48in48 - Making History For Non-Profits In Atlanta
Posted by Joe on Sunday, October 11, 2015 Under: Events
When my friend, former boss, mentor, and now client, Jeff Hilimire told me about his idea many months ago to build 48 websites for 48 non-profits in 48 hours, my immediate response was "I am in". Most non-profits are more focused on doing good, than looking good, so the strong digital marketing community here in Atlanta could pitch in our talents to help them attract, convert, and retain donors and volunteers.
So much planning and preparation went into the 48in48 weekend. Over the course of the weekend, something like 250 total volunteers and sponsors played small and large parts in the Herculean effort. At the General Assembly space within Ponce City Market, there was palpable excitement and exceptional teamwork that fueled the sleep deprived, but well fed volunteers.
I volunteered AgencySparks to write a blog post for each of the non-profits - to make sure they had some content to get them started towards their own content creation efforts. I recruited friends who were strong writers to assist, and boy did they come through:
16 volunteers offered to each write three posts. Some of them (Julie Marateck, Steve Denker, Keith Hanks, and Nancy Prager) stopped by to write their posts in person. Some of them brought treats for other volunteers, and Keith even helped me hand out 100+ Chick-fil-A sandwiches on one of our four runs to homeless shelters to distribute leftovers donations from Arby's, Flying Biscuit (thanks to Twitter), and Moe's. I was also blown away that two of my friends (Amanda Smith and Elysse Miller), who moved away from Atlanta years ago, still pitched in remotely.
We did it! We built all 48 websites! Of course all of the non-profits were "winners", but on Sunday evening, we were able to celebrate together with some esteemed judges, who chose some of the top websites and the teams who built them.
Not only did each of us that were heavily involved feel a strong sense of camaraderie and accomplishment throughout the weekend, but also a sense of relief at the end, when we reached our goal.
I tried to document the entire experience. Here is Jeff's excellent post. Below are some of my photos taken over the course of the weekend:
Some of the general volunteers
Sponsors (including AgencySparks)
Amy G. Martin and me LATE Friday night
Hygiene supplies
Quiet room to provide volunteers a little rest
Volunteers waiting for one of the prize drawings held every four hours
Many people brought treats for the volunteers including this cake
Finished home pages taped over original non-profit homepages
48in48 founders - Jeff Hilimire and Adam Walker with philanthropist and former NFL star - Warrick Dunn
48in48 judges
Thank you to everyone involved with this amazing effort. We look forward to helping 48in48 go national in 2016!
Best,
Joe
So much planning and preparation went into the 48in48 weekend. Over the course of the weekend, something like 250 total volunteers and sponsors played small and large parts in the Herculean effort. At the General Assembly space within Ponce City Market, there was palpable excitement and exceptional teamwork that fueled the sleep deprived, but well fed volunteers.
I volunteered AgencySparks to write a blog post for each of the non-profits - to make sure they had some content to get them started towards their own content creation efforts. I recruited friends who were strong writers to assist, and boy did they come through:
16 volunteers offered to each write three posts. Some of them (Julie Marateck, Steve Denker, Keith Hanks, and Nancy Prager) stopped by to write their posts in person. Some of them brought treats for other volunteers, and Keith even helped me hand out 100+ Chick-fil-A sandwiches on one of our four runs to homeless shelters to distribute leftovers donations from Arby's, Flying Biscuit (thanks to Twitter), and Moe's. I was also blown away that two of my friends (Amanda Smith and Elysse Miller), who moved away from Atlanta years ago, still pitched in remotely.
We did it! We built all 48 websites! Of course all of the non-profits were "winners", but on Sunday evening, we were able to celebrate together with some esteemed judges, who chose some of the top websites and the teams who built them.
Not only did each of us that were heavily involved feel a strong sense of camaraderie and accomplishment throughout the weekend, but also a sense of relief at the end, when we reached our goal.
I tried to document the entire experience. Here is Jeff's excellent post. Below are some of my photos taken over the course of the weekend:
Some of the general volunteers
Sponsors (including AgencySparks)
Amy G. Martin and me LATE Friday night
Hygiene supplies
Quiet room to provide volunteers a little rest
Volunteers waiting for one of the prize drawings held every four hours
Many people brought treats for the volunteers including this cake
Finished home pages taped over original non-profit homepages
48in48 founders - Jeff Hilimire and Adam Walker with philanthropist and former NFL star - Warrick Dunn
48in48 judges
Thank you to everyone involved with this amazing effort. We look forward to helping 48in48 go national in 2016!
Best,
Joe
In : Events
Tags: 48in48 non-profits volunteers volunteerism "marketing for good"
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