Remember those Daily Candy emails we all crushed over in high school and college? Imagine an email like that for charity dropping into your email every day- or at least once a week. How awesome, right? Well you don’t have to imagine it. Young black professional and do-gooder, Saranah Holmes, has just launched the new site The Daily Do Good to inspire us every day to do something good. Ebonie had a chance to chat with Saranah to get the scoop on the new site.
Friends of Ebonie: What makes The Daily Do Good different?
Saranah Holmes: First, we are very DC Metro area specific. We’re not just volunteer opportunities and events; we are a one stop shop for all things good. It will be a daily email for all things good happening. For example, we will include in one email a write up about a non-profit, a special feature about someone doing good, and how to get involved with a cause. With other sites, you have to go to them to get what you want. With us we come to you with information that is curated by professional journalists and written in a fun light-hearted way. People will really look forward to receiving an email every day. The website serves as a back up to what we send in the email.
Friends: Awesome! So tell me, how does this operation run?
SH: All the pieces aren’t quite at 100% right now. [Laughter] But we have an editorial director and she manages our writing staff. She manages event coverage and other special projects. It’s a lot of word of mouth too. People will call or email me and say “Oh my husband is on the board of this organization can you cover it?” We’re working on expanding so we can cover more ground. That may include a street team or college team, or maybe some folks at a metro center gathering information. We’re in the process of gathering that team right now.
As our subscribership grows it will increase our audience, therefore increasing our connections to people to help provide content.
Friends: I see there is a cost associated with posting onto the site. Can you explain what the cost covers and who would need to pay?
SH: Sure. Our fees are nominal and it’s free to subscribe. There is a cost for a non-profit to post an event. That coverage comes along with a “donate now” button. The idea is that you make your money back from what you put out based on the number of subscribers we have. Part of the reason I created this is because advertisement fees can be astronomical. If an organization can’t find a way for their event to go viral, they aren’t reaching any more supporters than the people already following them. But of course, if there is an organization that really needs some help, but can’t afford our fee then we will do our best to work with them.
Friends: I see. Shifting gears a bit. How will this platform support young black philanthropy?
SH: While I know I represent the young black professional, the non-profit worker, and the female entrepreneur, the Daily Do Good target is very broad. We are looking to attract anyone who is looking to get involved in giving. There will be something for everyone at the DDG but there will also be opportunities for niche topics. The blog will be the area where we can focus on those specialty areas. For example, August is Black Philanthropy Month. In August we can use the blog to highlight the importance of that month.
Not to mention, the DC metro area has billions of dollars in giving power. As we heard at the Black Benefactors dinner, there are lots of resources for the black community. In a city whose population is more than 50% black, DDG will reach the black community no matter what.
Friends: What drove you to create The Daily Do Good?
SH: That’s probably the easiest question. I spent seven years as a fundraiser for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington. I put together comedy nights, happy hours, etc. and everyone loved the events! I put blood, sweat and tears into the events and they would be successful to a certain extent. Yes, they were well attended by my friends and their friends but I wanted more people that I didn’t know. So one day as I was looking at the (former) Daily Candy, I thought there should be a Charity tab on here. The Daily Candy was one good thing that people looked forward to every day. I just felt like there has to be a site for events like mine. Then I would look at Washington Life or Washingtonian and see all these charity events with great pictures. I’d think, “Why didn’t I hear about this?”
I wanted to sell my idea to The Daily Candy but my friends said, “No! You should do this on your own!” As a new entrepreneur, I was hesitant so I paced myself. I started doing one thing to help me move closer to my goal of developing the site. And now, here we are a year later and the very first email went out on October 6th with rave reviews. I’ve had an incredible amount of support from so many people. There’s a lot of negativity out there. The Daily Do Good focuses on the fun and positive and provides people with a way to Do Good and Feel Good.
Subscribe to The Daily Do Good and follow the site on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.
