Crowdfunding should we “follow the

herd”?

www.adrianashton.co.uk

Some opening words of reassurance about me...

• Part of world’s first collaborative crowd-funding campaign: #calderdalerising

• Managed (and grew) social enterprise loan fund

• Train other enterprise advisors on how to support clients develop financial models

• Approved provider within national social finance & growth programmes

social enterprise “specials”(aka ‘social investment/finance’)

CDFI

Quasi-equity

Community shares

Social impact bonds

Loan stock

'In-kind'

crowd-funding

Adrian Ashtn

What do you need the cash for? Dealing with failure

('rebooting' the business)

fashion/credibility

Validation (reassuring yourself)

Set-up

Development

Working capital

Crowdfunding – the reality

Adrian Ashtn

http://www.nesta.org.uk/blog/understanding-alternative-finance

Crowdfunding – the reality

Adrian Ashtn

http://www.nesta.org.uk/blog/understanding-alternative-finance

Crowdfunding – is it right for you?• What’s your story?• What’s your reach?• What’s your offer?• How would you use an army of ambassadors?

• ‘biggest hits’ = games and tech • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/

List_of_highest_funded_crowdfunding_projects

Adrian Ashtn

the rise of ‘pick n mix’

Hybrid – part banks and part crowd sourced

Community shares temporarily underwritten by CDFI

Adrian Ashton

• Although most know about it, few use it

• Widespread lack of skills and knowledge about how to do it

• Offers more freedom to define projects and services on groups own terms

• Growing intention to use it in coming year

“Try everything once apart from incest and murder”

- attr. Oscar Wilde