250 people asking for help right now

What a wild, humbling statement. We are honored to be in a position where we have 250 people right now who have entrusted their struggles with us and are waiting for our reply.

I explain how we got here, why it matters, and behind-the-scenes look at the strategy we’re using to solve this problem. I also share two opportunities for you to help.

Watch the video, or read the highlights below:

Highlights

• YouTube received double views this month (3m, up from 1.5m average this year)

  • On average, we get someone asking us for help every 8,700 views in the comments on YouTube

  • Machine learning technology detects them and alerts our trained repliers

• We went from 0 people to 250 people waiting for support in 2 weeks

People opening up about heavy struggles

Some are sharing for the very first time

• Our impact strategy is working - people are using music to open up

• We need to grow our supply

  • We’ve focused all year on building a foundation for scalable volunteer management

• Our vision has evolved - we are here to heal the scene

  • Staff isn’t the solution, volunteers are

• This has put significant weight on recruiting

  • We’ve 6X’d our volunteer application rate this year, foreseeing this need

  • We’re changing our tent and site strategies to focus on recruiting

  • We’re committed to only grow as fast as we can sustain volunteers in our 3-5 year strategic plan

How to Help:

1. Share about our reply event next week (use image and caption below)

HeartSupport is a cause I support. They offer mental health support to metal music fans. They've had 250 people ask them for help in the last two weeks, and they're looking for volunteer to help! Next week, 45 volunteers will work together and write 9 replies each. They get trained, and they can win cool prizes. The event starts on Monday and ends on Friday, and you can write your 9 replies any time that week. If you're looking for a cool way to help people, I highly recommend you sign up (it only takes 3 minutes)! Sign up here: https://forms.gle/KeHrMhehMefkUPVZ6

2. Sign up for the event and write 9 replies with us (I’m doing it!)

3. You can also volunteer for us at Furnace Fest in Birmingham, AL from 10/4 to 10/6 - we provide free Fest Tickets for volunteers!

In conclusion

• This cause you’re supporting is growing

• We’re positioning ourselves for scale

• We’re clear on who we’re here to help, and how we’re going to help them

• It will take all of us to heal the scene, and we’re thankful you’re choosing to engage in this mission with us

• If you want to help with this spike in demand, you can (1) share the reply event, (2) volunteer for it, or (3) join us at Furnace Fest

For the scene,

-Nate & HeartSupport Team