Business owners and entrepreneurs have been innovating new ways to get funding for their projects for decades, but it wasn’t until around 2012 where Crowdfunding really broke into the scene and created a name for itself. In 2019 the crowdfunding industry had a total value of $13.9 Billion dollars, but industry experts have said that this value could triple in value by 2026. (Source: Nature for Justice, Statista)
While it’s obvious that crowdfunding can be a successful way to raise funds, this does not mean that it will work well for any new business idea. Being able to differentiate yourself and your business is essential to gaining the attention of possible investors.
(Source: RODNAE Productions, Canva)
Through popular sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo, the most notable way to differentiate yourself is through a crowdfunding video.
Successful crowdfunding campaigns need videos to explain who you are, what you do, and why funding your project would be beneficial. A great campaign needs engaging and educational video content to properly communicate your business idea to many people and raise funds to grow their business.
In this article, we’ve laid out the necessary tools, like this free online video editor, to use when creating a successful crowdfunding video.
What is Crowdfunding?
Crowdfunding is the act of raising small amounts of money from a large number of people in order to fund a project or business venture. Crowdfunding has become even easier as new crowdfunding platforms have grown and developed over the past decade.
There are two main models of crowdfunding and you can choose to focus on one or use both concurrently. The first model is Donation-based crowdfunding. This means that the people funding your project are donating money simply for the fact that they like you or your idea and would like to see it come to fruition. The return that the donors receive is being able to have or use the product/service.
The other model is Investment Crowdfunding. This means that you would be selling a stake in your company in return for capital investment. The investors would receive either partial ownership of your company/ project or debt that will be returned at a later date with a percentage of return. Both models are an effective way to raise capital and you can decide which works best for your project.
(Source: fulfillrite)
There are many crowdfunding platforms that can help you have a successful crowdfunding campaign, so you don’t have to start from scratch. These platforms allow you to connect with large groups of people that are directly interested in funding ideas that are innovative, exciting, or simply just interesting. Some of the biggest crowdfunding platforms are Kickstarter, Indiegogo, GoFundMe, and Patreon.
Using a crowdfunding platform can add many benefits, including reach, exposure, and ease of funding. By using a platform like those mentioned above, it will allow others to find your project that is interested in your specific field or region. This is a great way to grow your reach organically. You can also share the pages that you make within these platforms to your social media channels so that your friends, family, and followers can easily find your project. Lastly, you will make the payment experience so much easier for the donor/investor because of the built-in payment system that these platforms offer.
Why You Need A Crowdfunding Video?
A crowdfunding video is essential to communicating with your audience to reach your funding goal. Some of the key benefits of a crowdfunding campaign video include quickly and efficiently introducing you and your project to investors and potential customers so that they can gain a deeper connection with you through your level of passion and inspiring story.
According to Kickstarter, projects without a video have a success rate of only 30%, while by simply adding a video projects increase to a 50% success rate.
Not to mention, crowdfunding is a great tool for all types of industries, including:
- Startups
- Nonprofits
- Investing
- Individuals
- Creative Professionals
Follow these five simple tips to ensure that you create an excellent crowdfunding video.
1. Keep It Short And Impactful
When it comes to crowdfunding campaign videos, less is more. Shorter videos are easier for the viewer to consume and absorb all of the information without losing interest. It is recommended that videos are less than 3 minutes long; however, there have been studies that the sweet spot is around 45 seconds to 1.5 minutes for an introductory video. This gives you enough time to grab the viewer’s attention, explain the story behind the project, and the basic needs of what the funds will be used for.
If you plan on creating multiple pitch videos, make sure that each includes your initial goal for the project, that way anyone can still understand the purpose of the project without having to view all of your content.
(Source: Hop Stuff Brewery, Drop Studio)
This video by Hop Stuff Brewery is a great example of how to quickly and effectively pitch your project.
2. Include All the Information
Your audience is clicking on the video expecting to learn something about your project, so it is important that your video is educational. This includes important information such as what you offer, how you function, how many people you employ, etc.
There are many types of explainer videos that you can get inspiration from to understand how you can communicate the information creatively.
A key piece of information to include is about the allocation of funds, as investors will want to know how you’re spending their money. This is also a good chance to explain how far you are along with the project and what it will take to complete it successfully.
Lastly, a good way to make sure you include all necessary information is to first write down some of the most common or important questions so you can include the answers in a simple way that everyday people would be able to understand.
(Source: BioLite BaseCamp Stove, MotionCue)
This video by BioLite is a great example of educating the viewer about their project in a simple way.
3. Show Your True Colors
One of the best ways to make a lasting impression on someone through a video is by creating an emotional connection. A captivating video uses high energy, deep emotion, and moving stories to make the content inspiring and motivating. The deeper the connection you build with your audience, the more that people will want to invest.
Personal videos that are sincere allow people to really get a feel for who you are and they can get a sense of how their funding could really make a difference.
4. Use Storytelling
Storytelling has been an effective tool that has shaped human civilizations since some of the earliest generations. All video creators know the importance of storytelling to create a successful video, but as an entrepreneur, this is equally as important.
Structure your video so that you can distinguish a solid beginning, middle, and end. This will help guide the viewer along and allow for a better takeaway of your video’s information.
Simple storytelling elements such as background music, b-roll, and narration can really make your video engaging and captivating.
Write-on Video
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Learn More5. Consider Quality
Last but certainly not least, an element that you must take note of is the quality of your video production. The quality of your video will directly contribute to the professionalism of your project and whether or not the viewer should take your project seriously.
It is estimated that by 2022, 1 million videos will be watched every second by users worldwide, It is estimated that 5 billion videos are watched on YouTube alone every day, and right now the average YouTube viewer watches about 5 hours of video per month. So it is no question that there is no shortage of videos out there, however using high-quality video, as opposed to medium or low-quality video will directly correlate with the amount of engagement viewers will have with your video.
When planning the quality of your video production, these are the most important elements to consider:
- Lighting
- Background
- Location
- Post-production – such as video editing software
- Equipment
Studies have shown that 88% of marketers are satisfied with their return on investment from their video content. With that being said, it may even be useful to invest in a production team that can manage the quality of the entire video from pre-production to post-production.
When it comes to creating your crowdfunding campaign it is essential to keep these 5 elements in mind in the planning stage. But when it comes time to start creating, you can seek some other campaign videos that were used for previous crowdfunding projects, to help give you a bit of inspiration. That way when it comes time to be released, you will have created a great initial pitch that will get the audience excited to fund your project! With a pitch deck template, it would be easier and organized for you to express your concepts.
(Source: RODNAE Productions, Canva)
We hope these crowdfunding video tips will help you create an amazing crowdfunding video, and will help you run many successful campaigns.
To get started creating your first crowdfunding video, you can use Write-on Video to plan, structure, and edit your video from start to finish!
(Feature image source by Cristian Rojas, Canva)