Micropatronage - can funding really be just a click away?

I attended the 'Please Give Generously' symposium on patronage in Nottingham yesterday, It was hosted by Cultivate - the audience development agency for the East Midlands. Whilst a lot of the content was clearly focussed on the way that arts and cultural organisations can access large gifts from high net worth individuals, there was some content that really stood out in terms of it's suitability for individuals or small companies seeking funds for very specific projects.

There were two presentations in particular I thought were thought provoking. The first was from Ed Whiting - the creator of the WeDidThis crowdfunding site: http://wedidthis.org.uk/  He's clearly a man with a  spark, and although the site is very new, he talked convincingly about the possibilities of crowd funding as a plausible source of finance.

The second was from Jeanie Finlay - an independent film-maker, who has used crowd finance to successfully fund her film project, even taking her over to the SXSW festival in the States. Her film site at: http://www.sounditoutdoc.com/ describes the project, and her crowdfunding page at: http://www.indiegogo.com/sound-it-out shows how she has set out her stall.

She acknowledged that it had been hard work, and that the biggest challenge was getting people onto the site to see the story of the project. Once there, she's made provision for people to contribute in a number of ways, according to what they can afford, and this menu of choices has allowed her to tap into a very wide range of donors indeed. It's also very clear about what donors get back in return for their money (and it's not always what you might think). You can see who backed her and how, and some explain their motivations quite clearly.

I'm now convinced that for some, crowd funding could be really helpful way to secure funding and raise profile simultaneously. As Jeanie explained - you need to be able to tell your story convincingly - but that has a twofold benefit - many more people get to hear about your project, and some of the visitors may well end up reaching for their credit card. In effect, 'putting their money where their mouse is....'

For more in depth stuff about the economics of micropatronage,and pricing strategies - have a look at this: http://www.economist.com/blogs/babbage/2010/09/micropatronage_sweet_spot

Meanwhile, thanks to both Ed and Jeanie for sharing what they know so generously.