Ads That Feel Like Home: Why These Classic Holiday Commercials Still Warm Our Hearts

Every December, the world slows down just a little. Lights twinkle in windows. Familiar songs spill from store speakers. And on television, the same beloved Christmas commercials return like old friends—tiny time capsules of comfort that somehow still feel timeless.

Even in an era of on-demand everything, these ads endure because they capture what the season means beyond sales or slogans. They remind us of warmth, family and the magic of small human moments. The best holiday commercials don’t sell us something; they show us something—connection, nostalgia and the promise that home, however we define it, is still waiting.

Here are five of the most enduring holiday ads of all time—and why they continue to move us year after year.

1. Folgers: “Peter Comes Home” (1985)

There’s something instantly recognizable about the quiet opening: a snow-covered house, the sun just rising and the crunch of boots on a frosty driveway. A young man named Peter arrives home from college (or maybe the military—it’s deliberately vague), sneaking into the kitchen to start a pot of Folgers coffee before the rest of the family wakes. His little sister catches him and together they brew the first cup of Christmas morning.

No dialogue is needed. No fancy effects. Just family, love and the aroma of coffee mingling with the smell of pine.

The magic of the Folgers ad lies in its subtlety. It’s not really about coffee—it’s about homecoming. That universal moment when you cross the threshold and everything feels right again. For many viewers, it’s a miniature movie evoking the ache of distance and the sweetness of reunion.

Over the years, Folgers has remade the ad a handful of times but none have quite captured the understated sincerity of the 1986 original. Maybe that’s because it didn’t try to modernize emotion—it just showed it in all its simple, relatable truth.

2. Hershey’s Kisses: “Bells” (1989)

This one lasts just 15 seconds, but you know exactly what it is even if all you hear is a faint ding! while you’re whisking cookie batter in another room.

On screen, a row of Hershey’s Kisses are lined up like a handbell choir, each “playing” a note to the tune of “We Wish You a Merry Christmas.” It ends with one Kiss giving a proud little sigh of relief—proof that even inanimate chocolate has personality.

This commercial has run virtually unchanged since 1989, and it’s one of the few ads that can make people smile before they even realize what’s happening. It’s become a visual shorthand for the start of the holiday season—like the first snowfall or the first strains of a thawed out Mariah Carey singing, “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”

Why does it endure? Because it’s simple, sincere and rooted in delight. It doesn’t try to update itself with modern trends or CGI. Its charm is its consistency—reminding us that some traditions don’t need improvement. They just need to be there year after year, ringing in the season.

In a world of ever-evolving marketing, Hershey’s Kisses proves that longevity isn’t about reinvention. It’s about resonance.

3. Coca-Cola: The Polar Bears (1993)

The 1990s Coke Polar Bears were a breakthrough in animation, but more than that, they were a breakthrough in feeling. These cool-toned, softly lit scenes of polar bears watching the Northern Lights—or clinking their Coke bottles together in cheerful companionship—made an entire generation feel cozy.

The Coke Polar Bears weren’t selling soda as refreshment; they were selling emotion. The quiet camaraderie of a snowy night. The sense that even in the coldest places, warmth is possible. And perhaps most importantly, that joy doesn’t have to be loud—it can be simple and shared.

Coca-Cola’s brilliance lay in merging brand identity with universal emotion. The red label against the white snow, the friendly bears, the music—everything spoke to a kind of purity that transcended time and culture. Even now, when those bears appear (and they still do in new iterations), viewers instantly feel transported to a gentler, more innocent era of advertising.

It’s nostalgia as an art form, and few brands have mastered it like Coke.

4. Campbell’s Soup: The Melting Snowman (1993)

It starts with a snowman trudging through the cold, pushing open the door to a warm kitchen. He sits down, steaming and silent, as someone places a bowl of Campbell’s soup in front of him. With each spoonful he slowly melts, revealing a smiling little boy underneath.

No words. No narration. Just music, warmth and the transformation that happens when cold gives way to comfort.

This commercial distills everything Campbell’s wants to be: not just a soup brand but a feeling of being taken care of. It’s about childhood, safety and the small domestic rituals that anchor us when the world feels too big.

The image of that snowman melting into a boy is one of advertising’s most tender metaphors, suggesting that home and warmth bring us back to ourselves. It’s been three decades, but the imagery still tugs at the heart. In a way, it’s a love letter to every parent who ever served soup to a shivering child—and to every child who remembers what that felt like.

5. M&M’s: “They Do Exist!” (1996)

If the Folgers ad is quiet nostalgia, the M&M’s holiday spot is cheeky Christmas chaos. Red and Yellow, the classic M&M characters, sneak around a house on Christmas Eve and bump into Santa himself. Both sides are shocked: “He does exist!” Red gasps. Santa faints. “They do exist!” Santa says before he topples over, too.

It’s quick, funny and endlessly quotable—a rare holiday ad that became part of pop culture. The joke is so effective because it flips the script: the candy is just as amazed by Santa as kids are. But beneath the humor is something surprisingly sweet: the idea of belief. The ad captures the childlike awe that never quite leaves us. It’s that brief shining moment where imagination feels real and laughter and love coexist.

It’s also a perfect example of a commercial that doesn’t feel like one. It entertains first, sells second and stays in our memories far longer than most holiday movies.

Why These Ads Endure

If you notice a pattern among these classics, it’s that none of them scream “buy this.” They whisper, “remember this.”

The secret to their staying power is emotional storytelling rooted in universality. The Folgers ad could be any home. The Hershey’s bells could ring in any kitchen. The Coke bears could be any family. They work because they’re not about a product—they’re about a feeling.

Marketers call this nostalgia marketing but to viewers, it just feels like home. These ads remind us of who we were when we first saw them—kids sitting cross-legged by the TV or adults remembering their own childhoods. They reconnect us not just to the holiday spirit but to ourselves.

In a season so often overrun with noise—flash sales, countdowns, limited editions—these quiet, timeless ads stand out because they breathe. They invite us to slow down, smile and feel something real.

The Best Ads Don’t Feel Like Ads

It’s ironic, really. The commercials that have lasted the longest are the ones that sold the least aggressively. They didn’t interrupt the holiday—they became part of it.

When the Folgers theme music plays, you can practically smell the coffee. When the Hershey’s bells ring, you can almost taste the chocolate. When the Coke polar bears raise their bottles under the aurora, it feels like you’re toasting with them.

These brands built emotional shorthand that transcends marketing. They’re not just selling products; they’re selling moments. Moments of warmth, belonging and memory that repeat every year like a family tradition.

And maybe that’s the real power of these ads: they remind us that while trends come and go, human connection never goes out of style.

In the End, It’s About More Than Nostalgia

The world has changed since these ads first aired—our screens are smaller, our feeds faster, our attention spans shorter. Yet somehow, these commercials still stop us in our tracks. When I see the Folgers commercial, I remember snowy evenings watching Jeopardy! at my grandparents’ house. Hershey’s reminds me of Christmas morning stockings. The Coca-Cola bears remind me of my dad—a gentle sparkle over a season that sometimes makes me sad in his absence.

At the end of the day, marketers are storytellers. What endures isn’t the power to sell, but the creativity to tell a great story—one that lives on long after the products have left the shelves.

Your message deserves more than a passing glance—it deserves a connection. At The Christian Post, your brand can align with stories and values that inspire trust, faith and family. Advertise with us and become part of something that truly resonates. Contact us today.