J.C. Penney looks to hit all the right notes

J.C. Penney wants to carol its way back into the hearts of consumers this holiday season with a new "Jingle More Bells" marketing campaign launching this week.

Penney's holiday strategy focuses on driving traffic into stores and restoring faith in the brand with six straight weeks of promotions. Low prices will be emphasized through music in the "Jingle More Bells" campaign, including the release of a new TV spot every week through the end of December. The spots will feature twists on classic holiday songs to promote in-store sales.

The first spot features a play on "Santa Baby," where carolers urge Santa to "slip a discount under the tree."

Blake Shelton, the JCP Cares ambassador, will perform at the Manhattan Mall store on Dec. 19. The event is a part of the retailer's social media campaign that allows customers to upload a video of themselves singing "Silent Night" to be featured in a virtual holiday performance on the same day.

The retailer hopes to use this strategy to build on an October that saw a 0.9% jump in sales. Stocks also rose to $9.05 a share on Friday. Though the growth is positive it is far from a trend, says Standard & Poor's analyst David Kuntz.

Former CEO Ron Johnson was pushed out in April after his strategy to largely eliminate sales and redesign stores failed, alienating many long-time customers. J.C. Penney has since struggled to regain its customers and its identity.

"The brand and company has been through a lot," says Deb Berman, Penney's senior vice president of marketing. "It's coming from a period of disorientation."

Golden Gate University marketing professor Kit Yarrow says the company's strategies for the holiday season are well thought out. It is important to get the consumers into the holiday mood and the plan seems to do just that, she says.

It takes newness to break through to consumers and having multiple TV spots will keep consumers from getting bored. Social media submissions will appeal to a younger demographic, while the carolers will appeal to Penney's base in the stores, Yarrow says.

Although Penney is optimistic for the holiday season, Kuntz says it will be a tough retail season for everyone.

"We think traffic will be weak and characterized by promotional activity," Kuntz says. "It's tough to win customers in the moderate department store sector on a given day and it'll be even tougher given they've alienated customers."

Some past failures are Penney's fault, but many factors now working against the retailer are out of its control, says Ken Nisch, chairman of retail brand and design firm JGA. Mid-tier department stores like Penney are feeling the squeeze from Macy's, Kohl's and Target. This, along with a bleak holiday shopping forecast could mean a rough season for Penney and all retailers.

A win for Penney would mean getting back to neutral and given the company's limited resources, it'll be a slow climb, he says.

Penney should be capitalizing on its tradition and brand loyalty, much like Macy's, Yarrow says. Although she believes its holiday plans are great, she says they need to go even further to get consumers back onboard or risk getting squeezed out of a crowded, competitive retail marketplace.

"Right now, consumers don't see Penney on the top of its game," Yarrow says. "The consumers can smell blood in the water."