“We needed to communicate very clearly that this whole thing would improve board performance. And if you’re working in a nonprofit, who in their right mind would say ‘no, I’m not interested in seeing my board do a better job?’"
– Michael Anderson, President/CEO, Canadian Society of Association Executives

How a Culture of Experimenting Led to Crowdfunding Success with Michael Anderson

Session 59

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Crowdfunding is growing as a way to finance projects, products, movies and ideas. The Canadian Society of Association Executives decided to try it as a funding experiment. Using Indegogo, they raised over $10,000 in under a month. Michael Anderson, CEO of CSAE joins Beth to explain how the crowdfunding process works from planning, marketing, and operational angles. He makes the point that crowdfunding isn’t collecting donations, it is getting an investment from people who want to see the benefit of your project.  Most importantly, a crowdfunding project needs to have open communication within an organization so that staff, executives, boards, and constituents can rally around it.

Michael and Beth discuss:

  • How crowdfunding differs from other funding options for projects
  • The differences between fundraising and crowdfunding
  • The intensive marketing required when starting a new project or product
  • Planning that goes in to a project at different organizational levels
  • Focusing on the supporters’ needs when developing a crowdfunding campaign
Resources:

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