The two questions I get asked ALOT, “How tall are you?” and “How did I raise funds for my business?”. I’ll tackle the money question first and you can check out my bio to find out the other. One of the realities of starting your own business is that it can be hard to find money (especially if it’s a clothing line). My favorite way to raise funds is through crowdfunding.

Crowd What?

Crowdfunding is a way of raising money to fund a project or business venture through many contributors using an online platform. The idea is to get a large “crowd” of people to contribute, in return the contributors receive a non-monetary reward.

The benefits of crowdfunding are vast. The most important are

•   You don’t have to give up equity or control of your company.

•   You can build traction, social proof and validate your idea or new product.

•    It's provides an opportunity to pre-sell a product or concept.

Is Crowdfunding Right for Your Business?

1. Having a successful crowdfunding campaign takes work. Are you willing to do the work?

2. Is your business or project fundable? Contributors want to know that your idea is a legitimate one.

3. Do you know how much money you need to properly fund your business or project? You need to know exactly how much money you need to make your idea a reality, and that requires a ton of research, number-crunching and budgeting.

Learn The 4 elements of having a successful crowdfunding campaign.