Beginner’s Guide On How To Start Crowdfunding

Do you have a business venture that you want to pursue? Or do you have a project or an idea that you want to turn into a reality? Thanks to recent technological advancements, your options are not limited to bank loans alone. Crowdfunding remains one of the most popular financial options to back up your projects. It works by receiving small donations from people through the internet. Basically, it turns your social capital into your financial capital. The wider your social reach is online, the more likely your funding may increase. If you want to know how to successfully launch your crowdsourcing campaign, check out our guide below:

Your Project Idea

Here’s the thing: you cannot just simply ask people to fund your idea without actually developing a plan on how you will create it. Pitching an idea to the public requires you to prove that your idea is worthy and feasible. Your idea must be fresh, unique, or concerns a bigger cause. If you are not fully confident with your idea yet, try sharing your idea with your friends and family and ask for their advice or whether they would back it up or not. This will help you gain a clearer understanding of your project’s potential and steer you in the right direction if your idea still needs to be polished.

Crowdsourcing Platform

There are several crowdsourcing platforms right now, each with its own distinct features and rules. When selecting the platform where you plan to launch your crowdsourcing campaign, take into consideration a couple of factors: risk/reward, investor protection, and user interface. You can check out this review to get a picture of what you should consider when shopping for the right platform. Before making a final decision, you must know who can invest in the platform, what the rate of investment is, and if it is generally safe to use. You also must be aware of any risks and the platform’s way of managing them. Make sure to thoroughly weigh the pros and cons before coming to a conclusion.

Designing a Good Rewards Program

To gain attention and generate more funds, you have to clearly define the benefits that investors can gain from your startup project. You have to offer something valuable and meaningful. When setting up your rewards program, you first have to decide if you are going to offer a material reward or monetary value. Next, take into consideration the reward’s usefulness, rarity, and perceived value. Additionally, evaluate how the value of the reward compares to the bid amount. Lastly, create a rewards tier plan to segment investments based on the financial backer’s budget. This will allow you to determine if it is priced fairly. Remember that each investment counts and you should be grateful that people believe in your project. With that said, you should include all price points and any needed description so that potential backers will understand your campaign better.

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Growing Your Social Media Presence

A crowdsourcing campaign is useless if you cannot find people who are willing to back up your project. Experts have estimated that it takes 9 – 12 months to establish your social media presence or to build your crowd. You also have to understand how marketing specialists can use a variety of social media platforms to gain a better insight on how to reach your potential backers. Facebook connects you with people you already know, while Instagram is used for connecting with users who share your project’s field of interest or preferences. On the other hand, Twitter is more effective for starting a conversation or engaging in a new one. Once you have understood the mechanics of the various social media channels that you intend to draw backers from, create a targeted marketing campaign to draw them in. Make sure to come up with social media content that is relevant and relatable for it to be effective.

Project and Rewards Delivery

If you have finally reached your target funds, the next thing that you should work on is making sure that you meet your deadline in delivering your project as well as your supporters’ rewards. To sustain your project, you must stay in touch with your investors regardless of the rewards tier that they subscribed to. Keep them up-to-date with your project’s latest development and other related-news. Post-campaign communication is also important to ask for additional support if needed and avoid potential challenges that may arise.

Crowdsourcing is a great way to run your dream project. However, before you can turn your idea into a reality, you have to take some time to run a crowdsourcing campaign effectively. Through proper planning and communication, you will be able to wing it in no time.