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Read time: 3 minutes | 711 words

STORY 

🎈 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade

The Marketing Stunt That Became America's Tradition.

In 1924, Macy's had a problem: how do you convince New Yorkers that your Herald Square store was the place to start their holiday shopping? Department stores competed fiercely for Christmas dollars, and Macy's needed an edge.

Their solution: throw a parade.

The first "Macy's Christmas Parade" featured store employees dressed in costumes, professional bands, and animals borrowed from the Central Park Zoo. Santa Claus closed the procession, arriving at Herald Square to "officially" open the shopping season. It worked so well that Macy's made it an annual tradition, renaming it the Thanksgiving Day Parade in 1927.

That same year, they replaced the zoo animals with giant helium balloons—characters that would become iconic. In the early years, they even released the balloons after the parade, offering $100 rewards to whoever returned them (a practice that ended after a pilot nearly crashed trying to catch one mid-air).

Fast forward to today, and Macy's has built what might be the most profitable marketing event in retail history.

Revenue streams:

• NBC pays Macy's $20 million annually for broadcast rights Wikipedia (negotiating to increase to $60 million)

• Corporate sponsors pay $190,000 for new balloons, $90,000 for existing ones TheStreet

• Companies pay for float participation, advertising rights, streaming coverage, and social media mentions Decadirect

• Brand value from 50+ million TV viewers at the start of holiday shopping season

NBC's side:

• Sells 30-second commercials for $900,000 each (Straight Arrow News)

• Generated $52.8 million in ad revenue in 2023 (Guideline)

• Pays roughly $7 million in broadcast production costs

The parade itself:

• Costs approximately $13 million to produce

• Features 17 character balloons, 22 floats, 11 marching bands, 700 clowns

• Attracts 3.5 million in-person spectators who generate $200 million in tourism revenue for NYC

The genius? Macy's calls it "a privately funded event" and "its annual gift to the nation" (Freakonomics), yet it's one of the most lucrative brand marketing events in American retail. Companies pay Macy's to be in the parade. NBC pays Macy's for the right to broadcast it. And 50 million Americans thank them for the tradition every year.

It's a 3-hour commercial disguised as a cultural institution—and customers love it.

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INSIGHT + ACTION

🎁 The "Gift Them Your Advertisement" Strategy

Turn your marketing into an event so valuable that customers thank you for it—and other brands pay you to participate.

The Inight: Macy's cracked a code most marketers miss: the best advertising doesn't feel like advertising. The parade costs $13 million to produce but generates tens of millions in direct revenue (NBC licensing, sponsor fees) plus immeasurable brand value. The brilliance? They framed it as a "gift to the nation" while building America's most profitable retail marketing vehicle. Customers don't fast-forward through it or install ad blockers—they wake up early and gather their families to watch.

Key Actions for Your Business:

1. Create Content People Actually Want: Stop interrupting what people care about and become what they care about. Macy's didn't buy TV ads about their store—they created an event worth watching. Ask: what could you produce that your audience would actively seek out?

2. Let Others Pay to Participate: Once you build something valuable, sponsorship revenue follows naturally. Companies pay up to $190,000 just to have a balloon in the parade. Build the platform first, monetize the demand second.

3. Consistency Compounds: Macy's has run this parade for 98 years. The ROI doesn't come from one year—it comes from becoming a tradition. Commit to your content strategy for years, not quarters.

4. Frame It as Service, Not Sales: Notice Macy's never calls the parade "advertising." They call it a gift. When you genuinely create value for your audience, they won't care that you're also building your brand—they'll be grateful for the experience.

Apply this: What's your version of the parade? A must-attend conference? An industry report everyone reads? A weekly video series that defines your category? Build something so good that participation becomes a status symbol—then let others pay to be part of it.

TOGETHER WITH ROKU

Shoppers are adding to cart for the holidays

Peak streaming time continues after Black Friday on Roku, with the weekend after Thanksgiving and the weeks leading up to Christmas seeing record hours of viewing. Roku Ads Manager makes it simple to launch last-minute campaigns targeting viewers who are ready to shop during the holidays. Use first-party audience insights, segment by demographics, and advertise next to the premium ad-supported content your customers are streaming this holiday season.

Read the guide to get your CTV campaign live in time for the holiday rush.

Learn more.

MEME

(See video.)