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The devastation caused by earthquakes in Haiti are well documented with a number of personalities and companies that are looking to do their bit. Zynga is one of those companies that seek to raise funds through their Haiti Relief Fund.
Zynga is a social gaming company that is responsible for some of the most popular online games; FarmVille, Mafia Wars and Zynga Poker. If you are the owner of a social media account, chances are that you are well aware of at least one of the games mentioned. Put together, the three games reach 40 million users collectively on a daily basis.
Zynga is running a relief campaign using the reach of their top three games. Players of the games can purchase limited-edition social goods specific to their game of choice, and a 100% of proceeds will go supporting relief efforts in Haiti. Users can also donate directly to the World Food Programme, who has set up a response team to distribute food and help the thousands in need in Haiti. With sheer volume of users interacting with their products, it is great to see Zynga doing something positive.
Another agency taking the opportunity to create positivity out of disaster is the Sputnik Agency, an internet marketing agency based in Melbourne. Just a day after the devastating fires in parts of Australia, the agency set up a site for an online initiative called Bushfire Housing. The basic premise for Bushfire Housing is to connect people who were left homeless by the fires to those residents who have available lodging.
Residents with lodging to share register and list their offering on the site, and people requiring space can browse listings that suit them. Once they’ve found suitable lodging, an email is sent to its owner. Both parties can then make arrangements between themselves as Bushfire Housing ends its responsibilities thereafter.
Sputnik relied solely on Word of Mouth to get word out on Bushfire Housing, and made tools available on the Housing site for people to spread the word, such as: SMS, badges, and pre-written emails. They also incorporated social media elements by allowing users to share info via Twitter and Facebook, and online sharing tools such as Digg and Del.ici.ous. Those interested in following the campaign could follow Bushfire Housing’s Twitter account, Facebook group, or subscribe to its identi.ca account. A total of 619 housing listings were placed with the capacity to house over 2000 people.
Zynga used sales within its product offering to encourage its users, whilst Sputnik used its expertise to create an online database of users; both approaches were used quite successfully to encourage support of worthy causes.
More: http://www.zynga.com/