Group items tagged

[1] The platform focuses on a specific vertical; film and music are the most common at this time --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:24:36 AM[2] There is a focus is on for-profit ventures. Note that a platform can support for-profit ventures without them being the primary focus. --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:21:58 AM[3] There is a focus on creative projects; art, music, film etc. Note that a platform can support creative projects without them being the primary focus --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:22:37 AM[4] There is a focus on projects designed to bring about social change. Note that a platform can support social change projects without them being their primary focus --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:22:53 AM[5] The funder/fundee relationship is structured so that compensation for funders might be in the form of future revenue, equity or profits --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:23:07 AM[6] The full amount of the funds being sought needs to be pledged in order for funds to be released to the fundee. --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:23:22 AM[7] Whatever amount of money is pledged at the end of the campaign is released to the fundee regardless of whether they accomplished their funding target --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:23:37 AM[8] A threshold amount somewhere below the target for the campaign is determined. Once this threshold is reached, funds are released. --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:24:09 AM[9] The platform has community and/or collaboration features built in --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:24:51 AM[10] The funding process is not one time. It is set up so that the fundee receives money on a regular basis --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:25:16 AM[11] Provides infrastructure and/or processes to coordinate investors so that they invest in projects together --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:25:30 AM[12] Provides infrastructure or resources to coordinate the funding of projects so that they can seek funding together. Currently no one is doing this. This is what is proposed in the Ecosystem Pooled Fund Model: http://www.slideshare.net/sureshf/ecosystem-social-ventures --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:25:42 AM[13] The model is structured with a view to cultivating a relationship between funder and fundee. This is to be contrasted with one time project financing --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:26:03 AM[14] Support very small donations (under $1, fo example) --suresh2323 July-15-11 9:26:19 AM

If we are able to reach our fundraising goal, we will deliver a handbook that provides: An overview fo how crowdsourcing leads to breakthroughs in funding social movements; A framework of open collaboration to engage change agents in the funding and building of movements; Concrete first steps for financing and developing infrastructure to support these new models and high-impact projects.

If we reach our goal of $5000 we will pull together a team of experts on innovative financing models, collaboration platforms, and social movements to draft a crowdfunding handbook

Upon completion, the handbook will be made freely available to everyone under a Creative Commons license.  If the crowd pays for it, the crowd will own it.

The future of crowdfunding is allowing investors equity in an idea or business. If we can fund ideas from friends who want to see us become successful, imagine if those friends actually got to participate in the revenue stream. Wouldn’t you give a little extra if, instead of receiving a simple return, you had the opportunity not only to make a profit but also to own a percentage of the company itself?

In recent years, hundreds of crowdfunding sites have sprung up worldwide, covering everything from games and mobile apps to performing arts and businesses, including a number in the UK such as Crowdcube and Crowdfunder.

Rubin outlines four key reasons why people contribute to crowdfunding projects: "The first is because they care about the person, or the cause, or the campaign. The second is because they want the product or the experience. The third is because they want to be part of something bigger than themselves. And the fourth is because they want profit. The first three are serviced on Indiegogo in a dynamic way; the fourth is illegal right now [in the US, although not in the UK]."

"I have very little doubt that 10 years from now, crowdfunding will be embedded into the financial fabric of the world, just in the way credit cards are

these laws now make it almost impossible to invest in small businesses in our communities and pretty much compel us to invest in the New York Stock Exchange. In the name of protecting investors, securities laws now make it very difficult to raise money with crowdfunding.

Failure to comply with these requirements can, at a minimum, result in having to return all your investors’ money. At worst, there could be civil and even criminal penalties.

Ask for donations!

While the phenomenon is not new, it is still not a mainstream concept and therein lies it beauty.

Three things to consider for taking your project to the crowdfunding street:

you have to be able to complete the whatever-it-is because the nature of crowdfunding demands completion.

the U.S. House of Representatives passed a crowdfunding bill that will allow startups to offer and sell securities via crowdfunding sites and social networks.

If passed by the Senate and signed off by the President, the bill will become a law, giving entrepreneurs new options for raising money for their companies.

Each investor is limited to investing an amount equal to the lesser of (i) $10,000 or (ii) 10% of his or her annual income.

What are you raising funds to do? Having a focused and well-defined project with a clear beginning and end is vital.

Rewards are what backers receive in exchange for pledging to a project. The importance of creative, tangible, and fairly priced rewards cannot be overstated.

Every project’s primary rewards should be things made by the project itself.

at the 3rd Annual Film Finance Forum West, where an inconspicuous crowd-funding panel presented IndieGoGo, Audience Productions and Sokap, three new crowd-based companies that can topple the remaining barriers-to-entry, and fully democratize filmmaking.

Audience Productions is the first film company to be authorized by the SEC and 20+ states to use both the internet and crowd-funding to sell shares in their films for the purpose of raising their financing.

As the local distributor of your selected territories, you can show the film in local theaters, sell it through local merchants, or directly to interested people or organizations in your territory. You just pay a small upfront license fee to the filmmaker which allows them to make the film and then you market the film until it's delivered, and collect a distribution fee from the revenues you generate. Like Audience Productions, this addresses filmmakers' critical need for alternative sources of financing while at the same time, also addresses the critical need for alternative forms of distribution in the U.S. and Canada

Long-term, sustainable impact is what matters to Lesley and the Angaza team, and for them, raising $10,000 on a crowdfunding platform is a means to that end. From their pitch on 33needs, one of the crowdfunding platforms enabling thousands of people to pool their money together for good:

"You make an investment and enable us to manufacture these life-changing products. We sell our lights and chargers to NGOs, solar distributors, and directly to the customers. Families and businesses in the developing world are able to eliminate dim and dirty kerosene from their lives and lift themselves out of poverty. You get repaid and get to move on with life knowing you've directly enabled a family to have clean, bright light in their lives."

The convening power of the Internet, rapid advances in technology, and the reduced costs of launching a social enterprise in today's wired world are driving the race to create business models brimming with purpose. In this environment, social entrepreneurs like these are developing new solutions to take advantage of these advances and recreate yesterday's broken business models.

One example of their approach is crowdfunding -- the collective cooperation by people who network and pool their money together. And the implications, from technology to community-powered renewable energy to political campaigns or to financing the next wave of social enterprises, are immense. Think about how the Obama campaign flipped the standard campaign fundraising model on its head through harnessing small repeatable donations from the crowd.

It's an opportunity that has the potential to transform the business, political, and charitable landscapes. And it's already happening.  In this discussion, we ask for your insights on this current trend.  Some questions to consider:   1. What business model for social impact does your organization use?
 2. Does an opportunity exist for crowdfunding to scale your impact?   3. Besides the examples noted above, can you think of other possibilities to harness crowdfunding for good?     4. What isn't sustainable about your business model? Why? Could "tapping the crowd" for funds enhance your sustainability?

With credit still tight and venture capital out of reach for many small firms, "crowdfunding" sites such as Crowdcube offer an attractive alternative.

By raising small sums from many individuals, businesses can access the capital they need to grow and thrive, often more quickly and on better terms than with conventional sources.

Crowdcube, founded in 2010 in Exeter, calls its crowdfunding model "the next generation of business investment."

our team is actively pursuing approaches to funding political and social change efforts by leveraging the power of crowds. We realize that much higher levels of engagement and cooperation are needed if we want any hope of restoring democracy to our currently corporate-controlled system. I wrote about this in How We’ll Fund The Progressive Movement and it is the primary motivation behind our current crowdfunding project to create A Crowdfunding Manual for Social Change.

The new paradigm must be based on principles of open collaboration, transparency, and empowerment. I have been inspired by the power of collaborative consumption for shifting social norms, conceptual frames,

seeking to build a new community of practice where we can all learn together

In over four years of operation, leading crowdfunding site Indiegogo reports virtually no fraud. U.K. crowdfunding leader Crowdcube (which does allow equity finance) reports no fraud.  As is the case for U.S. based peer-to-peer lending site Prosper or AngelList, the popular site for angel investors searching for deal flow from entrepreneurs.  Never let the facts get in the way of a good FUD story.  If you commit fraud online, your life is over.

Fraud feeds on opacity and on small groups, because those factors increase the probably of not being "found out".  Ironically, that would well describe the environment of the traditional investment paradigm.  But in the social networking sphere, the more viral any story gets, the more the chances that fraud will be exposed by the people who would know.

If we make it hard for Americans to invest in crowdfunding, then entrepreneurs will tend to get funded with larger percentages of foreign money.

IndieGoGo, a crowdfunding platform that was founded in 2008, has raised a $1.5 million funding round led by Metamorphic Ventures and Zynga cofounder Steve Schoettler

The site also uses an algorithm, dubbed the ‘GoGoFactor’, that determines which campaigns are featured on the homepage and the site’s outreach (the more engaged your users are, the higher you rank).

IndieGogo makes money by taking a percentage of the money that’s contributed: if you create a campaign and meet your stated goal, then IndieGoGo charges 4%; if you don’t meet that goal, IndieGoGo charges a higher 9% fee, but you get to keep the remainder of the money

Crowdfunding allows people to tackle problems and endorse solutions that aren’t necessarily getting attention from markets or governments.

"Crowdfunding is a process of community engagement," remarked Camponeschi during a panel discussion at SxSW Eco earlier this month. "It’s about money yes, but it’s about more. It’s a statement of democracy for funding and getting capital where it’s needed in the community."

Published under a Creative Commons license, The Enabling City is a toolkit that empowers cities governments and community leaders to do just that.

Crowdfunding, by its very nature, demands that we set aside both our egos and our insecurities. We must humble ourselves enough to ask for support from others while fully believing that we are worthy to receive the offerings that come.

My goal was to raise money to buy and renovate an old motorhome to live in so that I could cut my overhead and live within my minimal means.

So, I laid out my terms: For every $20 someone contributes toward my motorhome fund, I will volunteer one hour of my time to help a non-profit of their choosing.

The values transformation is the result of a number of different forces including climate change, rampant distrust of and disillusion in the political process, the collapse of the financial markets, the introduction of species extinction risk into the discourse, alienation and fragmentation within western culture, global economic inequity, terrorism and war, the erosion of the importance of spirituality and a sense of higher purpose in western culture etc...the list goes on. The conjunction of all of the above is leading a massive sense of discontent that is permeating our collective consciousness.

The values transformation is the result of a number of different forces including climate change, rampant distrust of and disillusion in the political process, the collapse of the financial markets, the introduction of species extinction risk into the discourse, alienation and fragmentation within western culture, global economic inequity, terrorism and war, the erosion of the importance of spirituality and a sense of higher purpose in western culture etc.

This transformation in values that is taking place is simultaneous with, and in part the result of, the rapid evolution of the technological infrastructure that is substantially increasing connectivity and communication across the world.

One of the most impressive qualities of crowdfunding is its versatility. Feature films, music releases, web startups, gadgets, art projects, urban farms, journalism, open-source platforms, and social activism comprise only a short list of the types of projects that have been funded by crowdfunding. And as we’ve explored during this week’s Crowdfunding Nation series, it's only expanding.

Find A Crowd

It’s about getting a lot of people involved in your cause. So you’ll need a crowd of people who want to see your project succeed.

Tell A Good Story