Cause Related Campaign of the Year 2006

In trying to raise awareness for McDonald's Ronald McDonald House Charities (RMHC), Select Comfort stressed the importance of bringing a comfortable night's sleep to the less fortunate. Many of the tactics revolved around celebrities and the Sleep Number bed.

The partnership came with Select Comfort's 2001 strategic rebranding, where the company sought to highlight its Sleep Number bedding and its message "The Key to the Perfect Night's Sleep."

The company's goal was to increase awareness of the Sleep Number brand, and leverage its partnership with the RMHC to build momentum for both properties. The company was hoping to increase its brand awareness from July 2003's figure of 20% to 50% by July 2005.

The company, as official bed provider to the RMHC since 2001, tried to create a successful year of giving by holding a "20 beds in 20 cities" tour, outfitting 20 Ronald McDonald houses with 400 beds. During the tour, it celebrated the 3,000th donated bed to RMHC, and invited soap opera star Susan Lucci to help assemble beds in New York and meet with the families receiving the donations.

It also introduced a "Share a Bed With a Celeb" event, where it tapped daytime soap opera, reality television, and sports celebrities including Days of Our Lives stars Matthew Ashford and Melissa Reeves, and Denver Broncos football player Ashley Lelie to pose for pictures with shoppers who donated money to the RMHC. It also held a media-compelling pillow fight for charity, a game where SC donated $1 per pillow fighter at a Minneapolis minor league baseball game.

The company also pursued straightforward philanthropic promotion in August 2004, donating $5 per bed sold, a pillow for every four pillows sold, and donating the proceeds from bracelets sold for $2. The company also encouraged employees to get into the act, paying for employees to travel to help set up RMHC homes.

The results exceeded Select Comfort and Carmichael Lynch Spong's expectations. Brand awareness increased to 50% and it received distinctive media coverage in 14 of the 20 markets where the "20 Beds in 20 Cities" tour washeld. It sold 21,000 pillows and 6,500 bracelets during its August promotion, which led to Select Comfort's donation of $120,000 in cash. Other celebrities, such as actor Benecio Del Toro, actress Marcia Gay Harden, and pro football star Jason Sehorn, are also sponsoring the Select Comfort-RMHC partnership in some fashion.

Honorable Mention: Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide, The Leverage Group, and Jones Apparel Group: Jones New York in the Classroom

When Jones Apparel Group decided to pursue a cause-related campaign, it created an official 501(c)(3) organization to help improve the quality of the education experience for New York schoolchildren. Through the group, Jones New York in the Classroom, Jones Apparel hoped to raise awareness of the company's involvement in education with employees, consumers, and the general public. The company found that 90% of employees and consumers felt children's causes to be most important philanthropic avenues, and 85% of those who pushed for children's causes felt education was of paramount importance. Launching the program during National Teacher Appreciation Week, the company provided more than $1.5 million to be split by four nonprofits. Jones Group and the consortium rang the closing bell at the NYSE and appeared on the Today show. The consortium also successfully appealed to Google to highlight the National Teacher Day on its homepage.

Finalists:

Barkley Evergreen & Partners Public Relations and Lee Jeans
Lee National Denim Day

Carmichael Lynch Spong and Select Comfort
Beds, Celebs, and a Better Night's Sleep

Carmichael Lynch Spong and Jenn-Air Appliances
Going Pan-To-Pan to Fight Hunger

AOL and Robinson Lerer & Montgomery and Freud Communications
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