This is a presentation given at the UNIDO Conference in Manama, Bahrain on how to spur economic development in the region through the use of crowd funding.

1. International
Crowdfunding
A financial and collaborative tool for spurring global
economies
Presented by Ruben Cantu
CEO, CORE Media Strategies
Presented at
The First International Entrepreneurs Investment
Forum on Entrepreneurship & Investment for
Inclusive and Sustainable Industrial Development

2. What is Crowdfunding?
"Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or
venture by raising monetary contributions from a large
number of people, typically via the internet."

4. http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/230912

5. Origins of Crowdfunding
• 2009 with sites like Kickstarter, the
internet community went wild in getting
their ideas posted and forming a
community of followers that would
support them and their new idea for a
company.
• Other notable sites are Indiegogo and
GoFundme
• Kickstarter has raised over 1 billion
dollars by more the 7 million people
since its launch.
• GoFundme now the largest
crowdfunding site surpassing
Kickstarter.

6. Things to consider when
starting a crowd fund
1. Your team and execution plan, just as in any business.
2. List of current supporters and their potential investment.
3. Finding the right platform (website) - each site has a different
following and interest.
4. Get in early pledges to kickstart funding, (we call them “pre-pledges”)
you want to get at least 20% within a week of your launch.

7. Things to consider when
starting a crowd fund
5. Have a clear message and a clear solution
6. The campaign execution
a) The build up
b) Create an effective marketing strategy that helps grow your audience
c) Build a relationship with your funders and deliver more value in return for their
support
d) What are the metrics that you are planning to reach and what are the
contingencies if you don’t?
e) What is the length of time for your campaign, why?
7. How does this build in to your capitalization strategy, what percentage of the larger
plan is this fund and how much equity you will give away in order to raise these funds?

8. How is the world positioned to best utilize
this form into order to spur more startups.
• Now with the internet anyone
anywhere can contribute to a
cause or company they feel
passionate about, new ideas
can spur anywhere and joint
partnerships can be created
from people in different
countries.
• This means that international
trade, regulations and
commerce will have to begin
to adapt to these new types
of economic tools in order to
allow for their communities to
spur wealth.

9. The importance of a strong
community in a campaign
• Many people launch an idea online
and think that is enough, they believe
that if you post online people will find
you and care. It does not work that
way.
• Real successful crowdfunding
campaigns are built on existing
followers and a community that is
passionate about creating a change.
• Entrepreneurs must become
evangelists and create disciples.
Often they don’t, this is why they fail.
• A strong start in your campaign eases
concerns and builds confidence in a
successful outcome

10. Crowdfunding as
Customer Development
• More importantly when you are able
to build a following and a community,
you are able to interact with them much
faster which helps you iterate and
improve on your idea/product and
company.
• A lot of entrepreneurs don’t take
advantage of using their community to
find out what resonates with them.
• If you want your company to be
successful, find or build a community
that you are passionate in serving.
• Audit the adjacent markets and find out
how to become flexible enough that you
can learn through (building,
measuring and learning.)

11. An idea is sometimes
greater than product
• While ideas are a dozen, the beauty is
that they are also nimble and only
cost you imagination and time.
• You don’t need much in order to adapt
and change.
• A lot of bootstrap entrepreneurs lose
their shirt in sunk costs on a product
or design that they failed to validate.
• Locking the right customer and
market segment is so critical early on
• With 3D printing and rapid prototyping
you can get a customer to validate
their interest based on your design
and feature/value set.

12. Crowdfunding could save
the world…
Based on the Millennium Development
Goals
• Could crowdfunding help support
tools, products or service based
companies who are focused on
eradicating extreme poverty and
giving jobs and training to
communities who never had this
access?
• How can we help address literacy
and education through social
enterprise and crowdfunding?
• Who has the next idea on how to
build a company funded by the
community who is focused on giving
back and invest in its future?
• http://www.unmillenniumproject.org/goals/

13. Current regulatory climate
on crowdfunding
• While cultural norms traditional don’t
bode well for crowdfunding
currently there are countries who are
looking at this as a
possible solutions by modifying their
approach and reaching
compromise.
• They understand one thing, their
economy rests with the future youth
and entrepreneurs.
• These young people are willing to
take risks and collaborate
internationally with other cultures to
innovate and experiment with new
solutions for their people.
• http://www.crowdvalley.com/news/crowdfunding-potential-in-middle-eastern-islamic-countries

14. Case Study

15. Case Study

16. Thank you
ruben@coremediastrategies.com
@rubencantoo