[Coworking] Re: Crowdfunding a new Cowork Space
Ok..so..I hear this word community a lot and I ask, what does that mean? As in...having a community can mean a lot of things. It can mean creating an online social network (or forum much like this!) where you gather supporters. It can mean a mailing list where you can continually communicate and share with members. It can mean hosting regular in person meetings/mixers with actual people. Being that I have a little of all of that, wondering...what is a best strategy for building this community? I find that gathering people is easy...evangelizing them (which I think is really the key to successful crowdfunding) is hard. Any thoughts? On Tuesday, May 12, 2015 at 11:59:43 AM UTC-4, Eric Lituchy wrote: > > I am new to the Cowork world and find this group to be an amazing > resource. Thanks in advance! > > In July, I am opening a coworking space on Long Island. I am currently > working on building the community and already have 6 people onboard. I > thought of raising some capital from friends and family, but started to > think that crowdfunding (Indiegogo, Plumfund, etc.) might be a better > option. Capital will be used for rent, furniture, technology, etc. > > My questions: > >1. Does crowdfunding make sense as a way to fund a startup coworking >space? My primary goal of the crowdfunding would be to get new members >to invest in our community. >2. I expect to offer membership deals(ex. Contribute $1000 and get >3-months of cowork space), "Hardship" contributions to give out-of-work >individuals free coworking space and media/press mentions for larger >contributions. Any thoughts on this? Other ideas? >3. Any potential pitfalls of going the crowdsourced route? > > Any additional advice is sincerely appreciated. > > Thank, Eric > Long Island Cowork (Finaly name TBD) > -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Coworking" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[Coworking] Re: Crowdfunding a new Cowork Space
Raghuveer - I don't think the platform matters much, but maybe someone with past experience could chime in. In my opinion, crowdfunding is going to be hyperlocal. I do not foresee getting funding from anyone outside my local community. The main advantages I see to using crowdfunding platform is that it formalizes the funding and potentially adds word-of-mouth for the space. I believe I could get 6-10 people commit to the space, but by crowdfunding I can offer a variety of deals, work to secure longer commitments, and start the business with cash, which would ease some anxiety. At the end of the day, I am looking to get the community pumped about the space so we can hit the ground running! Eric On Tuesday, May 19, 2015 at 3:23:47 AM UTC-4, Raghuveer Kovuru wrote: Great work Eric! Wish that your campaign succeeds! I had a similar question related to crowdfunding my space here in Hyderabad, India and it goes out to everyone : How important is localization of a campaign? For eg: Can I raise funds on a global platform like Kickstarter or Indiegogo (considering I collect more money in terms of exchange rate) or should I stick to a local platform which helps me connect with the emotional strings of people in India. Again, as far as my community is concerned, I am sure they would support me irrespective of the geography but the remaining crowd also matter a lot. What are you views on this? Chee On Tuesday, 12 May 2015 21:29:43 UTC+5:30, Eric Lituchy wrote: I am new to the Cowork world and find this group to be an amazing resource. Thanks in advance! In July, I am opening a coworking space on Long Island. I am currently working on building the community and already have 6 people onboard. I thought of raising some capital from friends and family, but started to think that crowdfunding (Indiegogo, Plumfund, etc.) might be a better option. Capital will be used for rent, furniture, technology, etc. My questions: 1. Does crowdfunding make sense as a way to fund a startup coworking space? My primary goal of the crowdfunding would be to get new members to invest in our community. 2. I expect to offer membership deals(ex. Contribute $1000 and get 3-months of cowork space), Hardship contributions to give out-of-work individuals free coworking space and media/press mentions for larger contributions. Any thoughts on this? Other ideas? 3. Any potential pitfalls of going the crowdsourced route? Any additional advice is sincerely appreciated. Thank, Eric Long Island Cowork (Finaly name TBD) -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[Coworking] Re: Crowdfunding a new Cowork Space
Great work Eric! Wish that your campaign succeeds! I had a similar question related to crowdfunding my space here in Hyderabad, India and it goes out to everyone : How important is localization of a campaign? For eg: Can I raise funds on a global platform like Kickstarter or Indiegogo (considering I collect more money in terms of exchange rate) or should I stick to a local platform which helps me connect with the emotional strings of people in India. Again, as far as my community is concerned, I am sure they would support me irrespective of the geography but the remaining crowd also matter a lot. What are you views on this? Chee On Tuesday, 12 May 2015 21:29:43 UTC+5:30, Eric Lituchy wrote: I am new to the Cowork world and find this group to be an amazing resource. Thanks in advance! In July, I am opening a coworking space on Long Island. I am currently working on building the community and already have 6 people onboard. I thought of raising some capital from friends and family, but started to think that crowdfunding (Indiegogo, Plumfund, etc.) might be a better option. Capital will be used for rent, furniture, technology, etc. My questions: 1. Does crowdfunding make sense as a way to fund a startup coworking space? My primary goal of the crowdfunding would be to get new members to invest in our community. 2. I expect to offer membership deals(ex. Contribute $1000 and get 3-months of cowork space), Hardship contributions to give out-of-work individuals free coworking space and media/press mentions for larger contributions. Any thoughts on this? Other ideas? 3. Any potential pitfalls of going the crowdsourced route? Any additional advice is sincerely appreciated. Thank, Eric Long Island Cowork (Finaly name TBD) -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[Coworking] Re: Crowdfunding a new Cowork Space
Hey Eric, I saw that you liked us. Thanks! Yes, sadly there's no category for coworking or anything like it. Most of the spaces I've seen on Kickstarter have listed under the category; design. I think that's where we might put ourselves as well. GO CATS! Karen On Friday, May 15, 2015 at 6:42:49 PM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: Karen, it sounds like you have it very well thought out. Kudos! I looked at your site and since you are going after the creative crowd I understand having a more polished campaign. I also noticed you went to the U of A. I am also a Wildcat! Bear Down. I already liked you on FB and will put you on my Google Alerts and can't wait to see your Kickstarter! One more questions - I looked at Kickstarter and there isn't really a category for Coworking. Where are you going to post it? Best of Luck! Eric On Friday, May 15, 2015 at 6:07:50 PM UTC-4, Karen Ruane wrote: Hi Eric, If one wanted, they could probably put together a Kickstarter campaign in an afternoon. However, the campaign, and its response, would reflect that. For us, it's been really important to present a professional and well thought-out campaign which includes professionally designed graphics, images and research to back us up. We are also producing a video with a professional videographer. In addition, we've been working on forging relationships with the community and local businesses in anticipation of being able to hit them up once our campaign begins. As part of the final touches on this campaign, I've also been sending out previews to business professionals I'm acquainted with to get feedback on the writing and tone of the campaign. So much of my time has been spent making small adjustments to language and design. Hope that helps! I still totally think it's worth a shot. At the very least, it'll help raise community awareness for our space and maybe bring us a few more members. Best, Karen On Thursday, May 14, 2015 at 8:08:46 PM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: Karen, thanks for sharing! Can you tell me why getting the campaign is so time-consuming? It is wordsmithing, getting together photos, or something else? Are you producing a video? It seems straight forward, but I know from experience that things are usually harder than they seem. Eric On Wednesday, May 13, 2015 at 10:57:00 PM UTC-4, Karen Ruane wrote: Hi Eric, I am opening a space in August and will be launching a Kickstarter campaign on June 1. I've studied quite a few Kickstarter campaigns for Coworking space, most of which were successful. It's true, the rewards are different because we don't have much of a product to offer. However, there's lots of room for creativity in rewards. We will offer things like short term memberships, art from members who've already signed up, advertising in our space or in our media, Swag with our logo on it... We made sure to create incentives for both local potential clients and everyone else who likes the idea of promoting the coworking industry. There aren't many pitfalls to trying to crowd-fund. Of course, you shouldn't abandon other avenues for raising capital, just in case you aren't successfully funded. And then there's the work of it - I've been working on this campaign for over a month and it is still not ready to launch. Doing it right is quite a commitment and takes hours and hours of work. But other than that, I'd say go for it! Time will tell if I'd repeat that advice! Best of Luck, Karen http://www.thewildsbend.com On Tuesday, May 12, 2015 at 8:59:43 AM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: I am new to the Cowork world and find this group to be an amazing resource. Thanks in advance! In July, I am opening a coworking space on Long Island. I am currently working on building the community and already have 6 people onboard. I thought of raising some capital from friends and family, but started to think that crowdfunding (Indiegogo, Plumfund, etc.) might be a better option. Capital will be used for rent, furniture, technology, etc. My questions: 1. Does crowdfunding make sense as a way to fund a startup coworking space? My primary goal of the crowdfunding would be to get new members to invest in our community. 2. I expect to offer membership deals(ex. Contribute $1000 and get 3-months of cowork space), Hardship contributions to give out-of-work individuals free coworking space and media/press mentions for larger contributions. Any thoughts on this? Other ideas? 3. Any potential pitfalls of going the crowdsourced route? Any additional advice is sincerely appreciated. Thank, Eric Long Island Cowork (Finaly name TBD) -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it,
[Coworking] Re: Crowdfunding a new Cowork Space
Hi Eric, If one wanted, they could probably put together a Kickstarter campaign in an afternoon. However, the campaign, and its response, would reflect that. For us, it's been really important to present a professional and well thought-out campaign which includes professionally designed graphics, images and research to back us up. We are also producing a video with a professional videographer. In addition, we've been working on forging relationships with the community and local businesses in anticipation of being able to hit them up once our campaign begins. As part of the final touches on this campaign, I've also been sending out previews to business professionals I'm acquainted with to get feedback on the writing and tone of the campaign. So much of my time has been spent making small adjustments to language and design. Hope that helps! I still totally think it's worth a shot. At the very least, it'll help raise community awareness for our space and maybe bring us a few more members. Best, Karen On Thursday, May 14, 2015 at 8:08:46 PM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: Karen, thanks for sharing! Can you tell me why getting the campaign is so time-consuming? It is wordsmithing, getting together photos, or something else? Are you producing a video? It seems straight forward, but I know from experience that things are usually harder than they seem. Eric On Wednesday, May 13, 2015 at 10:57:00 PM UTC-4, Karen Ruane wrote: Hi Eric, I am opening a space in August and will be launching a Kickstarter campaign on June 1. I've studied quite a few Kickstarter campaigns for Coworking space, most of which were successful. It's true, the rewards are different because we don't have much of a product to offer. However, there's lots of room for creativity in rewards. We will offer things like short term memberships, art from members who've already signed up, advertising in our space or in our media, Swag with our logo on it... We made sure to create incentives for both local potential clients and everyone else who likes the idea of promoting the coworking industry. There aren't many pitfalls to trying to crowd-fund. Of course, you shouldn't abandon other avenues for raising capital, just in case you aren't successfully funded. And then there's the work of it - I've been working on this campaign for over a month and it is still not ready to launch. Doing it right is quite a commitment and takes hours and hours of work. But other than that, I'd say go for it! Time will tell if I'd repeat that advice! Best of Luck, Karen http://www.thewildsbend.com On Tuesday, May 12, 2015 at 8:59:43 AM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: I am new to the Cowork world and find this group to be an amazing resource. Thanks in advance! In July, I am opening a coworking space on Long Island. I am currently working on building the community and already have 6 people onboard. I thought of raising some capital from friends and family, but started to think that crowdfunding (Indiegogo, Plumfund, etc.) might be a better option. Capital will be used for rent, furniture, technology, etc. My questions: 1. Does crowdfunding make sense as a way to fund a startup coworking space? My primary goal of the crowdfunding would be to get new members to invest in our community. 2. I expect to offer membership deals(ex. Contribute $1000 and get 3-months of cowork space), Hardship contributions to give out-of-work individuals free coworking space and media/press mentions for larger contributions. Any thoughts on this? Other ideas? 3. Any potential pitfalls of going the crowdsourced route? Any additional advice is sincerely appreciated. Thank, Eric Long Island Cowork (Finaly name TBD) -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[Coworking] Re: Crowdfunding a new Cowork Space
Karen, it sounds like you have it very well thought out. Kudos! I looked at your site and since you are going after the creative crowd I understand having a more polished campaign. I also noticed you went to the U of A. I am also a Wildcat! Bear Down. I already liked you on FB and will put you on my Google Alerts and can't wait to see your Kickstarter! One more questions - I looked at Kickstarter and there isn't really a category for Coworking. Where are you going to post it? Best of Luck! Eric On Friday, May 15, 2015 at 6:07:50 PM UTC-4, Karen Ruane wrote: Hi Eric, If one wanted, they could probably put together a Kickstarter campaign in an afternoon. However, the campaign, and its response, would reflect that. For us, it's been really important to present a professional and well thought-out campaign which includes professionally designed graphics, images and research to back us up. We are also producing a video with a professional videographer. In addition, we've been working on forging relationships with the community and local businesses in anticipation of being able to hit them up once our campaign begins. As part of the final touches on this campaign, I've also been sending out previews to business professionals I'm acquainted with to get feedback on the writing and tone of the campaign. So much of my time has been spent making small adjustments to language and design. Hope that helps! I still totally think it's worth a shot. At the very least, it'll help raise community awareness for our space and maybe bring us a few more members. Best, Karen On Thursday, May 14, 2015 at 8:08:46 PM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: Karen, thanks for sharing! Can you tell me why getting the campaign is so time-consuming? It is wordsmithing, getting together photos, or something else? Are you producing a video? It seems straight forward, but I know from experience that things are usually harder than they seem. Eric On Wednesday, May 13, 2015 at 10:57:00 PM UTC-4, Karen Ruane wrote: Hi Eric, I am opening a space in August and will be launching a Kickstarter campaign on June 1. I've studied quite a few Kickstarter campaigns for Coworking space, most of which were successful. It's true, the rewards are different because we don't have much of a product to offer. However, there's lots of room for creativity in rewards. We will offer things like short term memberships, art from members who've already signed up, advertising in our space or in our media, Swag with our logo on it... We made sure to create incentives for both local potential clients and everyone else who likes the idea of promoting the coworking industry. There aren't many pitfalls to trying to crowd-fund. Of course, you shouldn't abandon other avenues for raising capital, just in case you aren't successfully funded. And then there's the work of it - I've been working on this campaign for over a month and it is still not ready to launch. Doing it right is quite a commitment and takes hours and hours of work. But other than that, I'd say go for it! Time will tell if I'd repeat that advice! Best of Luck, Karen http://www.thewildsbend.com On Tuesday, May 12, 2015 at 8:59:43 AM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: I am new to the Cowork world and find this group to be an amazing resource. Thanks in advance! In July, I am opening a coworking space on Long Island. I am currently working on building the community and already have 6 people onboard. I thought of raising some capital from friends and family, but started to think that crowdfunding (Indiegogo, Plumfund, etc.) might be a better option. Capital will be used for rent, furniture, technology, etc. My questions: 1. Does crowdfunding make sense as a way to fund a startup coworking space? My primary goal of the crowdfunding would be to get new members to invest in our community. 2. I expect to offer membership deals(ex. Contribute $1000 and get 3-months of cowork space), Hardship contributions to give out-of-work individuals free coworking space and media/press mentions for larger contributions. Any thoughts on this? Other ideas? 3. Any potential pitfalls of going the crowdsourced route? Any additional advice is sincerely appreciated. Thank, Eric Long Island Cowork (Finaly name TBD) -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
[Coworking] Re: Crowdfunding a new Cowork Space
Karen, thanks for sharing! Can you tell me why getting the campaign is so time-consuming? It is wordsmithing, getting together photos, or something else? Are you producing a video? It seems straight forward, but I know from experience that things are usually harder than they seem. Eric On Wednesday, May 13, 2015 at 10:57:00 PM UTC-4, Karen Ruane wrote: Hi Eric, I am opening a space in August and will be launching a Kickstarter campaign on June 1. I've studied quite a few Kickstarter campaigns for Coworking space, most of which were successful. It's true, the rewards are different because we don't have much of a product to offer. However, there's lots of room for creativity in rewards. We will offer things like short term memberships, art from members who've already signed up, advertising in our space or in our media, Swag with our logo on it... We made sure to create incentives for both local potential clients and everyone else who likes the idea of promoting the coworking industry. There aren't many pitfalls to trying to crowd-fund. Of course, you shouldn't abandon other avenues for raising capital, just in case you aren't successfully funded. And then there's the work of it - I've been working on this campaign for over a month and it is still not ready to launch. Doing it right is quite a commitment and takes hours and hours of work. But other than that, I'd say go for it! Time will tell if I'd repeat that advice! Best of Luck, Karen http://www.thewildsbend.com On Tuesday, May 12, 2015 at 8:59:43 AM UTC-7, Eric Lituchy wrote: I am new to the Cowork world and find this group to be an amazing resource. Thanks in advance! In July, I am opening a coworking space on Long Island. I am currently working on building the community and already have 6 people onboard. I thought of raising some capital from friends and family, but started to think that crowdfunding (Indiegogo, Plumfund, etc.) might be a better option. Capital will be used for rent, furniture, technology, etc. My questions: 1. Does crowdfunding make sense as a way to fund a startup coworking space? My primary goal of the crowdfunding would be to get new members to invest in our community. 2. I expect to offer membership deals(ex. Contribute $1000 and get 3-months of cowork space), Hardship contributions to give out-of-work individuals free coworking space and media/press mentions for larger contributions. Any thoughts on this? Other ideas? 3. Any potential pitfalls of going the crowdsourced route? Any additional advice is sincerely appreciated. Thank, Eric Long Island Cowork (Finaly name TBD) -- Visit this forum on the web at http://discuss.coworking.com --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups Coworking group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to coworking+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
