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Brendan Wong
Around 10 hours was all it took for a Melbourne-based group to raise $62,000 for charity, all via Facebook.
Nelson Alexander, a Victoria-based group with around 10 offices, managed to raise the funds for Hanover Welfare Services – a charity dedicated to helping the homeless - after their social media campaign went viral.
The real estate company promised to donate $50,000 to Hanover Welfare Services if they received 50,000 likes for a post showing Nelson Alexander managing director Paul Lunardi holding a sign detailing the pledge.
The photo was uploaded on Facebook on Wednesday afternoon this week, and by 11pm it had already generated more than 60,000 likes, well ahead of the two weeks that the company thought it would take.
Mr Lunardi presented a cheque for $62,595 to Hanover chief executive Tony Keenan yesterday morning.
He said the idea behind the campaign was to raise the profile of Hanover, as well as awareness of homelessness in Victoria.
Nelson Alexander saw social media as a powerful medium to accomplish their goal and spark conversation on a range of issues, including homelessness and the social responsibilities of corporate companies.
Nelson Alexander marketing and public relations manager Emma Lunardi told Real Estate Business the campaign generated a lot of conversation among Facebook users.
“It prompted a lot of people to think about the issue of homelessness,” she said. “There were some debates going on and there was some people sharing stories and people appreciating other people’s stories.”
Ms Lunardi said the campaign demonstrated the effectiveness of social media as a tool to reach a large group of people and raise awareness.
“We were in a position to provide a really significant donation toward Hanover and alongside that, exposure that they wouldn’t have gotten if we had simply just made a donation.”
Nelson Alexander will continue to use its Facebook page to keep the public informed on how the donation is being used.
“It’s not all over at the end of the day,” Ms Lunardi said. “It’s going to be a bit of a journey for everyone.”
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