100 Cars for Good, 3 for the Good Life
September 29th, 2011
On Wednesday, September 28, 2011 three Nebraska-based non-profit organizations were presented with brand new Toyota vehicles after winning the Toyota-sponsored 100 Cars for Good contest: Lighthouse, a community based after-school program for youth in Lincoln, the Food Bank of Lincoln, which provides leadership in community efforts to address hunger in Southeast Nebraska, and Arbor Day Farm, which promotes environmental programs that focus on trees, conservation and environmental stewardship.
Thousands of non-profits from around the nation applied to enter the contest, which makes it extraordinary that Nebraska was home to three of the winners, more than any other state. Representatives from each organization gathered at the Performance Toyota-Scion dealership in Lincoln Wednesday morning, exchanging handshakes and “congratulations” before being handed giant keys by the vice president of Toyota Product Communications, James Colon. See more about his thoughts on the event in the recap of our exclusive interview.
Pictured from left to right: representatives from the Food Bank of Lincoln, Arbor Day Farm and Lighthouse.
The 100 Cars for Good contest was a program aimed to reward do-gooders from around the nation with new cars for the purpose of furthering and aiding their community efforts, which crossed a broad range of categories. Thousands of entries were reduced to 500 finalists, selected by an independent panel of judges, experts in the fields of philanthropy and corporate social responsibility. These 500 finalists resulted in 100 winners, after one vehicle-recipient was chosen each day for 100 consecutive days beginning May 9th. All voting took place via Facebook.
Facebook made the perfect platform for this contest, especially for non-profits who seldom have marketing teams to promote themselves and their causes. These organizations are used to relying on word-of-mouth advertising, but with such a grand prize on the line, many of them bumped up their promotional game. A variety of tactics resulted in these three organizations gaining the votes needed to win.
Lighthouse representatives used their social circles for support, including past fraternity brothers, the adolescents within the program and over 2,200 newsletter recipients. They even convinced board members who were not active members on Facebook to create accounts and spread the word. They will use their new Toyota Highlander hybrid to take kids on outings and field trips with the intent of expanding their ambitions.
The folks at the Food Bank of Lincoln took a team approach, consulting Lighthouse (who had won a couple weeks before) on their strategy, as well as other food banks in the region who also won vehicles. It seems as though like-causes and fellow Lincoln non-profits were willing to lend a hand, and a vote. They will use their new Toyota Sienna to haul loads of Food to and from their headquarters.
Arbor Day Farm, and organization that already receives high praise and recognition from most green initiatives in the region, counted on their established reputation while utilizing employees, guests, family and friends to boost their vote count. Twitter also seems to have served them well. Arbor Day will use their new Toyota Sienna Hybrid, which fits in perfectly with their cause, to take visitors to and from the airport.
Perhaps the high amount of winners in Nebraska speaks to the kind of supportive community we have. This is a great example of how social media can create social good right here in the heartland, where local support and community building are clearly demonstrated.
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