Crowdfunding in Kenya. Lessons learnt from the #1MilliForJadudi campaign, arguably one of Africa's most successful crowdfunding campaigns. $70k+ raised in just 3 days to support Emmanuel Otieno a.k.a Jadudi, a 24 year old university student who needed to get urgent brain surgery in India for his 4th brain tumor. A presentation to members of the Kenya Association of Fundraising Professionals (KAFP) at their monthly #CoffeeTalk round-table discussions.

1. +
Kenya Association of
FundRaising Professionals
Coffee Talk by Zawadi Nyong’o
@ZawadiNyongo
#Crowdfunding
#CoffeeTalkKe
29.10.15

2. +
Outline:
 What is crowdfunding?
 Mapping – What SM platforms are you using, how &
why?
 Who has tried crowdfunding? How? Achievements?
 What do you want to learn today? (3 things)
 The power of hashtags - #CoffeeTalk?

3. +
Outline
 The Global Crowdfunding Landscape
 Crowdfunding in Kenya
 Crowdfunding – The #1MilliForJadudi Case
 Lessons from #1MilliForJadudi (What worked? What
didn’t work? What didn’t we expect?)
 #TheJadudiReport
 Crowdfunding 101: Do’s & Don’t’s
 The Future of crowdfunding in Kenya

4. +
What is Crowdfunding?
 What words come to mind when you think about
crowdfunding?
 Why do you or your organization want to use
crowdfunding?
 How do you use social media to support your
work?

5. +
Definition of Crowdfunding
 It came from the idea of crowdsourcing, coined in 2006 by
John How in Wired Magazine: giving the power to the crowd,
and getting them to do something. (Demonstration Exercise)
 Crowdfunding is the same – you have a set idea, target amount
& timeline which you put on the internet for people to support.
 Crowdfunding is raising small amounts of money from a large
group of people online.
 “It’s the idea that you can take something that you have been
thinking about, and you can actually do it. You can move
beyond introspection, to collaboration.” - Anna Guenther –
TedX “How crowdfunding is going to change the world.”

6. +
Crowdfunding WorldWide

7. +
Global CrowdFunding Landscape:
 In 2012 there were over 300 crowdfunding platforms worldwide.
 In 2014, 22,252 projects were successfully funded on Kickstarter.
 $529 million was pledged to Kickstarter projects last year. That's
more than $1,000 a minute.
 3.3 million people from nearly every country on the planet backed
a project last year.
 In Kenya: 286 pledged $44.16k.
 In Nigeria: 254 backers pledged $99.2k
 In South Africa: 3416 backers pledged $517.6k – that’s half a
million dollars!

8. +
The Global Crowdfunding
Landscape:
 In the US, where kickstarter originated and where most projects
are launched, 2.2 million backers pledged $335.5 million.
 Imagine what we could achieve if even just 1 million Kenyans
were inspired to back different initiatives & projects every year.
 If the right environment for crowdfunding was cultivated in this
country, what wouldn’t be possible?
 What platforms are available in Kenya? Mchanga? Mookh?

9. +
Crowdfunding Landscape ctd
On Kickstarter alone, in 2014:
 2,202,171 people backed a project for the first time.
 773,824 people backed more than one project,
 71,478 people backed more than 10 projects,
 1,125 people backed more than 100 projects.
We need to develop the tools to generate such data as we build
crowdfunding in Kenya. We need to understand and harness our
crowdfunding potential, even as we build it.

10. +
Crowdfunding in Kenya:
The Digital Harambee
 In Kenya, what we’ve done is make the harambee digital.
 We use crowdfunding best in times of crisis –
#Kenyans4Kenya, #WeAreOne, #GarissaAttacks,
#1MilliForJadudi, #IStandWithJanet, #GiveForEzra, etc.
 Yet most people using crowdfunding don’t apply the same
offline harambee principles for success.
 How can we take our already existing harambee spirit and
turning it into a digital harambee spirit that helps transform the
lives of individuals and communities.
 #TheJadudiEffect might be a starting point for this.

11. +
#1MilliForJadudi
Ksh 7,256,096 ($72k) in 3 days!
“Attitudes are contagious. Is yours worth catching?” Anon
Photo by Mwangi Kirubi @mwarv

12. +
#1MilliForJadudi – A Case Study
 Did you hear about #1MilliForJadudi? How?
TIME-LINE:
 The backstory & preparations
 August 4th: The launch of #1MilliForJadudi
 August 6th: Closure
 Post August 7th: The work behind-the-scenes to get Jadudi to
India & keep the public updated about his treatment process
 #TheJadudiReport (Download, Read, Share)

13. +
#1MilliForJadudi Reflections:
What worked?
 A very powerful story of a powerful young man (Jadudi)
 A powerful story well written by Jackson Biko
 A very influential platform that reaches the right target audience
(BikoZulu.com)
 A call to action (Simple & achievable; we did the math, targeted
small amounts & cast our nets wide)
 2 trusted individuals running the campaign
 More than 50 social media influencers who agreed to back the
campaign the day before it launched

14. +
#1MilliForJadudi: Reflections
What worked?
 A reputable & credible institution backing the campaign (Africa
Cancer Foundation) & providing a secure way for contributors to
send donations
 A sense of urgency (The brain surgery had to be done ASAP)
 A powerful crowdfunding strategy developed by Zawadi &
launched on twitter – once trending on twitter, it took a life of its
own on FB & IG.
 Passion. Passion. Passion. And more passion.
 An army of foot soldiers keeping the campaign alive because their
friend’s life depended on it (Jadudi’s UoN and other friends and
family)
 Regular updates & continued engagement with supporters both
during & after the campaign.

15. + #TheJadudiReport
Download full report at www.thejadudireport.wordpress.com

16. +
#TheJadudiReport

17. +
#TheJadudiReport
This is just one case study. We need many many more to understand
the crowdfunding field in Kenya which is really young.

18. +
#Crowdfunding Do’s:
 Tell an amazing story
 Keep it clear. Perfect your pitch.
 Get creative – use words, images, videos, music, etc.
 Keep it personal – people give as much to an idea as to you.
 Identify your target audience
 Know your crowd/community – both online and offline (these
networks can take years to build)
 Use a recognized crowdfunding platform (In Kenya?)
 Share the story with people that care

19. +
#Crowdfunding Do’s:
 Identify friends and partners and ask if they can share the story
with their friends, partners & networks (on social media, blogs,
email & even offline)
 Follow through on anything you commit to doing
 Be prepared for questions and answer them in a timely manner
 Don’t just ask for money (What else can you ask for or give?)
 Stay connected to your audience – engage, respond to questions,
share their comments/feedback
 Update your backers on what’s happening during the process,
including how much has been raised.
 Send a press release to local newspapers & TV stations.

20. +
#Crowdfunding Do’s:
 Be prepared to change along the way, adjust strategy, use
different tools, etc.
 Be different – stand out from the crowd of other crowd-funders.
 Use social media analytical tools, take screen shots, document
& learn from your crowdfunding journey.
 Thank your backers/donors
 Share your experience & lessons with others & contribute to
Kenya’s crowdfunding story.
 Let’s put Kenya on the global crowdfunding map.

21. +
#Crowdfunding No-Nos:
Don’t:
 Launch until you are ready – get all your ducks lined up
 Go door-to-door asking for money. It makes people feel bad.
Don’t tag people over & over again.
 Ask the media to cover your crowdfunding campaign until it has
gained traction & you’ve raised at least 60% of your target. If
it’s trending they’ll cover it without you even asking.
 Jump into other conversations with your hashtag.
 Forget to thank your contributors.

22. +
JUST
Ja DU di
IT
“Some people dream of great accomplishments, while others stay
awake and do them.” - Anon
Photo by Mwangi Kirubi @mwarv