14
Jan
2010
When a 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti on January 12, the devastation was massive. The public response, especially in social media realms, was also extraordinary.
As rescue crews and humanitarian workers were just beginning the difficult and heartbreaking job of helping the injured and inspecting the damage, the rest of us could only look at the images and listen to the stories on our televisions, radios and online. However, unlike past disasters, the emergence of social media’s crowdsourcing power in the past year gave people the tools and resources for a massive public response.
Led by the Red Cross, one of the first large-scale texting campaigns focused on a specific cause was launched within hours of the disaster. Recruiting the social media-friendly Obama Administration, information about the organization’s $10 texting donation option was loaded on the U.S. State Department and White House websites. Secretary of State Hilary Clinton mentioned the #90999 texting number in a speech, as did President Obama, setting up a fast and easy way for the public to confirm the campaign as legit. A similar texting campaign launched by Haitian-born musician Wyclef Jean called Yele Haiti, allowed texters to give $5 by texting “DONATE” to #501501.
Additionally, information about both campaigns went viral on Twitter and Facebook, spreading the word en mass and quickly. But the thing that truly brought success was the ease of donation – for the Red Cross, you simply text 90-999 on any cell phone, type “HAITI” in the message, and send. Within minutes a request for confirmation is texted back, the user confirms with “YES,” and voila, $10 get charged on your next phone bill. It captures donors in the very moment their emotions are highest and requires very little effort. Makes traditional online donation forms seem prehistoric.
In less than 48 hours, the Red Cross’s texting campaign raised almost $5 million in donations from texting alone. A week later, it was closing in on $18 million.
Facebook users also did their part, with 39 percent of US, UK and Australian users donating money or goods through the platform. Another 20 percent say they will be donating, according to a joint survey between Facebook and Nielsen.
Admittedly, extraordinary circumstances produce extraordinary response. The relative lack of competition for texting donations and the desperate readiness of Twitter and Facebook users to prove their social power (2008 elections, Iranian elections, DARPA balloons), created a perfect storm for this practically first-of-its-kind campaign.
While future crisis and causes will most assuredly follow in the Red Cross’ footsteps, and will more than likely fall far short of the Haiti earthquake response, there will still be a response. In the wake of tragedy, the Red Cross and social media have reinvented the art of cause giving.
