Starting way back in the early aughts, when ecommerce software and online social sharing norms had advanced just far enough to unite, we saw the first experiments in what we now call crowdfunding. There was ArtistShare for musicians in 2003, EquityNet for accredited investors in 2005, Spot.us for journalists in 2008. Then the big guns: Indiegogo in 2008 and Kickstarter in 2009.
Now crowdfunding is a $16.2-billion industry — and poised to expand even further as the federal JOBS Act broadens the pool of potential investors that young ventures can reach out to.
This month on the Technical.ly Podcast we explore what’s next for crowdfunding, and discuss some tips and tricks for how to successfully raise money (and attention) from the crowd.
First, we speak with Erin Glenn, the CEO of Quire (formerly Alphaworks). The equity crowdfunding platform lets backers get more than just a T-shirt for supporting a business: they get a sliver of the company, instead. Glenn explains how the JOBS Act is changing things.
Then we speak with Technical.ly contributor Jim Saksa. In a two-part series for Techincal.ly Philly, Saksa unpacked what crowdfunding is really all about (hint: marketing) and talked to founders about the secrets of running a successful crowdfunding campaign.
- Listen below, download the episode or subscribe to the Technical.ly Podcast on iTunes or Stitcher. It’s also available via this RSS feed.
We also have a very special giveaway this month. The makers of the wildly popular Serial podcast are coming to Philadelphia on Thursday, May 14, for an event at the Merriam Theater. For a free pair of tickets, review the Technical.ly Podcast on iTunes, take a screenshot of your review and send it to cary@technical.ly. We’ll select one listener at random.
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