Most people would much rather donate money to help others than they would donate their time and energy. Getting people to volunteer can be one of the most difficult challenges a community builder can face. How about getting 17,000 people to volunteer? Think you can take that on?
That’s exactly what 7 Cups of Tea did. And as a community of “active listeners,” they did much more than get people to volunteer. Every volunteer listener completes a training program and then actually chat with and listen to other members of the community. And they did it all in one year.
“We call it the emotional support system for the Internet” explains CEO and clinical psychologist Glen Moriarty. “We just celebrated our one-year anniversary and are thrilled with the way the community is growing.The community gave back to 7 Cups of Tea on their birthday by making a thank you video to the entire team and joining them in an all-day chat party.
