Crowdfunding

Starting a Business

Starting Your Business: The Tools, Resources and Mindset You Need to Succeed

Never underestimate how much money you need to start, how long it will before you turn a profit or how hard you will have to work.

John Rampton | 11 min read

				
Perpetrators of Crowdfunding Fraud Can't Hide From The Law ForeverFor years, crowdfunding has been a bit like the Wild West of finance. But as the industry continues to grow, state and federal authorities are catching up to abusers of the system.

				Janet Gershen-Siegel
			
					|			5 min read
			
Crowdfunding Is Lowering Barriers to Commercial Real Estate Investment. Here's How to Get the Most From It.With greater access comes a greater need for in-depth market insight.

				Richard Sarkis
			
					|			5 min read
			
Beyond Kickstarter: 10 Niche Crowdfunding Platforms for StartupsIf your company fits one of the niches that has its own crowdfunding sites, it's worth considering using a specialized platform.

				Carol Tice
			
					|			5 min read
			
98 Percent of VC Funding Goes to Men. Can Women Entrepreneurs Change a Sexist System?Last year, the largest VC deal for a female team was $165 million -- a stark contrast to that for males, which was $3 billion.

				Hayden Field
			
					|			12 min read

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Crowdfunding is the process of raising money to fund what is typically a project or business venture through many donors using an online platform, such as Kickstarter, Indiegogo and Crowdfunder. The fundraising window is usually finite -- 90 days, for instance -- and the fees and rules vary across platforms.

How to: Crowdfunding is typically done through an online platform that allows the fundraiser to set up a public campaign for accepting donations. The campaign will advertise details such as the nature of the project or venture, the amount of money the company is hoping to raise and the campaign’s fundraising deadline. People can donate a specified amount through the fundraising campaign’s website and often receive some sort of acknowledgement or reward in return for their donation.

Applications of crowdfunding: This can range from charitable and educational projects to creative projects -- like funding films -- as well as supporting scalable businesses. Crowdfunding platforms each tend to cater to specific categories, such as Kickstarter which focuses on creative projects or Crowdfunder, an equity-based platform which is used for businesses looking to raise investment capital.