This Creator Raised $11M—And Gave Brands a New Way to Get ROI

Is Creator-Led Charity Fundraising the Future of Brand Partnerships? I'm down!

Author

Shira Lazar
August 04, 2025

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Over the past month, YouTuber Ryan Trahan traveled to all 50 states in 50 days, posting daily vlogs, completing challenges, and raising over $11.5 million for St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.

No media buy. No sizzle reel. Just pure creator storytelling, audience momentum,  and brands that contributed without asking for control.

Some pledged based on performance: $1 per app download or Instagram follow. Others donated outright. Their only “placement”? A shoutout at the end of a vlog, sometimes brief, sometimes with no thank-you at all.

There was no campaign strategy deck. But the results speak for themselves.

Brands involved ranged from small businesses to major names. A fan-built site, ryanmatchers.com, tracked pledges in real time, gamifying impact for viewers. What marketers call “emotional visibility”—showing up in a moment of trust instead of pushing product—was the norm, not the exception.

Zack Honarvar, Trahan’s manager, shared that donations ranged from $5,000 to six figures—a manageable entry point for brands seeking visibility without micromanaging messaging. As manager and advisor, Monica Khan noted, it’s a “trust-over-control” moment: brands show up not by dictating the story, but by supporting creators to tell their own.

A Trend Years in the Making

Social-media-driven giving isn’t new. Way back before video was the norm, I participated in Twestival—a global movement where people organized local events via Twitter to raise money for causes they cared about. It was scrappy, community-led, and showed early on how digital connection could translate to real-world impact.

Between 2011 and 2016, I launched and hosted a livestream telethon called Tubeathon, where brands donated $1 to a nonprofit for every hashtag shared. 

Since then, many creators have built on this model:

  • Project for Awesome, from the Vlogbrothers, rallies fans around annual community-chosen causes

  • MrBeast’s TeamSeas and TeamTrees raised tens of millions through viral creator collabs—and he just announced his latest campaign, TeamWater, with a $40 million fundraising goal

  • In January, I joined a Tiltify fundraiser for the LA fires—the same platform Trahan used.

But Trahan’s campaign feels like a tipping point. Not just because of the money raised—but because of how it was raised.

The Infrastructure Behind the Movement

While Trahan’s fundraiser stood out, it’s part of a much larger trend. Platforms like Tiltify have quietly powered thousands of creator-led charity streams on YouTube, Twitch, and beyond for over a decade. These aren’t one-offs—they’re part of a consistent wave of digital fundraisers, from gaming marathons to real-time responses to global events. What we’re seeing now is the scale, visibility, and brand participation finally catching up.

Michael Wasserman, Founder and CEO of Tiltify, emphasizes that this isn’t just an inflection point—it’s convergence:

“A decade ago, the creator space was niche. Today, it is the mainstream. Your kid’s teacher, your favorite podcaster, your neighbor with a DIY channel... they’re all part of it. As the space matures, we’re not just seeing new creators—we’re seeing new ways of building community, impact, and trust.”

He adds:

“The most impactful brand partnerships don’t feel like ads—they feel like allies. Creators don’t need to pitch a transaction; they need to invite participation. It’s not ‘here’s what you’ll get,’ it’s ‘here’s what we can do together.’

The brands that win in this space are the ones that show up authentically—not as sponsors, but as supporters—lifting the cause, the creator, and the community without trying to steal the spotlight. It’s not about presence. It’s about posture.”

Celebrating this breakout moment, Wasserman recently shared a visual framework outlining how creator-brand collaborations in philanthropy could evolve—especially when built around audience trust and performance-based triggers.

What It Signals

This campaign is more than a feel-good moment—it’s a signal. Brands are no longer the main characters. Creators are.

Audiences don’t need polished ad spots to care. They respond to authenticity, autonomy, and aligned values.

And maybe—just maybe—it’s time to stop asking creators to justify ROI every time they try to do something meaningful. The press, the impressions, the emotional impact? That should count for something.

For brands wondering what to take away, start here:

✅ Let creators lead
 ✅ Say yes without controlling the narrative
 ✅ Prioritize participation over polish
 ✅ Measure trust, not just clicks

For creators, the takeaway is just as clear:

✅ Don’t wait for permission—lead with purpose
✅ Trust is your superpower in social impact
✅ Tell your story, not someone else’s script
✅ Invite brands in, but don’t hand them the mic

My hot take🔥: I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve had to “sell” impact to brands like it’s a product. This moment proves it shouldn’t be that hard. The ROI is right there—in trust, community, and goodwill. If you still need a CPM for that, you’re missing the point. 

Shira Lazar

Or, as Wasserman shares with me: “The future of fundraising isn’t run by nonprofits—it’s powered by communities… Social impact is becoming decentralized, democratized, and creator-led.”

ICYMI

I spoke to CNN about Vogue’s latest issue—featuring a fully AI-generated model in a Guess ad spread.

Beyond taking jobs, AI like this reinforces narrow beauty standards trained on biased data. When beauty is coded, representation gets erased.

Other headlines to check out:

AI

Creator Economy

Web3 

 🎧 New Episode of The AI Download: AI Bias, Community Power & Raising Critical Thinkers with Dr. Avriel Epps

On this episode of The AI Download, I had the privilege of sitting down with Dr. Avriel Epps, researcher, data scientist, and founder of AI for Abolition, to talk about something we all need to be thinking about: the deep, systemic bias baked into our tech.

We unpacked how AI doesn’t just reflect our social systems—it amplifies them. From whitewashed selfie filters to exploitative labor practices and algorithmic policing, Dr. Epps broke it all down with clarity, compassion, and urgency.

What stuck with me most was her emphasis on healing. This wasn’t just a critique—it was a roadmap. We talked about emotional literacy, organizing as resistance, and how to raise more informed kids in a tech-saturated world.

If you care about equity, community, and building a future where tech serves us all—not just the powerful—you’ll want to hear this conversation

🎙️ Listen now to get caught up on the AI headlines you need to know plus insights on future of life, creativity and culture.

“Never forget your own ability to change someone’s life.” - Dr Jim Doty 

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