Crowdfunding isn't just about raising capital for startups, it can also be a great way to give your business a big marketing push - and one that pays for itself. According to the biggest Crowdfunding site Kickstarter only 30% of all campaigns reached their minimum funding goal. So in this session Giles will show you exactly how to make your campaign successful, and explain how it can be a great marketing channel for your existing business. See more at https://www.hyperstarter.com/about

1. Using
Crowdfunding to
Market your
Business & How to
Run a Six-Figure
Campaign
eCommerce MasterPlan Virtual Summit with Hyperstarter

2. So you’ve got an existing business or a
brand new idea...NOW WHAT?
Since 2016 Crowdfunding has surpassed VC with over $34+ billion crowdfunded - Forbes.

3. How can we use Crowdfunding as a marketing strategy
for your business for:
● Testing the market that you’re in
● Developing an MVP (Minimum Viable Product)
● Raising money
● Building up hype and awareness
Take the plunge

4. Types of Crowdfunding
Product / Reward Based:
Kickstarter and Indiegogo for
product based campaigns,
where Kickstarter is the most
mainstream.
Equity Based:
Platforms like Crowdcube in
the UK, you can exchange a %
of equity of your company in
return for cash.
Personal Based:
Personal platforms like
GoFundme - whether it's
paying for education fees to
hospital bills.

5. Examples of Crowdfunding
Success
Coolest Cooler (Link)
● 62,642 backers
● Pledged $13,285,226
Pebble Time (Link)
● 78,471 backers
● Pledged $20,338,986
And most recently...Trump Baby (Link)

6. But it’s not easy to
reach the goal!

7. In general, platforms like Kickstarter
don’t have a great reputation.
Even if goals are reached, there’s no
guarantee you’ll get your reward -
Coolest Cooler is one example.
Time delays and copycats (particularly
from China) are a hindrance to both
campaign owners and backers alike.
Only 30% of Crowdfunding
Campaigns reach their goal

8. ● Have a Great Product
● Collect Emails
● Social Media Outreach
● Press Contact
● Crowdfunding Page
● Support Network

9. It's an open term, but having a product that
really serves a purpose, is ubiquitous and has a
tech edge does really well on a platform like
Kickstarter.
A product that is a gimmick will always stay as
a short-term fad.
Have a Great Product

10. You need to know who to pitch to within your
own network & who can generate buzz - this is
why emails are so important.
Whether it’s through a website landing page,
running a competition or paid advertising like
Facebook Ads.
Chloë has written a great email capture
checklist for you to check out.
Collect Emails

11. People are more likely to reply to social media
tweets and messages, compared to boring
emails.
You can connect with influencers, writers and
sites faster and get them to know about you
first, then follow-up with an email.
You can build up relationships with these
people over time (whether it's commenting on
what they're doing, liking etc.,) so when you get
to pitch them with your product - they already
know you.
Social Media Outreach

12. Press Contact
This is connected with sites and writers in your
niche. How to find them?
Look at your competitors, see who they
connected with and pitch the same writers.
If your product is similar/better, then explain
that to the reviewer and make everything clear
in your pitches and outreach.

13. A Crowdfunding Page is the most important thing, as it's
basically your sales page.
This is where traffic comes to and where they can make
a pledge.
This is really want our Hyperstarter tool focuses on - so
whether it's a classy video, detail on the special features,
engaging images and text - it's important and needs to
show trust.
Crowdfunding Page

14. To wrap it all up, you need support.
You need a group of people who like what you’re doing
as much as you.
Start looking at your own network of friends, family and
others come into place.
On LinkedIn, I’ve written a related post on connecting
with your network and collecting emails.
.
Support Network

15. Ideally you will know who will back and support you.
On Day 1 of the launch you should aim to reach your goal.
By looking at who will be guaranteed backers (Friends, Family,
Colleagues), who might be interested (Facebook ads, landing
pages) to people who's email you collected and could be
interested in sharing what you're doing to their (social) network.
Also if you know who will back you, then you know how much
you should be able to raise and set this as your goal amount.
Keep rewards limited. So use terms like Early Birds and Super
Early Birds in scarce numbers, at discounted rates. Create
some urgency within your network about why backers should
take advantage of this offer.
Thank you to eCommerce MasterPlan for allowing me to
record this session. The slides are also available at:
http://hprs.co/ecmp
Final Thoughts