Santa’s List Day
Imagine being Santa, knowing who's been naughty or nice. Bring cheer to your family this Christmas season by making it to the nice list!
Leverage the nostalgia and moral messaging of Santa's Nice List to drive holiday gifting, gratitude campaigns, and family-focused promotions during December.
- Create a 'Nice List' challenge: encourage customers to nominate deserving people and gift them your products
- Behind-the-scenes 'Santa's Workshop' content showing how your brand makes holiday magic happen
- Playlist marketing: sponsor curated Spotify/streaming playlists featuring Santa-themed songs to reach holiday shoppers
- Heartwarming user-generated content campaign: share customer stories of being on someone's 'nice list'
The idea of Santa Claus bringing presents to children is believed to have begun around the 4th century BC in the area that is now modern day Turkey. The story is told that a religious man, called Saint Nicholas, was kind and generous toward children, giving them gifts.
Nicholas went on to become the patron saint of many countries, but the Netherlands seems to be the place where many of the cultural beginnings that led to Santa Claus began. Each year, when the feast of Saint Nicholas was celebrated, parents would leave gifts out for their children who, of course, assumed that the presents came from St. Nick.
Eventually this type of folklore morphed into what would become the modern day Santa Claus in the United States. The idea for Santa bringing gifts may have developed partially from the 1823 poem by Clement Mark Moore, ‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.
It was some years later that the idea of Santa’s List got started. No one knows exactly how the idea started, but it may be linked to the song Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town. Originally recorded in 1934, the song has been super popular for many decades and has been recorded by dozens of different artists.
Now it’s time for Santa’s List Day!
Make a Nice List
Think about the ways that you’ve observed people being nice this year and create a nice list of your own! Once the list is made, think of different ways to be an encouragement to the people, whether it’s writing a nice card or playing Santa Claus with a small gift.
Listen to Christmas Songs
Santa’s List Day is a great day to put on that holiday music and enjoy all kinds of fun. Make a playlist on Spotify or another online music platform and listen particularly to songs that mention Santa’s list or the gifts he’ll bring to children, including tuns such as: Santa Claus is Comin’ to Town by Bruce Springsteen (1975). This classic live version of the song is a fun and delightful, albeit gritty, version of the song featuring some amazing instrumentals. Santa’s List by Cliff Richard (2003). By the classic English pop singer, this song is featured on Cliff Richard’s album, Cliff at Christmas. Santa Baby by Eartha Kitt (1953). The singer of this song is convinced that she’s been a good girl this year and expects Santa to bring her a whole list of gifts.