Results 1 – 10 of about 37,700,000 for charity water

When funds are limited, social media provides a cost effective and ubiquitous way to gain awareness and mobilize support for philanthropic efforts.  And, believe it or not, it’s changing the whole dynamics of giving, too.

Instead of forceful solicitations, (think about the unsolicited phone calls you receive during dinner, which, if you’re like me, you ignore, and direct mail flyers, which, hopefully, you at least take the time to recycle), social media helps create a space where people can not only learn about an organization on their own time, but also engage with the organization and its community.  Social spaces, like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, are creating an atmosphere of philanthropic interactivity and ‘cause celebration’.  In this new space it’s not just about whipping out the debit card and dropping a few cents in the bucket, it’s about the relationships people build with their causes, it’s about getting involved, joining an effort to make a difference and working together to build a community that helps drive change.

According to Scott Harrison, founder of Charity: Water, (as above), it’s the layers of interactivity that social media allows for that truly drives effectiveness.  What’s key: Compelling content—words, pictures and videos—that tells your story and opportunities to champion the cause by creating involvement—linking, sharing and creating.

Harrison’s approach seems to be working: Charity: Water raised over $7 million dollars over the last two years, allowing them to fund 1,247 water projects.  And, staying true to social media’s ability to forge trust with its humanizing and transparent approach, the organization uses Google Earth Maps to track projects and bring alive supporters’ accomplishments.

So, how has the organization leveraged social media to raise awareness, build a loyal following and raise funds?  Here are a few examples of their work.

Using the power of the tweet, Charity: Water gained recent notoriety and $50,000 thanks to Harrison’s tweet, “dear @realhughjackman — just snapped this near eritrean border at a school of 1400 w/o clean water” and inspirational photo (below).”

In February, 202 cities around the world held Twestivals on Charity: Water’s behalf.  Volunteers, using the power of their Twitter communities, hosted offline events to raise awareness and $250,000.  And it didn’t stop with this one day event, visit the site and you can upload and buy music and watch videos from the festival, check a schedule of events so you can get involved in future Twestivals, or make a donation.

In April, to celebrate World Water Day, Charity: Water tapped into YouTube with a powerful Call to Action video that resulted in over $10,000 in donations in just one day.  

Success with social media is achieved when organizations connect with people, establish relationships, create loyalty, build a community and then harness the power of their champions and their champions’ networks.  From more hits on Google to more fans on Facebook and more followers on Twitter, social media drives awareness and, when used as a tool to drive engagement, results in increased commitment and loyalty and, yes, because of that, more funds, too.

~Rachel

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