Designing a Day to Shop Small.

In the midst of the Great Recession, local businesses were struggling to survive. American Express wanted to empower communities and small businesses, demonstrating their commitment to economic recovery while encouraging consumer participation. The goal was to create an initiative that would drive awareness, increase foot traffic, and rally support for small businesses during the holiday season.

My Role:
Marketing Strategy
Ad Campaign
Brand Guidelines
Product Design
Print Production

Stage:
Enterprise

Sector:
Retail & E-commerce
Financial Services & Payments
Small Business Support & Advocacy
Event Marketing & Promotions
Holiday & Seasonal Campaigns

‘In the midst of the Great Recession, American Express wanted to act on the fact that they care deeply about helping communities thrive. That’s why—after a lot of hard work and many long nights—on November 27, 2010, CPB helped American Express launch Small Business Saturday. This is the first ever holiday devoted to encouraging people to Shop Small, specifically supporting local businesses during the holiday season.’

THE RESULTS

‘An estimated 103 million Americans shopped at small businesses on Small Business Saturday, exceeding the pre-Thanksgiving projection of 89 million shoppers.

Over 2.7 million Facebook users who "liked" Small Business Saturday, and almost 200,000 tweets.

High-profile Small Business Saturday shoppers included President Barack Obama, White House Senior Adviser Valerie Jarrett, Small Business Administration head Karen Mills and celebrities including Christy Turlington, Chloe Sevigny and Katie Couric.

Finally, on November 10, 2011 the United States Senate unanimously passed a resolution officially designating November 26th as Small Business Saturday.’