your imagination, or you could have a look for yourself). This one as you can see involves some gratuitous graffiti in the de-icing spray on the windscreen... Very topical and of course catches your eye. We're also assuming that Poundland sells the de-icer in question, if so, great product placement!

"I came in like a..."

This one is obviously a good old Miley reference. Though the song itself came out in 2013, it continues to be parodied across all forms of media with proud position amidst the MEME genre! The Christmas twist of the bauble in place of said 'wrecking ball' and the naked elf (apart from the infamous cowboy boots) gives it the 'cheeky' Christmas twist... The product placement is not apparent BUT it's funny and everyone gets it.

"That's one very prickly Christmas tree"

Obvious, to the point, cheeky and with just the right amount of Christmas! This one very much speaks for itself. Elf drawing a very suggestive cactus and referring to it as a Christmas tree... Does Poundland sell that Etch-a-Sketch? Hmmm, either way, it's funny!

Okay, okay, so maybe it's not the best way to directly promote specific items. It's hardly like the Elf's rude drawing in de-icer caused an influx of customers to stampede into stores and strip the shelves... BUT it gets their name out there, it gives a voice. This use of humour and double entendre gives Poundland a real and human side and, even better than that, it gives them a really likeable and personable side! It's easier to relate to a comedian than a corporate giant!

There are MANY more Tweets to have a look at. So head over to their Twitter account and let us know what you think. https://twitter.com/Poundland

Has Poundland nailed the festive marketing push? Is it relevant to their brand? Is there an actual real-life evil elf going rogue on Poundlands Twitter?
 

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Update 22/12/17

So, I'm pretty sure this won't come as much of a surprise but there's been a bit of a backlash towards this garish marketing plan... product association to be exact. Not one to name names but the most recent Tweet from Poundland said 'Spot the difference' and looked something like this:

The brand in question has stated 'this is obviously not reflective of our brand values' Can you guess who may not have been happy?