National Believe Day: Macy’s and Make-a-Wish Foundation
In 2010, Macy’s sought to build upon the success of its 2008 and 2009 Believe campaigns by adding new and exciting elements to commemorate National Believe Day. Believe is Macy’s nostalgic Christmas campaign based upon the New York Sun’s famous, “Yes, Virginia there is a Santa Claus” editorial from 1897. The Believe campaign invites children of all ages to bring their Santa letters to Macy’s and for each letter collected, Macy’s will donate $1 to the Make-A-Wish Foundation, up to $1 million.
Macy’s first proclaimed the second Friday in December as National Believe Day in 2009; it was a day to mark and celebrate the spirit and generosity of the season. In 2010, Macy’s wanted to commemorate and celebrate National Believe Day in a way that would truly highlight the heartfelt mission of the Make-A-Wish Foundation. And what better way to celebrate the mission of the Make-A-Wish Foundation than “Wishes Across America” and “Double Donation Day.” In celebration of National Believe Day, Macy’s teamed up with local Make-A-Wish chapters to help grant helped grant 50 extra special wishes to children with life-threatening medical conditions in communities nationwide and in 650+ stores, Macy’s hosted a “Double Donation Day” promising to give an extra $1 for every letter received on National Believe Day in addition to the up to $1 million Macy’s already committed to donate to the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
Macy’s leveraged all of its internal and external marketing and communication vehicles to highlight the campaign, resulting in 204,186 letters were collected on National Believe Day (a +611% increase 2009).
It didn’t take much for judges to Believe in the merit of this campaign and promptly awarded Macy’s its third Halo award, complimenting the partnership for its combination of nostalgia and in-store activation to prove the power of what people can do when they come together and truly Believe.
