Ahrefs, which provides what it calls an “all-in-one SEO toolset,” has stepped up in a big way to help support Ukraine. After Russia invaded Ukraine, Ahrefs began a fundraising effort on Feb. 24. As of today, the company has raised more than $1.5 million.
How they raised it. Ahrefs added a banner linking to a list of approved charities on its product dashboard. Here’s what it looked like:
Ahrefs told its customers they would extend a subscription for double the amount of whatever was donated. So if someone paid the equivalent of a one-month subscription, that person would get extended to two months.
Some people who donated didn’t want anything in return from Ahrefs – they just wanted to help. So that number may be low because the numbers from Ahrefs are based on people who sent in receipts for account credit.
On the first day, Ahrefs said they got hundreds of donations from worldwide (in various currencies, from Bitcoin to U.S. dollars), totaling $94,342. On one day, Feb. 28, $125,068 was donated, the biggest single-day total. That was when we learned of Russia’s attacks on Kharkiv and Kyiv.
Why Ahrefs wanted to help. Dmitry Gerasimenko is Ahrefs founder and CEO. He is also Ukrainian. Ahrefs employs 29 Ukrainian people.
Where the money is going. The $1.5 million is all going to Ukrainian charities. Most of these provide humanitarian help for civilians – delivering water, food and medicine; evacuating and transporting older citizens; and helping find temporary homes for relocated citizens.
What else Ahrefs is doing to help Ukraine. Starting March 3, Ahrefs blocked Russia and Belarus from accessing its tool. Ahrefs also extended Ukrainian business accounts by six months.
Ahrefs is now blocking all access from Russia and Belarus.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine is not stopping. Our colleagues, friends, and families are in shelters; taking up arms to defend their communities; at risk of losing their lives at any moment.
— Ahrefs (@ahrefs) March 3, 2022
“The taxes that companies pay in those countries directly finance the bullets and missiles that killed 160 Ukrainian children and God knows how many thousands of civilians who did not intend this war,” said Daria Samokish, head of public relations at Ahrefs. “Ahrefs’ tools help businesses grow their search visibility, gain organic traffic and therefore drive sales. Continue allowing access to the toolset in the countries that invaded or provided their territories for the invasion will respond neither to our ethical conviction nor our logic of economic relations.”
What Ahrefs is doing to help its employees. Ahrefs is providing free psychotherapeutic help to all of its team members. Samokish said the Russian invasion brought a lot of grief to the entire team.
“Our Ukrainian teammates have been through a lot, from hiding their small children in bomb shelters from Russian attacks to evacuating parents who left their homes and whole lives behind them,” Samokish said. “Some of us lost family members and friends in this war. The horrible news of war crimes toward civilians in Bucha and Irpin was the last straw for many people. Even for those coping well enough to continue working and taking care of families.”
Why we care. Our community helps each other in times of trouble. It happens every day in small ways (everything from job losses to deaths), but this is a great example of what we can do together. When members of our community need help, those who can help step up and donate – in this case, monetarily to help support Ukraine people.
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