The Next Big Thing: Crowdfunding

THE NEXT BIG THING Exploring the new and booming industry of crowdfunding You have a brilliant idea. But no money. At this point, you would attempt to gain funding through traditional investors such as venture capitalists. This is a long and arduous process and has a high rate of failure.. ENTER CROWDFUNDING Traditional Investor Relations Crowdfunding Investor Relations Angel Investors or VCs $4 Project Owner Project Owner The Crowd With this new industry, people that ordinarily don't have the resources to gain capital can showcase their brilliant ideas to the world in hopes of gaining donations to fund their projects. In return, the funders get anything from a small token of appreciation, to a promise of the product itself once it's released. THE BUBBLE Since it's arrival in the US in 2008, crowdfunding has grown exponentially. It is a $2.8 billion industry and is expected to be double that by 2014. THE TIMELINE Crowdfunding has grown exponentially but it is still a very young industry with a lot of uncertainties in its future. 3,000 2,500 1997 First instance of crowdfunding- a British rock band gains funds for their tour through fans on the internet. 2,000 2009 Crowdfunding hits the US market and has mājor success to the tune of $503bil 1,500 2012 JOBS act is signed by Obama which opens the door for equity- based crowdfunding 1,000 500 2013- Crowdfunding gains attention as a viable option for entreprenuers - Fundable, a platform for businesses, launches 2009 2010 2011 2012 THE MOST SUCCESSFUL PROJECTS THE BIGGEST PLATFORMS This venue for investment is not one to be taken lightly. Real products with real individuals behind them have raised hundreds of thousand of dollars and in some cases, millions. Here are some of the most backed products coming out of the crowdfunding industry. Platforms are where projects are posted. These were the biggest ones in the past few years. Kickstarter $441 M 90,596 37,823 twelve Total amount Total projects raised Successful posted projects All-or-nothing: Kickstarter employs an all or nothing policy where you only recieve the donations if you reach your crowddfunding goal at the end of your campaign. Pebble Genie Transpotter A sleek and stylish file storage and sharing system, Transpotter had over 600 backers IndieGoGo A watch that syncs with your iPhone or Android device, this e-ink display device was one of the first big projects to hit the crowdfunding scene. TOTAL RAISED: $10.2mil A camera attachment that allows for panning and zooming, joined the $1.3M 100k+ 33% Total projects Highest funded project posted Increase in donation ranks of the most fund- ed technology based projects. TOTAL RAISED: $636k to make this project a great success. TOTAL RAISED: $260k Keep-what-you get: IndieGoGo is a bit more lenient and alows you to keep donations from the crowd regardless of if yourcampaign goal has been met or not. %24 Dollars (Mil)