{"id":118,"date":"2023-10-10T04:48:51","date_gmt":"2023-10-10T04:48:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.theactorshandbook.com\/theatre-production-guide-fundraising\/"},"modified":"2023-10-10T09:02:44","modified_gmt":"2023-10-10T09:02:44","slug":"fundraising","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.theactorshandbook.com\/theatre-production-guide\/fundraising\/","title":{"rendered":"Fundraising"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Crowdfunding<\/a><\/h2>\n

National and State Resources<\/a><\/p>\n

Seattle, King County, and Washington<\/a><\/h2>\n

Portland and Oregon <\/a><\/h2>\n

<\/h2>\n

Crowdfunding<\/h2>\n

<\/h2>\n

Crowdfunding is making an appeal
\nto many people to back your project. Sometimes backers may be content with a
\nsmall gift (a project t-shirt, for example); at other times they want
\nto invest and claim a portion of any profits. When you think about it,
\ncrowdfunding really isn’t new. Ancient (pre-internet) practices included “taking
\nup a collection” paying for projects “by subscription” and money raised by a
\n“public appeal.” In 1713, Alexander Pope recruited 750 subscribers to back his
\ntranslation of 15,000 lines of ancient Greek poetry into English. Backers got a
\nmention in the acknowledgements plus a copy of the finished work.<\/p>\n

What has changed is that any one project can reach a wide group of interested
\nbackers located anywhere in the world. <\/em><\/p>\n

According to the best estimates, crowdfunding sites are channeling over $34
\nbillion a year to artists of every sort and also people faced with sudden and
\nunexpected expenses. Estimates are it will grow to a $300 billion worldwide
\nindustry by 2025. There are 191 US-based crowdfunding platforms and about half
\nof all fundraising efforts reach their goals. With so much cash\u2014and passions at
\nstake\u2014practice due diligence and read the fine print very carefully.<\/p>\n

The basic strategy is: refine and focus your project and fundraising goals,
\nresearch relevant platforms, pick one, create you page, then spend lots time on
\nsocial media spreading the word and shipping rewards.<\/p>\n

Here are the major details to be
\non the lookout for:<\/p>\n

1. Fundraising Tools<\/strong><\/p>\n

To fund your project you need to get
\nyour appeal in front of people likely to support it. Some questions: How robust
\nare the platform’s Twitter and Facebook applications? Can you directly send
\nappeals from the platform via email? Is there a community of users forum on the
\nplatform where you can pose questions and learn about the experiences of other
\nusers? How good is the platform’s library of resources? Are there tools, blogs,
\nand tips for strengthening your appeal?<\/p>\n

2. Customer Support<\/strong><\/p>\n

Behind every platform are teams of
\nsupport staff and owners. Do they list a phone number or only email support?
\nWhen you call, do you get a person or recording? Is there a chat window open
\nwhen you are looking around the site? How well does the site maintain a
\nreputation of integrity by ejecting scammers?<\/p>\n

3. Crowdfunding Platform
\nFees<\/strong><\/p>\n

Most platforms charge fees. Types of fees to check for include
\nflat fees for posting an appeal, and percentage fees subtracted from funds
\nraised plus credit card processing fees (often twice what the credit card
\ncharges). It helps to understand the fees so you can explain them to potential
\ndonors. The industry range is from 7 to 12 percent.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

4. Getting the
\nMoney<\/strong><\/p>\n

Setting a goal for your
\nfundraising efforts is likely based on the detailed budget you have for the
\nproject. How much you actually will be able to raise is a guess. Does the
\nplatform require raising 100% of your goal to get any of your donations? This
\ncould be important, and if you go with a platform with this rule, you may want
\nto set a lower goal. There shouldn’t be penalty for raising more than you
\nlisted.<\/p>\n

5. Ease of
\nUse<\/strong><\/p>\n

As part of your research look over campaigns on a site. Does the
\ntypical layout make sense? Is it easy to make a donation? Do the pages look
\nprofessional and inviting? Later, when seriously considering going with a site
\nweigh the ease of setting up your page, making edits, and updating your content.
\nIf you can’t use it it’s not the site for your project.<\/p>\n

Sample Crowdfunding Sites for Theater<\/strong><\/p>\n

GoFundMe<\/p>\n

<\/strong>gofundme.com<\/a><\/p>\n

With GoFundMe, the money you collect goes directly to you. There are no deadlines or limits. GoFundMe currently limits fees to standard credit card charges plus a small fixed amount per donation.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Indiegogo<\/strong><\/p>\n

indiegogo.com <\/a><\/p>\n

Indiegogo is an international crowdfunding website founded in 2008. The site
\nwas one of the first sites to offer crowd funding and grew from the needs of the
\nfounders to fund a play, a theatre company, and research for a cure for a rare
\ndisease.<\/p>\n

There are more than 9 million backers representing 235 countries and
\nterritories who support diverse projects from around the world. Projects are not
\nevaluated or otherwise curated.<\/p>\n

Kickstarter<\/strong><\/p>\n

href=”http:\/\/kickstarter.com\/allin1″>kickstarter.com\/allin1<\/p>\n

Kickstarter helps artists, musicians, filmmakers, designers, and other
\ncreators find the resources and support they need to make their ideas a reality.
\nIn 2015, Kickstarter became a Benefit Corporation. Benefit Corporations are
\nfor-profit companies that are obligated to consider the impact of their
\ndecisions on society, not only shareholders.<\/p>\n

Patreon<\/strong><\/p>\n

href=”http:\/\/patreon.com”>patreon.com<\/p>\n

Founded in 2013, Patreon allows creatives to get regular payments by running
\na subscription membership business for their fans. Fans pay you a subscription
\namount of their choice in exchange for exclusive experiences &
\nbehind-the-scenes content. You create the terms that work for your project or
\nstream of work. On average, Patreon patrons pay more every month than people pay
\nfor other popular subscription services.<\/p>\n

Patreon allows creators to establish an ongoing and predictable monthly
\nrevenue source. Patreon also helps fans connect in a new way with the creators
\nthey love most. Through Patreon, millions of dollars every month is distributed
\nto the tens of thousands of creators who have Patreon pages, whether they are
\ncreating podcasts, music, fiction, game streams, online videos, photography,
\nvisual art, and more.<\/p>\n

Rally.org<\/strong><\/p>\n

rally.org<\/a><\/p>\n

Rally.org helps people fundraise online and build social awareness.<\/p>\n

Ulule<\/p>\n

<\/strong>European & International<\/p>\n

ulule.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Ulule enables creative, innovative and community-minded projects to test
\ntheir idea, build a community and make it grow. Ulule claims to be the leading
\nEuropean crowdfunding website, with more than 20,000 successfully financed
\nprojects, more than 1.8 million members worldwide and a campaign success rate
\nclose to 70 %. Ulule offers personalized coaching to each and every project
\nowner, before, during, and after his or her campaign.<\/p>\n

Ulule is certified as a B Corporation, which means it is a for-profit company
\nthat meets standards of social and environmental performance, accountability,
\nand transparency.<\/p>\n

National and State Grantmakers<\/h2>\n

 <\/p>\n

Foundation
\nCenter<\/p>\n

<\/strong>Main Office: Northeast – New York<\/p>\n

<\/em>32 Old Slip,
\n24th Floor<\/p>\n

New York, NY 10005-3500<\/p>\n

(212) 620-4230<\/p>\n

foundationcenter.org\/<\/a><\/p>\n

href=”http:\/\/foundationcenter.org\/products\/foundation-directory-online”>foundationcenter.org\/products\/foundation-directory-online<\/p>\n

href=”http:\/\/foundationcenter.org\/ask-us\/find-us”>oundationcenter.org\/ask-us\/find-us<\/p>\n

Foundation Center gathers and analyzes data, shares it worldwide, and
\nempowers people to understand and increase philanthropy\u2019s ability to improve the
\nworld. Its mission is to strengthen the social sector by advancing knowledge
\nabout philanthropy in the U.S. and around the world.<\/p>\n

Foundation Directory Online makes it easy to turn foundations into funders.
\nIt\u2019s the only resource you need to search for the foundations most likely to
\ngive you grants and manage your prospects through to funding. Here you can find
\ninformation about more than 100,000 grantmakers. Using the FDO requires a
\nsubscription.<\/p>\n

However, the FC\u2019s Funding Information Network distributes this important
\ninformation to communities across the country and around the world. The program
\nconsists of hundreds of community-based organizations that house and
\nprovide\u2014free of charge to the public\u2014a suite of our trainings and databases to
\ntheir local communities.<\/p>\n

FIN Locations in Idaho<\/strong><\/p>\n