The world's dominant coffee retailer launched its first national television advertising campaign yesterday called "Pass the Cheer."

Some Starbucks-watchers said it would have been better to go with "Lower the Prices."

The Seattle-based company began the campaign one day after disclosing that U.S. store traffic fell in the fiscal fourth quarter — something that had never happened before — but said the two events weren't connected.

One of the animated TV ads, by Portland, Ore.-based agency Wieden & Kennedy, shows a man sitting on a chairlift as snow falls around him. The lift stops and the man finds himself facing a reindeer, with whom he shares a mug of steaming coffee. The phrase "Pass the Cheer" appears on the screen alongside an image of Starbucks' Christmas blend.

A Starbucks holiday Web site (www.itsredagain.com) also boasts a "Pass the Cheer" theme, inviting people to "Share your story with the world" by writing about gestures of goodwill. Among the posts yesterday was one from an 11-year-old girl about how good she felt giving out sandwiches to homeless people and another from a Starbucks store manager thanking his employees for giving him a mug.

The ad campaign is designed to "capitalize on our brand awareness while driving new and existing customers into our stores," Chief Operating Officer Martin Coles said in a conference call Thursday.

Coming four months after Starbucks raised its prices by an average 9 cents a drink, the ad campaign coincides with a credit crunch that has crimped some spending styles.

Many Americans are cutting back on affordable luxuries such as fancy coffee beverages, said Howard Penney, an analyst with Friedman, Billings, Ramsey & Co. And as customers curtail their visits, Penney and others said, Starbucks should be offering promotions.

A touchy-feely ad with a winter theme won't lure people back, they said, because it doesn't offer any incentive.

"People are becoming very price-conscious," said Alan Siegel, chairman and chief executive of branding strategy company Siegel + Gale. "Without making any kind of an offer, I'm not sure Starbucks is addressing the problem."

Coffee lovers have more choices these days. McDonalds Corp., for instance, said earlier this week that it soon would add upscale coffee drinks, including frappes, to its menu.

And some people are abandoning coffee altogether for energy drinks and other alternatives, which they can buy at grocery stores, service stations and other places where there aren't long lines, said Jeff Klineman, editor of industry magazine Beverage Spectrum

"Convenience is huge," he said.