We created The Feed That Feeds, a philanthropic Instagram account that helped feed someone in need with the simple tap of a food photo. We worked with local restaurants and created beautiful imagery of their signature dishes. Then, for every “heart” of a photo on the feed, that restaurant prepared and donated its dish to the hungry, the homeless and the food-insecure at Trinity Café.

With a three-week window to put our creative idea in motion, we knew working with the right organizations within our small local network was critical. So we teamed up with Trinity Café, along with several local restaurants and food photographers to create beautiful photos of each restaurant’s signature dishes.

Then, we created an Instagram feed with those photos that allowed users to donate a meal by double-tapping an image. Using the networks of our partners and the restaurants, we seeded our message and amplified it with food-based hashtags.

At the end of our three-week drive, we set up one day with Trinity Café to serve all donated meals. On that day, several of the restaurant chefs came in to cook their signature dishes, while others delivered their meals. In total, we served 500 meals.

Despite a limited reach and no media support, we received enough “hearts” to fulfill our goal of 500 meals within 48 hours. In fact, throughout the three-week drive, we received a total of 5,182 hearts.

Although we exceeded the limits of what our restaurants could donate and supply, we still wanted to ensure that every heart truly helped. So a contribution for each heart over 500 went to an organization called Feeding America, which provides food for those in need across the nation. This monetary donation resulted in 22,000 additional meals.

Because we know Trinity Café’s mission is to provide restaurant-quality meals, we wanted to engage people who are passionate about food. Thus, we turned to Instagram – the one social platform known for its cultural connection of sharing food with others. We tapped into this hyper-plugged-in network of food-loving Instagrammers, and let the platform’s native actions create a collective force for good.

Trinity Café is a not-for-profit local food kitchen that provides meals to the hungry and homeless in Tampa Bay. Their mission is to serve restaurant-quality food, prepared by professional chefs and served by volunteers. Working with Trinity Cafe, our goal was to raise awareness of a growing need for volunteers and create a positive change in the lives of those who needed it most.

But with busy work schedules and hectic lives, it’s not always easy to find time to volunteer, or even know how to get involved. So our objective was simple: Make it easy for those around the Tampa Bay metro to volunteer in a way that fits into their daily lives and habits.