Internet has opened up our personal and professional world to the extent that we never imagined before. Professionally, it has helped us to network with job creators and job seekers – creators and supporters – alike. This phenomenon has revealed a great potential that global networking can present to a business opportunity or even an idea.
Social Networking has now become an inseparable part of our lives. We are social animals for a reason. We feel empowered as a part of a social group – online or offline. Our presence on the internet is both an opportunity and an open window to our social and professional activities. But it still depends largely on us how we leverage this opportunity to our advantage.
We now belong to an era where every idea or even a thought is open to public opinion and is gauged by the number of ‘Likes’, ‘Shares’, ‘Tweets’, Re-tweets’. This has both advantages and disadvantages. The main advantage is the fact that you can measure public opinion and reaction towards your idea in your network, backed by numbers and statistics of real audience! From business perspective, this is a very big feat. In times before internet became a house-hold necessity, this seemingly small revelation would require cumbersome surveys. But now all you have to do is post a picture or write a blog and you immediately have a plethora of likes and shares that are clear indicators of the fact that people liked what they saw and read. So some day if you want to commercialize your skills, may be publish a book, you already have a fan base in your network that have seen and liked your work in the past.
The next step hence, is to form social groups for those who believe in a common cause or have common interest and raise funds from them for an idea that appeals to all. The point I am trying to make here is that commercializing your skills, ideas or hobby by Crowdfunding is the logical next step to social networking. Instead of just hitting that ‘Like’ button, ‘Patrons’ and supporters can now ‘Pitch in’ to fund that cause or project that they find interesting. These funds can then be used by the project owner in bringing his/ her idea to life. Crowdfunding leverages on the social quotient of the project owner, the more connections one has, the higher are the chances of getting the desired funds raised for the project campaign.
It is very easy for anyone to ‘like’ or ‘share’ a photograph, thought or an idea. It is often an impulsive action and is driven by your interest and likings. In some cases it is the popularity of an idea or a thought that makes one join the brigade and press the ‘Like’ button. And in recent times, it is also the ‘in-your-face’ advertisements that ‘recommend’ you to ‘Like’ or ‘Follow’ any group, community or page. But it is a totally different ball game when it comes to making people to part with their hard earned money and ‘Pitch-in’ for your idea.
So, crowdfunding becomes the next step to social networking in more than one way. It not just calls for an exchange of words but a show of goodwill through monetary exchange. It also requires one to open up to the idea of giving and sharing with the intention of helping someone in achieving their goal. This means, it is not going to be as easy and simple as sharing your blog or photographs. Here you have to showcase your idea to your network with the motive of raising funds from them, not just their likes, shares or appreciation! So it is a tough deal, but you have a higher chance of getting a monetary support from them as they already know your work. Being part of your network also makes them trust you and your intention and hence it may be easier for them to support your idea.
Crowdfunding platforms like Funduzz.com, give you an opportunity to connect with people outside your network as well. Hence you need to prepare a pitch that will interest people even outside your existing circle. Crowdfunding works best for projects and ideas that have a story to tell – whether a personal reason for starting the project, a passionate vision for what it could become, or a social mission. People have to feel inspired to invest so you need to write a charismatic pitch to get potential investors’ pulses racing, or else display evidence of outstanding innovation. But you must always be honest and open, as people understand when someone is trying to oversell or is lying.
If you have a mundane or complicated concept which the public will struggle to connect to, crowdfunding may not be right for your idea. However, any crowdfunding project can succeed with the right pitch – the key to crowdfunding success is: keep it simple and interesting. All said and done, getting an audience that will support your crowdfunding campaign in reaching its goal will depend on how well you can connect and reach out to your network.
The involvement of money from the Patron’s end ensures that it is not an impulsive action. It is a well thought out decision that comes into action when your Patron finds your campaign interesting and value for money. This is where the rewards come in play. The rewards that you share with your Patrons will be a major attraction for them to Pitch-in for your idea. Funduzz.com helps its project owners to design the rewards to the best interest of the prospective audience of the campaign.
Funduzz.com is working towards creating awareness about crowdfunding and how it can help bring new ideas to life. Crowdfunding may be a new concept in India, but it is here to stay. It will require many changes like broadening our minds towards the idea of giving and sharing and supporting an enterprising generation in building the new India. Change is inevitable and change is the only constant. Crowdfunding will take its own time to get popular in India, but it will soak us up and will soon become an indispensable part of our lives.
Crowdfunding India 