Did the Ad Work: The Tomte Cake

’Tis the season for holiday advertising, and today’s ad features a gnome who's trying to sell me “The Tomte Cake”. This is part of a fun series where I analyze my own customer journey through a marketing lens. Find out…did the ad work?

What’s the ad for? What was my first impression of it?
It was pretty clear to me that this ad is selling an experience moreso than just a product - a book, a gnome, a cake, and a new way to create memories with family and friends during the holidays. I love how colorful the ad is and the story that it tells - that this is something kind of familiar but also new, that you can take and make your own.

Where did I see the ad?
I saw this on my Facebook app feed on an Android mobile phone, during one of those aimless scrolling sessions at night that I should probably cut out :-)

Why was I targeted by this ad?
I'm a new mom, and my son is just at the age (18 months) where he can start participating in events and activities around the winter holidays. I've also been searching for gingerbread house kits and tutorials online as it's something I've always wanted to get into it but wasn't sure how to. I wasn't super excited, however, about the idea of building something that I couldn't really eat, which is something this ad really spoke to. I am also an avid Etsy customer, so I loved the idea that this was (likely) created by a small business.

Did I click on the ad?
Yes! This product seemed like something I could "invest" in, that would last through the years. The accompanying book, from the small snapshot shown in the ad, looked beautifully illustrated and charming. And, I loved the idea of my son digging through cake to find the cute little gnome - as well as actually being able to eat the cake afterwards instead of throwing it out!

The Tomte Cake landing page

The Tomte Cake product page

 Did the landing page match what I was expecting?
Yes - the imagery and content matched what I had seen in the ad.  The landing page (what appeared to be the home page) provided more information on what the Tomte Cake was all about, including the origin of the Tomte gnome. The "Learn More" button then linked to the product page which would allow me to check out. The product page provided options to not only

Did I convert?
Yes! I didn't just buy one cake set, but another for a friend, as well as extra cake tins! I was completely sold by the story and the level of care placed in developing the product. And, the free shipping on top was nice.

So, did the ad work? And what would make it better?
For me - definitely. It was cute, charming, and clearly and simply communicated a complex idea. I knew what I was getting just looking at the ad - I read the book with my family, we bake cakes and hide the Tomte gnome in one of them, and then we all try to find which cake has the gnome!

The ad itself was great and made great use of both the text and the image space available. If I could critique it all, I would perhaps include somewhere that it is a small business and/or woman-owned - this is not something I realized until I read more on the website.

I would however improve a few things about the entire purchasing experience. I was a little bit confused about how many gingerbread house cake the included cake tin would make - one? Two? More? I had to click around and see a few more pictures before I could confirm that one cake tin made two cakes (which is what influenced me to buy another cake tin to allow more places for Tomte to hide!) I also felt there may be an opportunity for the company to offer gingerbread cake mix as well. They do include a cake recipe which is nice, and allows for customization if someone has allergens or food preferences, but including a cake mix could pull in customers who are excited about the product but concerned about making something from scratch.

All in all, I thought The Tomte Cake did a great job at marketing to me and getting me to purchase. I'm looking forward to making my Tomte cakes soon!

Thanks for reading! I'd love to hear from you - what did you think about this ad?