To break through the typically shallow and empty wishes of traditional holiday marketing, we needed an idea that would resonate with customers on a deeper level.Additionally, Starbucks has always been about more than just coffee; being an integral part of the community is central to its DNA.Using Starbucks’ size for good, we literally brought the world together. 156 countries came to together at the exact same time to raise money and awareness to help fight AIDS in Africa.

An exclusive in-store CD and a :60 television spot introduced the musical and charitable theme of the project, inviting people to participate in the upcoming historical event.On December 7th, musicians in 156 countries sang “All You Need Is Love” at exactly the same time. The performances were broadcast live on www.StarbucksLoveProject.com. The song was chosen not only for its meaning, but also for its historical significance—The Beatles performed it in 1967 in the first-ever global satellite broadcast.On the website, users were invited to sing the song or create a Love drawing with each submission generating a donation to the Global Fund.Additionally, a music video was created from the live event and posted online to further generate contributions.

The Love project helped generate enough money to buy more than seven million days of medicine for people living with HIV in Africa.The event set a new Guinness World Records™ record for “Most Nations in an Online Sing-along.”The music video topped the Top 20 Viral Videos and has had more than 1.6 million YouTube views.The average time spent on the site on December 7th was 5 minutes, 49 seconds. Total site visits are over a million. More than 19,000 Love drawings have been submitted so far, and people from 99 countries have submitted videos.