• by December 12, 2008

Ace is the place to "Ace Your Face" this holiday season as the hardware chain, targeting a younger demographic, offers consumers an easy online method for creating and sending personalized greeting cards.

The viral campaign from Columbus, Ohio-based digital agency Resource Interactive centers on a tool that allows users to upload photos of themselves, friends, family, co-workers ... well, of anyone really ... into a wide selection of customized holiday scenes that the company itself describes as over-the-top and kitschy. Just imagine five of your friends grouped by the Christmas tree in matching snowman sweaters!

An irreverent soundtrack, meanwhile, eggs on visitors to build new greetings. Traditional songs play with non-traditional lyrics. A toy soldier, when touched by the cursor, offers such remarks as "My dog's got a better face than that!"

All of this seems to be proving quite popular. Launched Nov. 18, the site attracted 60,000 visitors in just its first three weeks, with much more traffic expected as the holiday draws closer, notes Ace Hardware spokesperson Christopher Boniface.

More than 20% of those visitors had created cards, sending them to an average of two people apiece. And with Ace logos and links aplenty in the viral messaging, a majority of users have also been going to Ace's Web site to access its gift guide, store locator and more, Boniface says.

By the end of its first week alone, "Ace Your Face" had aced the top spot in Google's natural search results.

The campaign's success is the result not only of its very viral aspects--consumers can share their cards via email, social media sites and blog links--but of a promotional push from Resource Interactive that has included paid search and banner ads running on major sites like AOL and Yahoo and on social media platforms like Facebook.

Ace has also used direct emails to its vast internal network--workers in its 4,600 stores, plus corporate--and to that portion of its 15-million-member Ace Rewards loyalty program who have opted to receive emails.