Charity Challenge: Entrepreneurs commit to charity

In 2018, it was 10 years ago that online marketing coach Rico den Burger set up his own agency RdB Communication. From the very first year, he has been committed to charity with RdB Communication.

After the RdB team grew from 1 to 3 coaches last year, Rico decided to expand the commitment to charity together with Caroline Recter and Marit van Dongen. The result is the 'Charity Challenge': a "day for charity" in which four charities receive free, tailor-made, online marketing advice.

At the end of 2018, a number of organisations were invited to submit their digital problems to Rico, Caroline and Marit. During the subsequent workshop around the topics of social media, SEO, advertising campaigns, content strategies and customer journey, four charities were thus intensively helped with a hands on solution.

According to Rico, the first event was a real success and the results of the workshops also exceeded his own expectations in a positive way.

"All solutions were a hit," says Rico. "Every charity was surprised and honoured to be part of the challenge."

One of the charities that took part was Amsta De Raak, a care home for the elderly in Amsterdam that itself counts on the help of around 500 volunteers. Rico and his team helped them set up a digital registration form for volunteers.

Rico also told us about the lack of structure that charities often face. "It's difficult because these organisations often have a lot of ideas and activities. This makes it very difficult to focus on what they are doing, especially in marketing."

According to Rico, lack of time should not be an excuse when it comes to helping others. His example confirms that even with a full-time job, it is possible to contribute your time and skills. "We're all busy, especially millennials, so we need to find the time for good causes, within our groups and friends," said Rico. "Find the time to do something good within your work or studies."

For Rico, Caroline and Marit, the Charity Challenge tasted like more. After the successful first event, they decided to quickly set up new workshops. Of course with the goal to help as many charities as possible!