Gaming & Streaming
Taking creator-led fundraising from an opportunity on paper to a functioning route inside a complex organisation. 400+ creators contacted · ~49 stakeholders · Tiltify live · 3 pilot streams.
Context
Gaming, streaming and the creator economy offered access to communities traditional fundraising struggled to reach. Save the Children UK lacked the infrastructure, specialist capability and operating model, while the opportunity raised legitimate safeguarding, legal, compliance, data, finance, brand, procurement and fundraising questions.
My Role
As Innovation Lead, I drove the opportunity from exploration through internal approval, infrastructure setup, live experimentation and handover, navigating approximately 49 stakeholders. I identified concerns and designed a controlled pilot to test them.
Problem
How could Save the Children UK operate creator-led fundraising safely and effectively without the infrastructure, specialist capability or operating model already in place?
Approach
I focused on the minimum infrastructure for real-world learning: configuring Tiltify and Stripe donation flows; launching the public Stream for Save page; securing Compliance, Legal, Safeguarding and Finance sign-off; recruiting streamers; creating creator guidance, overlays and fundraising resources; setting up Discord; benchmarking charity gaming teams and learning internationally. With a streamer, we contacted more than 400 UK creators.
Experiments / Evidence
Three live pilot streams generated more than £600. The pilot demonstrated that the organisation could operate the channel and accept donations safely, while identifying what creators needed. Research suggested leading models were building broader Creator & Gaming capability, not treating this only as another acquisition channel.
Outcome
I recommended a specialist-led 3–6 month build phase. When organisational restructuring meant the planned approximately £30k investment could not proceed, I took the evidence, business case, roadmap and playbook to senior colleagues in Corporate Partnerships and Artist & Influencer work. Operational teams picked up the work. By the end of the innovation phase there was a functioning platform, public creator route, approved governance, live experience and an operational handover.
What I Learned
Innovation does not end when an experiment works. Adoption, capability, governance and operational ownership need to be designed alongside the proposition. Ask: who owns this when Innovation leaves?
