Corporate Sponsorships and Donations

As part of our overall Corporate Sponsorship Programs and Donations strategy, Canada Post conducted an employee survey* to evaluate and validate our sponsorship strategy among employees. The intent of the survey was to assess employees’ level of interest in various sponsorship opportunities related to sports, health, arts and culture, education and more.

Results showed that:

1. 92 per cent of employees thought it was important for Canada Post to be involved in the community.
2. Education, health and sports were the top category choices that employees thought Canada Post should support.

In response to employee recommendations, Canada Post created a Sponsorship Program and Cause Marketing Program. The development and implementation of these programs will enable us to take a proactive approach to sponsorships, engage employees and extend our reach into communities across the country.

*Source: Léger Marketing Survey, February 3, 2006

We’ve also created a Sponsorship Program to focus on three main categories:

1. Literacy (Education)
2. Mental Health (Health)
3. Canadian Freestyle Ski Association (Sports)

Community Relations Programs

Canada Post has a long standing record of generating goodwill at the community level, in every Province and Territory across Canada. Canada Post delivers three major public outreach programs that engage ordinary Canadians, as well as Canada Post employees, in every part of the country.

1.  Canada Post Community Literacy Awards Program

The Canada Post Community Literacy Awards celebrated their 14th year in 2007. The Literacy Awards were established by Canada Post in 1993 to celebrate the achievements of both adult learners and those who have helped them learn to read and write. Since its inception in 1993, the Awards Program has supported literacy in Canada by honouring the achievements of learners and supporters.

Today, by publicly acknowledging these efforts, the Literacy Awards continue to inspire thousands of Canadians to improve their reading and writing skills and to reach their personal literacy goals.

Entries are received in response to our website, posters, advertisements, letters and news releases. Winners are chosen by a panel of external judges and are then awarded prizes at community events across the country. More than 2,500 submissions have been received since the program’s inception.

2.  Postal Planet Website

Postal Planet is a safe, easy-to-access Web destination for schools and young people that emphasizes discovery, exploration and learning – all with a postal theme. The website features teacher-friendly learning tools, games, activities and links that are delivered in an engaging “edu-play” web environment. The resource helps audiences learn about the art of written communication—both electronic and physical—and how to use the postal system.

The site is colourful and eye-catching and all the content is educational, entertaining and approved by educators. It is organized into three main content areas; each designed to appeal to a specific audience: Kids, Teens, Parents and Educators.

Visitors to Postal Planet, who include teachers, parents, and children of all ages, can access information relating to the postal system—from writing letters and emails, to stamps, mailing letters, postal history and more. New zones to discover include Stamp Quest, a colourful and entertaining section featuring games, activities and excellent information about stamps.

3.  Santa Letter-writing Program

This much-loved Canadian tradition began as a local initiative in Montréal and grew into what is now a national Canada Post volunteer initiative. Through the efforts of more than 11,000 Canada Post volunteers, more than 1 million letters and 44,000 emails to Santa (written by children from across Canada and around the world) are responded to. The program even has its own unique postal code, HOH OHO.

Canada Post employees manage the program, and the company provides all associated materials (i.e., reply letters, envelopes, and postage) to volunteers. Employee volunteers answer the letters, donating some 170,000 hours of their time. In addition to the letter-writing component, Canada Post develops and hosts a Santa’s Corner website with games, activities and a downloadable Santa cast and an email “Write to Santa” feature.

Our Approach to Corporate Sponsorships and Donations

We plan to build on our proud history of community involvement by providing our support to help organizations reach their goals.

Our website will provide you with an overview of our giving strategy, application process and overall sponsorship and donation policies.

If you have suggestions on how we can improve our website, or if you had problems accessing information on the site, please email us at donations@canadapost.ca. Although we will not be able to reply to your email personally, your feedback is important to us.

NOTE: Please be aware that it is against corporate policy to provide free mail services. All applications requesting free mail services or reduced mail services will be declined.

Donations

Donations are the philanthropic element of cause marketing, whereby a company provides not-for-profit or charitable organizations with support in the form of money or products/services in return for tax benefits and access to the cause’s brand identity and credibility. Read more about our eligibility criteria.

Sponsorship

A sponsorship is a partnership with an organization that offers a commercial leveraging potential, which contributes to the brand’s communication and business objectives. Read more about our eligibility criteria.

Cause Marketing

Cause Marketing is the philanthropic component of alliance marketing, whereby a company supports a cause and raises funds for it through a commercial activity that stimulates sales and ultimately contributes to enhancing the firm’s brand and reputation. Read more about our cause of choice.