Roar Social Transforms Social Media into a Powerful Force for Social Impact
Groundbreaking New Platform Replaces the "Like" With the "Give," Transforming Social Media into a Powerful Force for Social Impact
Roar Social Launches Out of Stealth Mode With $10M in Seed Funding
WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif., June 28, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Roar Social, a groundbreaking new social media platform, launches out of stealth mode today with over $10 million in seed funding. Reimagining social media as a force for social good, the platform is now welcoming enthusiastic users to sign up for VIP Early Access to its Beta release, which comes to Apple's App Store this summer.
Roar Social will revolutionize both social media and philanthropy, giving Gen Z and Millennials a powerful tool to assert their values. Roar Social makes social impact fun, leveraging the viral content and engagement that users already love – and channeling it into a larger social purpose. Everyone – from professional content creators to casual social media users – can harness their time, attention and creative superpowers for good.
"Roar Social is meeting a cultural moment," said technologist and serial entrepreneur Robert Weiss, CEO and Founder of Roar Social. "Gen Z and young Millennials care deeply about social issues, more than any other generation. There is a real opportunity for disruption. Using our game-changing technology, Roar Social will democratize philanthropy. With Gamified Giving as our secret sauce, being generous has never been more fun."
Roar Social's innovative "Gamified Giving'' approach seamlessly intertwines engagement and social impact. The company's proprietary Roar Giving Wallet technology – facilitating micro-donations as small as one penny – essentially replaces the "Like" with the "Give." Roar Social's ultimate mission is to put philanthropy in the hands of millions of Gen Z and Millennial users, making it possible for everyone to help collectively change the world, one tap at a time.
Roar Social offers a distinctive user experience. Instead of organizing around the usual creators and followers, Roar Social users choose "Hero Cause" communities and join forces with "allies," who use collaborative content formats to entertain and generate real-life impact. The entire platform is about creating, engaging, raising, and donating – shifting incentives away from passive entertainment and toward shared missions and a higher purpose.
The platform provides a unique opportunity for brands and advertisers to highlight their corporate social responsibility efforts, using new and engaging formats that connect with Gen Z. And for nonprofits, Roar Social supercharges philanthropy by allowing them to reach beyond their typical donor base to a new generation of donors.
Roar Social's revolutionary approach has enabled the company to successfully fundraise at a time when many tech startups are struggling in a tough venture capital climate. As legacy social media companies are facing scrutiny and shedding employees, Roar Social's $10M seed capital has allowed it to attract a world-class team, including product and engineering talent from Apple, Google, Microsoft, Amazon and LinkedIn.
In addition to attracting top talent, Roar Social has assembled an impressive board of advisors from the worlds of media, technology, advertising and philanthropy: Jeff Raikes (longtime CEO of Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation), Mark Rockefeller (global philanthropist and entrepreneur), John A. Lack (co-founder of MTV), Emma Cookson (partner in The Brandtech Group), Richard Sarnoff (KKR Chairman of Media), Andrew Weinreich (founder of Six Degrees and considered the "father" of social networking), Heather Moosnick (former YouTube and Hulu executive), Barrett Garese (founding agent at UTA's online division), Norma Rosenhain (Founder of CREATA), and Alex Godelman (technology/product thought leader).
Despite the top tech/media industry firepower involved, Roar Social remains a highly personal endeavor for its founder and CEO. "Since I was a child, I've wanted to use technology to tap into humanity's innate altruism," Weiss said. "When social media first took off, I had the idea of using it as a force for social impact, but the marketplace wasn't quite ready. With Gen Z and Millennials now such a driving cultural force, the time for Roar Social is now."
Weiss' unique curiosity-driven career spans news, social media, Hollywood entertainment (TV and music) and technology. Weiss began his career as a journalist for the Los Angeles Times, Newsweek, and TODAY, and he subsequently ran his own TV production company and served as a high-level executive at cable networks FX, Fuse, Ovation, and VH1. Weiss was a pioneer of early influencer/creator culture at the social entertainment company EQAL before leading a variety of digital media, software and consumer technology startups including FanDragon, RockYou, BANG, and PollPals. Variety named Weiss one of the top leaders to watch in the tech-media business.
"Future generations will be amazed that social media was purely for profit, that it didn't incorporate social impact giving into its very core," Weiss said. "I still believe that social media can be a positive force in the world. I'm thrilled to bring this game-changing platform to life, thanks to the hard work and dedication of my incredible, mission-driven team. We are determined to use social media to make the world a better place. It's been an amazing ride, and we're just getting started."
As part of its emergence from stealth mode, Roar Social is also launching the Roar Social Foundation, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that will serve as a mechanism to collect and distribute donations – determined by user behavior on the Roar Social platform – to designated 501(c)(3) charities and causes. The Roar Social Foundation serves as a link between users and nonprofits, making generosity frictionless and – most importantly, fun.
Roar Social is inviting creators, influencers, and users to join the VIP Early Access list at RoarSocial.com/VIP-access.
To learn more, please visit RoarSocial.com.
View the Roar Social VIP Early Access sizzle video HERE.
About Roar Social
Roar Social is a groundbreaking platform that reimagines social media as a powerful engine for social impact. Founded in 2020 by visionary technology and media leaders, Roar Social replaces the "Like" with the "Give," leveraging the viral content that users already love to democratize philanthropy, putting it in the hands of millions of users. Roar Social uses "Gamified Giving" to let everyone change the world, one tap at a time.
