Each Friday, the another jennifer blog shares stories of those who incorporate philanthropy into their everyday lives – personally and professionally – in a creative and unique way. If you have a story you’d like to share, please contact Jennifer. You can view past posts from the series here.
everydayhero is a global fundraising platform that allows you to see the impact of your giving. Just launched in the United States, the original concept for everydayhero was co-founded in 2004 by Simon Lockyer and Nathan Betteridge in Australia. Back then, they started a consumer brand that gave a percentage of its sales to charity. Both had done a lot of work in the nonprofit sector and wanted to incorporate giving into the brand that sat in big stores.
That consumer brand never took off, but they noticed the Internet was really taking off. They left the stores and went online to create everydayhero in 2007. Simon tells me their goal was to make giving more accessible and easier. They saw that nonprofits were poorly funded and that peer to peer fundraising was prevalent.
A lot of consumer research was done prior to launching everydayhero. They wanted to go beyond the dollar sign and truly understand what giving means to people. They found that we are motivated when we can see our impact. Showing people a quantitative view of their giving makes people want to give even more.
Knowing these facts, Simon and his crew set out to measure more than just a dollar amount. They also measure our time, voice, energy and effort. everydayhero has partnerships with MapMyFitness, VolunteerMatch, Facebook and Twitter, allowing users to quantify their own giving footprint.
I set up my own account in everydayhero and was able to create a volunteering goal and log the hours I’ve already put in this year at the Mid Coast Hunger Prevention Program. You can also create your own fundraising pages, which are easily shared and tracked via social media. And you can see the collective impact you are making with other community members around the world. I’m told $206 million has been raised using everydayhero from 3.8 million donations since 2007.
everydayhero was acquired by fundraising giant Blackbaud in 2011, so it is also backed by an established nonprofit technology partner. Watch this video to find out more about how everydayhero works.
Will totally have to check this and I love the concept of tracking your giving ways and spirit. Thanks for sharing and have wonderful weekend now 🙂
It’s a great concept. As I respond to this comment, I realize I have some new volunteer hours to log tonight too!
I love that this measure more than just monetary contributions. I don’t have much money to put towards things, but I do have time and abilities. I like to see that those make a difference too.
We all have something to give. That’s what I truly believe, Rabia. Sometimes money isn’t what’s needed either.
This is an incredible concept! Like Rabia, I love that it takes into account more than just monetary things. The gift of our time is often much more precious! How exciting it is to see the impact you are making! It keeps you inspired to push on! –Lisa
I agree, Lisa. It’s fun to set goals and track how you are doing. Those volunteer hours add up quickly!
What a cool concept! Sharing our time is often more important than money! In recent years, I’ve had less money to donate, which is frustrating, but we do still give as much of our time as we can.
I think it’s important to find that balance in giving. What works for one person, may not for another. The good thing is that there are many ways to give back that don’t involve money!
I love the video! It told me that I’m a wonderful hero.
I love the concept too. I want to give money, constantly, but it’s so hard to think of how to spread it where I want it to go. Time is so valuable.
You are a wonderful hero, Tamara. It’s a great video. I like things that explain stuff to me. Much better than reading boring instructions on how to use a website!
That is just such a great concept! It’s like reinforcement for our giving- fueling the fire of doing good! It makes perfect sense to empower the givers showing them the affects of their giving of their time and investments in helping others! BRILLIANT way to engage and encourage those who have a heart to make a difference.
I think people give more when they realize they are making a difference. This is a great way to show your own impact!
This is the first I’m hearing of this, and it sounds fascinating! Obviously as a grant writer I spend a lot of time considering impact in very concrete and measurable ways. Government agencies and foundations naturally want to be 100% certain their dollars are working as intended. So why wouldn’t individuals want that knowledge too?
That’s a great perspective, Katie. It makes sense, doesn’t it?
What a great idea! Your time definitely counts for so much, and it would be really interesting to see how much time we invest in giving. Especially after having my fundraiser last week where we shared little tidbits of information (i.e. $_____ will pay for xxx activity) it would be really cool to include how many hours collectively members put into the organization.
The hours definitely add up. When you collectively gather that information, it gets really impressive! I think it inspires people to help out even more.