Carina Kom’s Post

It's TONIGHT! 6:30 pm at the Northeastern University, we'll host our PVP Entertainment Guild Hilarious Improv Pitching Night! The video game industry is facing challenging times and the layoffs across the board are devastating, but our mission of sharing knowledge and empowering the community stands strong. That's why we decided to put a spin on it and host a fun evening to raise funds for the Trevor Project where anyone can pitch a game project generated on the spot. That's it, no preparation necessary, no NDAs, and no pressure! Only laughs! Get tickets at our event page: https://lnkd.in/g7tBuP6d Frequently Asked Questions: What if I've been recently laid off and/or can't buy tickets? - DM me! We've got Industry Support tickets for those who want to join, but cannot afford them. What if I can't attend the event? - If you can't make it, please consider purchasing a ticket to help us raise money for charity or get one on behalf of someone impacted by layoffs. Do I have to pitch at the event? - No! You can come to just watch and learn, but we bet you'll have a lot of fun if you decide to pitch! #gamesindustry #event #comedy

I want to try an experiment. Will you bear with me? When I was little, I used to sell candy bars door-to-door to raise money for my little league. I was around 10 years old, walking around the neighborhood alone, talking to adult strangers, selling gross, rock-hard chocolate bars with giant, tooth-cracking peanuts in the middle. They were called 'World's Finest Chocolate' and they sold for $1 each. I think the name was overselling it. But we sold a ton because people felt guilty not buying fundraising hell-chocolate from a child. Now to make this a LinkedIn post, I suppose now I'm going to tell you how this gave me the grit to become a tech entrepreneur. Heck no! It was awful and embarrassing and, in hindsight, very, very dangerous. So now LinkedIn family, I'm going to ask something of you. I'm going to sell you holiday decorations to raise money for my kids' preschool Argo Navis. If you've been following me, whether you've seen thousands of posts (literally, confirmed in Shield) since 2012 or dozens this year, please peg a value of the entertainment / information I've given you and spend that on whimsical holiday decor. I don't post here altruistically. This platform has given me loads of value. But now the guilt trip: have I given YOU more value than YOU'VE given me? If so, it's time to pay the piper. Don't end up on Santa's naughty list. The link is in the comments. (P.S. don't eat the wreaths, thought they likely taste better than these pain logs) #fundraising #

Raise Money FAST with GALA strategy...NEVER toss a coin and hope for the best. Three Things: 1. You don't need to spend a lot of money to make a lot of money. 2. Everybody is not coming to your party, because there is no "party". 3. There is one expenditure that should 10X your investment in 1 hour or less. A professionally trained Benefit Auctioneer Specialist. Hundreds of galas and 60 plus million raised, I learned three things the hard way before I found the golden ticket. I was forced to raise money like every other Executive and Development Director: "Do what other people are doing in places where they do it" or "We've always done it that way". It didn't make sense then and it certainly doesn't now with a proven five step process guaranteed to keep you in the black. Next I'll tell you how we did not spend 20K to make 8K. Reach out for your Discovery Call for your game changer. You can't afford not to.

Ever wonder what makes a YouTube video successful? How about one with 1.5 million views? That's how many views a video from DoSomething[dot]org got in 2011. It featured famous YouTubers asking young people to donate sports equipment to needy kids. It seemed like a hit, right? But here's the catch: despite all those views, only eight people signed up to donate, and none actually did! Zero donations from 1.5 million views!📉 Suddenly, it was clear: views didn't equal success 💡So, what went wrong? They were measuring the wrong thing. See, a metric is just a way to measure something. And for DoSomething[dot]org, success means making a real difference - getting donations, not just views. ✅Lesson learned: Don't be blinded by raw numbers; instead, focus on the numbers that drive real change. That's what separates useful data from meaningless numbers.

Here is the information for our event next month!! Please be sure to share with everyone that wants to have fun, meet some really great people, and let some stress out throwing an ax all for a good cause! Right click on the hyperlink on the flyer and chose to open the hyperlink to register. No need to RSVP to me for this one!!! https://lnkd.in/efWw-JtY Let the games begin!!!! #parkinsonsawareness #charityfundraiser #axethrowing

Do you work in the video games industry or do you know content creators who dabble in video games? Please read on! Since my sister passed away (took her life) in 2021 after over 10 years of mental health battles, I've dedicated the last weekend in February to hosting a charity event in her memory, called Gaming for Mental Health. The first year, it was just me and I raised $1000, despite having about 200 subscribers on my YouTube channel at the time. Last year, I invited other creators to do the same and 20 small creators like me, me included banded together to raise $2998. It proved this wasn't a one time thing. We all had small platforms but together we could make a difference greater than the sum of us. None of it could probably have gotten as big as it did without the kind sponsorships from developers and publishers alike who helped with giveaway prizes and sharing the project on social media. We're now less than 2 months out from the 2024 edition on February 23-25 and I'm on the hunt for more help! if you are, or know, a content creator, big or small, please join in (or ask them to)! The event is open to all. You just stream as much as you want during those days and ask your viewers to donate to the cause if they can and want, and if you can, please talk a bit about mental health while doing it. As simple as that! And if you work in the industry and think your company could help grow the event, consider reaching out and talk! Maybe your company streams to their audience every now and then? perhaps you could do one that Friday, showing off your game while joining the fundraising? Or perhaps you have contacts among creators you can share with me or reach out to on behalf of the event? Maybe run a sale or bundle for the event or donate some proceeds for a day or three? Or perhaps you have something we streamers can raffle out among donors or viewers, as incentives to watch and donate? Gaming For Mental Health is growing but it can't do so with just me! This year, we're raising funds for #SafeInOurWorld, #TeamTilia and the #TimBerglingFoundation You can read more on the website: https://lnkd.in/dzJYQmax #gamingformentalhealth #charity #mentalhealthawareness

The 12 Days of Fundraising Ideas...Be a Part of the Solution, Be a Housing Hero! Here are some great fundraising ideas for schools, clubs or just to propose to a group of generous friends with good intentions like you! 11. Video Game Tournament - If you're not a video game "aficionado" do a little bit of research into what the most popular video games are at the moment and make sure you have a good variety of those. Ask people to donate video games and lend some equipment if possible or look into rentals. This will help to keep the costs low. Promote the event and come up with a prize for the winner – perhaps a pack of the most popular video games, a gift card, gaming microphone or headphones. #AffordableHousing #NiagaraRegion #BethlehemHousing #HousingHeroes #BeaHousingHero #Niagara #Fundraising #Community #Help #Giveback #Donation #PayItForward #DoGood #GivingBack #Hope #MakeADifference #Fundraising

Yes, it’s Red Nose Day - featuring the new red noses made from plant-based materials so you can recycle them at home. There are 4 fun characters: Gigglesworth, Mcchortles, Smirklethorpe, Lol E Pops and The Golden Hooter (you get a 1 in 166 chance to get this limited edition Rare ‘Gold’ Nose). It’s Sir Lenny Henry’s last time hosting the 3-hour TV show tonight, after founding Comic Relief 39 years – what a wonderful achievement 😊 Last year Comic Relief raised over £35 million, after hitting the heights of £42.7 million in 2022. You’ll see what people have been up to raise funds in the show tonight. In the meantime, you can make a donation (like us) – here https://lnkd.in/gJFn8DD7 Or if you’re a Wallace & Gromit fan (who isn’t) TK Maxx have the T-shirts. Matthew is modelling the stripey Gromit one. Comic relief says “we're here for people who are facing the toughest times of their lives in the UK and around the world.” and “Our goal is to drive positive change through the power of entertainment” They’ve highlighted 3 areas: 🔴 Alleviating poverty’s consequences and grip on people’s daily lives. We fund programmes that help people and communities overcome the many challenges they face. 🔴 Tackling the injustices that keep people in poverty. We support organisations and movements that strive for fairness and equity. 🔴 Standing with those in poverty who are most harmed by climate change. We work in places and with people who are already vulnerable and now dealing with the effects of climate change. It's the day to Do Something Funny for Money! Are you joining in? #rednoseday #comicrelief #fridayfeeling

What do I advise brands to say during solemn events like yesterday? Nothing. Absolutely positively nothing. Because it's not about YOU. It never was, it isn't now and it never will be. It comes off as so forced and cringeworthy most of the time to make a statement to essentially show "Hey, we care too, you know." Oh, and don't forget your logo. Cut the crap and make a donation to foundations that are supporting victims and/or offer to match donations. THAT is worth talking about: Using your brand to mobilize positive change in the community through employees, clients and the online community in light of a tragic event. Dare I say, I might even call it potentially newsworthy to a reporter. Hmmm. #publicrelations

Did you know? Game Devs of Color Expo is a nonprofit! That means your donations are tax deductible. We're still open and looking for sponsors! 💙 💚 Share this to help us find our next sponsor! Here's a list of ways YOU can support us: 1. One time donation via PayPal! Our mission is to amplify the creative power held by POC in games. We're a 501(c)3 nonprofit, donations are tax-deductible. https://lnkd.in/esvj9r3F 2. Ko-Fi Subscription! Subscribe to us via Ko-Fi, making monthly contributions. You'll receive perks by becoming a subscriber! https://ko-fi.com/gdocexpo 3. Become a sponsor, or invite your employer to become a sponsor! Funding is a major issue for most devs, especially developers of color. We’re partnering w/ games industry leaders to help game creators of color make innovative games in a sustainable way. https://lnkd.in/eBEp3ius 4. BUY OUR MERCH! Purchase something from our Etsy! We have various merch from different years available on our shop, which is an easy and fashionable way to show off your support for the expo! https://lnkd.in/eq2RQbDw 5. If you don't have money to spare, we totally understand! Sharing our posts, liking, commenting, & engaging positively helps our reach and makes it easier to do the work we do. This is a free way anyone can support us, which we deeply appreciate!