Macy’s is continuing its support of the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women movement with a mobilized shopping site for raising funds, sales and awareness that will also support a live stream of the Red Dress Collection unveiling.

The department store chain is hoping to ramp up sales for its Go Red collection on its mobile hub, while also providing a positive brand sentiment and aid for the American Heart Association campaign. Macy’s is providing discounts and deals to customers who participate while also sharing information for the association, on how to keep healthy and to help those in need.

“According to comScore, 61 percent of U.S. Internet usage is on mobile devices and nearly one-third of e-commerce sales are from mobile,” said Ken Morris, principal, Boston Retail Partners. “Consumers’ growing preference to shop and buy on their mobile device makes mobile commerce an imperative for virtually every marketing campaign.

“Millennial and younger demographics are always connected and retailers need refocus their approach to ‘selling to my children, not my parents’ and shift their marketing strategy accordingly, to be focused on mobile,” he said. “Macy’s understands this and is one of the industry leaders in mobile engagement and commerce.”

Go mobile
The American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women movement focuses on providing tools and awareness for women with cardiovascular disease. Macy’s part is to help spread that awareness and raise funds, and the retailer is leaning on mobile and digital to help drive these goals.

The mobile-optimized digital hub for the campaign lives on Macys.com/GoRed, and features a Shop Now button for products by designers such as Calvin Klein, Thalia, and Kensie of which Macy’s will donate 10 percent of the purchase price. The products also feature new Go Red active-wear, which coincides with the campaign’s focus on women’s health.

The Go Red Macy’s page also features emotional stories of nine women who have been affected by heart disease. A YouTube video also features interviews with the women to raise greater awareness.

Live stream shopping
Macy’s is hosting an event, which showcases the 2016 line for the Red Dress Collection created by designers in support of the Go Red campaign. The retailer will be broadcasting the show live on the mobile-optimized site.

The fashion show will air on February 11 at 8pm, in conjunction with New York Fashion Week. Many other retailers have been known for making their products more consumer-facing during the high fashion event with their own live-streams, meaning Macy’s is likely to be one of many using the strategy.

For instance, Victoria’s Secret did not let its large Instagram following go to waste during the airing of the brand’s popular fashion show in December, with users able to shop the featured items in real time (see more).

Also, Kohl’s monetized mobile live streams for its apparel brand LC Lauren Conrad, exhibiting the potential of applications such as Periscope and Meerkat not just to connect with fans, but to drive sales as well (see more).

“The excitement and enthusiasm of the live steam of the runway show that showcases the Red Dress Collection to kick off New York Fashion Week may inspire impulse purchases,” Mr. Morris said. “Knowing that 10 percent of the price of the dress is benefiting Go Red For Women provides an added emotional incentive to motive more women to purchase a dress to help the cause.

“More important than driving sales, Macy’s ongoing support of the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women® movement has helped save 104,000 lives a year.”