By: Bridget Anderson
In 2015, Target launched its “Thanks a Billion” campaign where students were invited to visit Target’s Facebook page or the Thanks a Billion website to post a thank you message for any teacher that has made a positive impression on their lives. For every message sent, Target donated $25 to the teacher’s school. Target chose to implement this campaign as a part of its long-standing dedication to helping schools. The ultimate goal was to donate $1 billion in the year 2015, with 6 million of that coming from the “Thanks a Billion” campaign.
Throughout this campaign, Target was trying to reach anyone who values education and/or anyone who was positively affected by a teacher. Social value was added through the donations to schools all across the country. This was a great way for Target to not only give back to the community, but also to reinforce to customers that Target is a caring brand.
The “Thanks a Billion” campaign is a nice example of earned media because Target’s intention was to get customers involved by going to its Facebook page and commenting a teacher’s name that inspired them. Additionally, the campaign generated news stories, a personalized thank you video from the U.S. Secretary of Education, and even mentions on television, such as the Ellen DeGeneres show.
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