How One Facebook Photo Is Helping This Ice Cream Seller (Watch)

Fidencio Sanchez has been selling ice cream and popsicles on the streets of Chicago for more than 20 years. But at 89, pushing around a 50-pound cart all day is proving to be a bit of a struggle.

Sanchez had been lightening his workload as of late. But an unexpected death in the family forced him to go back to selling popsicles on a daily basis.

Recently, however, a kind stranger stepped in and bought 20 popsicles from Sanchez and donated some additional money as well. But it was later, when the man posted a photo of Sanchez on Facebook, that he was able to have the biggest impact.

The post went viral and made a lot of people want to help. One person even started a GoFundMe page for the Sanchez family, which has raised over $270,000 and counting.

The Difference that Viral Images Can Make

This story demonstrates a couple of important lessons for businesses. The first is the potential power that viral images can have. You can’t always have control over online content going viral, but you’ll never reach that goal unless you try.

And the second is about the value of hard work. People likely wouldn’t be so apt to support Sanchez if the image didn’t show him working so hard, and if people didn’t already know him from seeing him out selling popsicles on a daily basis for years. That consistency and hard work led to lots of loyal and caring customers who don’t mind lending a hand when times get a little hard.

So with images — as with all other content — always think about the message you are trying to send.

Image: Newsy via GoFundMe.com