How to Crowdfund Your Passion Project

Maybe you have an idea for an incredible new invention, feature film, or other project, and while you're sure it will be a success, you simply don't have the funds available to make your dream a reality. Thankfully, with sites like Kickstarter, RocketHub, and Indiegogo, you can crowd fund your project online quickly and easily simply by sharing your campaign on social media. Check out these tips for creating a successful crowdfunding campaign for your passion project.

Pick the Right Platform

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There are thousands of crowdfunding site options out there, so it's important to do your research and pick the one that will best serve your projects needs. For example, while Kickstarter is a popular option that draws millions of users, you have to be confident that your project will reach its financial goal, because if it doesn't all the money you earned will be returned to your backers. While Indiegogo isn't as big as Kickstarter, it does offer a flexible funding option, meaning even if you don't reach your goal, you'll get the money. Gofundme is also a popular option, but is more focused on non-profit causes and charity, so it may not be the best place to fund a product idea.

Craft a Convincing Pitch

It's important to convince your audience that your project is an important innovation that will somehow benefit them. Describe your project in clear detail, lay out the steps you will take to make your dream a reality, and include convincing images, diagrams or even videos to make your pitch even stronger. Make sure that your passion for the project comes through in your pitch, because if it doesn't feel like you really believe in the project, it will be very difficult to convince your audience to believe in it. While your pitch should be relatively in depth, we also recommend crafting a shorter elevator-type pitch, so that the casual browser can also get a good idea of the project with very little effort.

Define Your Audience

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Who do you see benefitting from your idea? If it's a film, who would see it? If its a product, who would use it? When you can answer these questions with assurance, you can begin finding ways to target that audience. Maybe that's finding facebook pages or other sites where users fit the qualifications of your ideal consumer, maybe that's simply reaching out to family and friends you think would be interested. Once you know your audience, you can also craft your pitch to appeal to those people.

Create Incentives for Donation

People like to feel like their good deeds are recognized. Whether its sending a free tote bag to every person who donates a certain amount, or including the names of your most generous benefactors in the credits of your film, its important to make people feel like their generosity is appreciated. This can be as simple as sending thank you notes.

Utilize Your Own Community

The people most likely to donate to your campaign are your friends and family who know you, and believe in you. That means it's important to post your campaign to your personal social media, send emails out to your address book, and generally be persistent in your own community about your project's importance. It may feel awkward to ask people you know for money, but it's likely they'll appreciate your entrepreneurial spirit, and be happy to help you out.

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@zaidleppelin On quiet quitting #workreform ♬ original sound - ruby


The trend arose from the depths of the pandemic. Layoffs, salary cuts, and furloughs proved that their employers did not care about their hard-working employees.

The Washington Post dubs quiet quitting as a fresh trem for an old phenomenon: employee disengagement. In many cases, it’s a response to burnout. For much of Gen Z, it’s a way of establishing healthy boundaries in the office and resisting the pressure of the rat race. After all, why work yourself to the bone for a company that just proved it’s ready and willing to let you go?

Despite the term’s negative connotations, Quiet Quitting can provide an empowering shift in thinking for employees.

For far too long, employees have been indoctrinated with a slew of toxic workplace advice. Faced with these old misconceptions and lacking job security or clear paths for advancement, Gen Z is untethering their identities from work.

Quiet quitting — therefore — might be a bit of a misnomer. These employers aren’t completely disengaged. They’re certainly not launching Flight Club-esque sabotage attempts on their employers. NO. Contrary to media panic, Gen Z understands the value of a job — the fickle market they entered ensured that. But they also understand the value of life.

They’re doing what they’re being paid for. Nothing more, nothing less.

According to Chief, a private membership network focused on connecting and supporting women executive leaders, older generations should learn from this approach.

“Gen Z has already endured the largest seismic shifts to the career landscape than any previous generation, having started their careers in the middle of a pandemic that changed office culture forever and a gig economy that makes piecing together work more viable. They’re taking both those realities and therefore demanding more autonomy and flexibility than any other generation.”

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Learn on your own time with bite-sized videos or in-depth courses. Watch them after work, before you clock in, or on your lunch break. Then, after your courses are complete, you’ll have certificates prominently displayed on your profile that prove your skills.

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