Kickstarter Alternative GoFundMe Should Not Be Overlooked By Businesses

There are more than just two major crowdfunding sites that small businesses should consider.

You’ve definitely heard of Kickstarter and Indiegogo but have you seen what GoFundMe offers?

GoFundMe allows individuals and businesses create crowdfunding campaigns — but with a few differencs.

This site is a bit different in that it allows for funding of personal goals like graduations, medical bills, and raising money for school tuition.

GoFundMe for Business

But, as noted, businesses can use the site, too. Though projects pitches might be a bit different than those posted on Kickstarter or Indigogo.

One such example is the Save the North Bend Theatre project that surpassed its $100,000 goal by more than $7,000. The key is to pitch the right kind of business project to appeal to the site’s users — one that is personable and improves people’s quality of lives.

How GoFundMe Works

GoFundMe allows you to create a page that describes what you are raising money for.

During this process, you will be asked to describe your cause, the amount you seek to raise, and additional photos or videos that can help you further your cause. Once you have a page created, the platform then allows you to share your projects on social networks such as Twitter and Facebook.

People can then donate to your cause using debit or credit cards. All the while, both you and your funders are able to track your crowdfunding progress. People can also leave comments in support of your project.

While it is absolutely free to create a campaign on the platform, GoFundMe generates revenue by charging a five percent fee from every donation received. You will also be charged a 2.9 percent plus $0.30 fee by WePay for each payment you take.

GoFundMe vs Kickstarter and Indiegogo

While Kickstarter specializes on creative projects that are best for artists and designers, GoFundMe does not specialize in any specific cause. And anyone, businesses included, can use the platform.

While both Kickstarter and Indiegogo have a project timeline (60 days), GoFundMe does not have a time limit, so creators can choose to set a time and make their campaign operate under the “all or nothing” model, if they so wish.

Overall, GoFundMe campaign topics are completely open as long as they do not contain inappropriate content or promote anything illegal.

The beauty of it all is that you get to keep all your donations even if you don’t get to reach your monetary goal. Moreover, you can also withdraw funds from your campaign whenever you want.

Image: GoFundMe

This article, "Kickstarter Alternative GoFundMe Should Not Be Overlooked By Businesses" was first published on Small Business Trends