Visual Marketing: 99 Proven Ways for Small Businesses to Market with Images and Design

23. The Right Way to Start a Charity Today: Using Facebook and Blogs to Build a Community Around a Good Cause

Sarah Dale doesn't consider herself to be an artist or a craftsperson, but when a friend needed financial assistance during a medical emergency, she created a series of gift cards and sold them to friends and family and raised $2,500. It worked so well that she and her husband, Gavino, decided to set up a Facebook page and a blog to encourage other artists and crafts people to join their crusade of “change the world one craft at a time.”

Why It Works

Dale used Facebook and a blog that she created herself to spread the word about Right as Rain. She posts photos of the arts and crafts to promote sales. The organization focuses on one recipient at a time and uses the power of social networking to build a community of artisans and craftspeople to create the art and an ever-growing network of “rainmakers,” who support the beneficiary by purchasing the artwork. Dale often reaches out to her network in online conversations seeking their advice and feedback on core issues such as who should be the next recipient as well as more rudimentary ones such as previewing videos and testing promotional methods. Dale has built an impressive network by effectively using these crowdsourcing techniques that engage her audience and improve the overall mission of Right as Rain. She tries to responds ...