You CAN Raise Funds For Haiti

Written by Merve on January 25, 2010

displaced-haiti-In my previous post, I wrote about how mobile phone carriers have made it so easy and so convenient for the average person to donate to the relief efforts in Haiti. There is absolutely nothing wrong with donating via mobile phone – that’s what I did, actually. However, there is only so much that an individual can give in terms of money, right? If you look at things from a wider perspective, though, if more people band together to help out, the results just might be so much better.

I was actually inspired by this story I read at The Guardian the other day. It’s about a group of mothers who organized a sale – baby toys, books, and clothes. They got together to raise cash to donate to Unicef’s Haiti Earthquake Children’s Appeal. Being mothers, their hearts were touched by the plight of the children in ravaged Haiti.

Here’s an excerpt from the article:

Ms Sheffied said: “We just wanted to give more than we have ourselves, and we thought a charity sale would be the best way to do this. So many children have been left orphaned or homeless by the earthquake, so it’s vital that funds are raised to support them. We just hope lots of people will come along to support us. We think this will be a really fun morning for local families, and most importantly we aim to raise money for the children of Haiti.”

They’re in the UK, but the location is not important. If they can do something like this, anyone from any country can set up something similar. How can you help Haiti? Ask yourself that.

Categories: Fundraising, International Aid | Tags: , , ,

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Social Media Becoming More Useful For Charities

Written by Merve on October 30, 2009

twitter_fail_whaleCharities have long had to adjust to the changing landscape surrounding them. Gone are the times when even the average person gave freely to charities. There are many reasons for this, perhaps the harsh economic atmosphere worldwide being the foremost. In any case, whatever the reason, charities – especially the smaller ones – are hard pressed to find ways and means to generate more funds.

One way by which charities are adjusting is by using social media. Twitter is one of the most popular tools that charities are making use of to reach out to more people who might want to give cash, goods, and services to help those who are in need. Of course, there are other social media platforms which can be used, such as Facebook.

So how can your charity take advantage of technology in this respect? Social media platforms have a worldwide reach. By creating an account for your charity, you can expand your reach to the other side of the world without expending extra money. Maybe a little effort is needed, but the benefits far outweigh it.

Think about all the “lost” friends that have reconnected through social media. These reconnections may very well serve as potential donors. Even those who may not have heard of your charity before may very well be moved to help out your cause due to your regular tweets and updates on Facebook. The idea is to get the word out to as many as possible and nothing beats social media when it comes to that!

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