10 Ways To Help Japan Through Social Media

Just one week after the devastating earthquake and tsunami in Japan it is becoming more and more evident just how tough a toll this has paid (and is still paying) on the Japanese people, their land, their homes and their spirit. They are currently in need of all the help they can get and if you want to help, either by way of donation or by showing your support, then we want to help you do that. From donations to help and support, we've compiled a list of great ways you can help Japan through social media. Read on to find out more. Spread The Word - Promote! Let's start with ways that you can help Japan that don't require a donation. We know that not everyone out there has the money to donate to Japan. If you don't, one of the best ways you can help is by promoting all the ways that people can help through your social networks. Even if you can't donate to the cause, perhaps some of your Twitter followers or Facebook friends can. By sharing links to ways to donate with your social network you could inspire others to help out. You can also show your support by stamping a 'Pray For Japan' ribbon on your social network profile pictures. Google Person Finder To help the friends and family of victims of the quake find out information about whether or not they are okay, Google launched a Person Finder App. Through the app, you can search for a person or provide information about a person. If you have received information about someone in Japan who was affected by the earthquake or tsunami, be it by phone, email, Twitter, Facebook or otherwise, take the time to add this information to Google's Person Finder. You never know who else may be trying to find out if that same person is okay. Posting the information in as many places as possible is the best way to help others find out information about the victims. Watch This Video YouTube celeb Ryan Higa, aka NigaHiga, the most-subscribed YouTuber of all time with over 3.3 million subscribers is doing something cool to help Japan. He headed out to the streets with a sign that said, "Honk If You Love Japan" and donated $10 for every honk in an hour, for a total of $600. But that's not all. He's also donating an additional $600 for every 1 million views his "Honk For Japan!" video gets. So watch it, share it and watch it again! Even if you can't donate money on your own, you can help this video get millions of views just by watching! HelpAttack! For those of you looking for ways to donate via social media, HelpAttack! Is a cool way to give. HelpAttack! makes your online life a donation to a cause or nonprofit. Basically, you pledge an amount for every update you make on Facebook and/or Twitter for 30 days (up to a limit). At the end of 30 days you make good on your donation. Click here to find out how you can pledge to donate money to the Red Cross. SXSW4Japan With the huge conference SXSW starting just around the same time as the earthquake hit, it was only natural for them to start a fund to raise money for Japan. Partnered with the American Red Cross, SXSW4Japan invites your donations here. They have raised $71,613 so far and their goal is $80,000. On their website, they suggest that people who want to help out donate, share a link to their site (tweet with #sxswcares and #sxsw4japan), or create a fundraising page of your own. Click here for tips on making your own fundraising page. Groupon Groupon has started their own Earthquake Relief Fund as well. According to the Groupon Blog, "Through our site, you can give to the International Medical Corps. They are a group of health professionals dedicated to global support and relief, who are dispatching response teams and supplies to mitigate the hardship and suffering that still await the people of Japan and other affected areas around the Pacific." Through Groupon, you can donate $5, $10 or $25 here. Play FarmVille & Other Zynga Games Zynga has partnered with Save the Children to aid disaster victims in Japan. Gamers are invited to donate via eight of Zynga's games - FarmVille, YoVille, Zynga Poker, Words With Friends, Cafe World, CityVille, FrontierVille and zBar. Find out more at Zynga.org. Discounted iPhone games Zynga isn't the only gaming company that's helping out to raise money for disaster relief in Japan. Earlier this week, Neil Vidyarthi wrote a post about discounted iPhone games that are giving 100% of the profits to Japan relief. Play Street Fighter, Sonic The Hedgehog and other games on your iPhone and help out Japan in the process. Read Neil's post here to find out more. Weeworld Weeworld is also doing what they can to contribute to Japan relief efforts. Kenna McHugh posted on this earlier this week. She writes that, "Weeworld.com and its WeeMee Avatar Creator app are offering items for sale with 100% of the proceeds going to Japan Earthquake relief." Read Kenna's post to find out more. Facebook Causes A Facebook Causes page has also begun to garner support for earthquake and tsunami victims. The page, called Help Japanese Earthquake and Tsunami Victims, allows users to donate $10, $25, $50, $100 or $500, or you can simply join the cause and share it with your Facebook friends. So far they have raised $195,350. You can also find more information about how to help on the Global Disaster Relief on Facebook page. Want to find more ways to donate? Check out Google's Crisis Response site. Also, it is important to note that before you make a donation you verify that the site you are donating through is legit. As sad as it is, a lot of scams are using this crisis to trick unsuspecting people trying to make donations online. How do you plan to help Japan? Share your ideas with us in the comments. Image via Prints by Rob Dobi. For sale here, all proceeds go to benefit disaster recovery in Japan.

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10 Ways To Help Japan Through Social Media

Megan O'Neill

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Megan O'Neill