It is everyone's dream to be their own boss - chuck that day job and follow your passion to start your own venture. In recent times, with the advent of the internet and social media, there are infinite ways to raise funds to start on your own.
Crowdfunding is one such amazing source to raise capital. Typically, you would raise money through friends, family and people in your network to raise a large amount for your dream venture. They would all encourage you to achieve your dream by supporting you in every way. Crowdfunding is the same - you pitch your idea to a "crowd " or a large group of people and they will each contribute a small amount of money collectively to financially support your project or initiative. Instead of applying for a $50,000 loan from a bank, you raise the same amount from about 10,000 people contributing $50 each.
The key to writing an effective pitch is to keep it simple, precise yet effective. You have a short window to capture the attention of the patrons, to convince them about your passion, your new dream venture that you need their help for. Create your social networking platform like Facebook page, Instagram account, Twitter exclusively for your venture. Create a buzz and update your patrons with information about the offerings, features, events or launches happening regularly on all the platforms.
Capture the attention with a catchy title
Let's be real. No one takes the time or has patience to read through long paragraphs of text. It is important to engage the patrons - grab their attention with good humour, wit, philanthropy or anything that floats your boat, in this case the product or service you are offering. First step is to come up with an effective title. The nature of the product or service you offer will determine the tone or voice of your title.
Short and Sweet
Today’s world prevails on the mantra "Instant Gratification". There's no running away from it. Always remember that it is vital that you put across the message in a short and succinct style. Do not scare your patrons away with complicated terms or words they may fail to understand or simply not be bothered to make the effort. Stay true to yourself, take time to do your research to corroborate your offerings, provide information to validate their benefits and state all the facts simply.
Use a few relevant key facts to validate your position
Nothing works better than concrete facts to validate a rational mind. Most patrons will think rationally to arrive at a positive decision and look for research data, proven benefits and positive results to back their decision. It is the right approach towards making a decision; a emotional decision backed by practical facts and figures.
Incentivize the donor to give
Develop a narrative that reflects your passion, establishes a connection with the patron and lends him a feeling of being part of your venture. It is important that they feel invested into your venture for your pitch to succeed. It should also sufficiently answer the patron’s “what’s in it for me?” question. The success of your funding largely depends on the "rewards" you offer as part of the pitch. Put a lot of thought into the rewards ( think useful, attractive, gender neutral) and come up with deals or gifts that will attract at least 70% of your patrons.
Friendly and amicable tone to your pitch
Your pitch is not a formal speech for a grant, it is more of a friendly request to support your venture. Imagine you are talking to your patrons face-to-face. Keep it simple, informal and state clearly what you want to achieve through the funding. Your personality, voice and conviction must shine through, you will stand out.
Comments