Can Your Crowdfunding Campaign Compete?

Competition is fierce in the crowdfunding space and the pressure is on for new campaigns to grab eyeballs and attention. Crowdfunding expert Sally Outlaw explains some of the basics your campaign will need.

Get the media interested. Outlaw suggests identifying specific outlets or reporters who will be interested in your concept, based on researching their work and their publications. Then she says you should craft custom emails to these journalists explaining why your idea is newsworthy.

Create a must-watch pitch video. The stakes for this video are high -- it must be engaging, informative, and most of all, short -- hooking people within 30 to 60 seconds. Explain what you want and why it’s important and don’t be boring. You want something that someone will want to share.

Offer value. A crowdfunding campaign is a negotiation. You need to give your potential funder a reason to act, to offer something attractive that can’t be acquired anywhere else. Think beyond T-shirts to intangibles like dinner with your company’s founders or exclusive access to your product’s launch party.

Don’t post-it and forget it. Outlaw says, “Running a successful campaign requires a major time commitment in advance of, during and post campaign. It also requires that you be fearless in getting out and spreading the word about your venture.” She adds that, “Some crowdfunding entrepreneurs boast that they'll "shout from the rooftops" about their company and promote their fundraising efforts far and wide, but later, when asked how many friends and family members they went to for support, their response is, "Oh, I don't feel comfortable approaching my own contacts."

Related Book: Cash From The Crowd