By Natasha T. Brown
This week, BlackStartup.com, a new crowdfunding platform for ideas and projects benefitting the African American community will launch. Created by a group of six professionals who met as Omega Psi Phi Fraternity brothers at Morehouse College, BlackStartup.com looks to attract more minorities to crowdfunding. Similar sites such as Kickstarter.com and Indiegogo.com raised more than $2.7 billion for members of the public in 2012.
“One of the biggest challenges in the African American business and non-profit community is finding the resources to fund projects. We don’t participate on crowdfunding web sites at high levels, and access to capital is a larger problem in minority than non-minority communities, “said BlackStartup.com CEO Nathan Bennett Fleming. The Black Startup team is a group of professionals that have complementary skills in business, law, entrepreneurship and technology. There are three lawyers, PR/communication professionals, and more who comprise its leadership.
“We hope to use the collective knowledge of our team. And we plan to establish partnerships with on-ground resources to connect with entrepreneurs,” Fleming said. “We will have a library of webinars, online videos and articles that will help with the startup and design of a company.”
BlackStartup.com is the recipient of the prestigious Yale Entrepreneurial Institute (YEI) Fellowship, which according to a press release, is the first black-owned business to win the prestigious award. This translates to $20,000 in seed funding, access to top business mentors, and a 10-week business boot camp in which BlackStartup leaders will participate.
“The Fellowship will allow us to accelerate our venture to a level that we would not have been able to reach without the support and resources that are coming from Yale University,” said Fleming.
So what does this mean for you?
Like most crowdfunding sites, BlackStartup.com is fairly simple to operate. It provides fund seekers with the technology to communicate with and engage target audiences in fundraising efforts. Like its predecessors, BlackStartup.com has an all or nothing policy, which means that entrepreneurs must meet their full project funding goals or funds will not be deducted from donors’ accounts.
To be successful in crowdfunding, Fleming recommends that the project manager be excited and able to engage donors. Begin with a reasonable and achievable goal, think of incentives for donors who contribute to your project, and make your audience feel a part of the campaign. If you’re trying to fund a music project, for example, offer free downloads for donors who give at a certain level.
To learn more about BlackStartup visit www.blackstartup.com. The company is launching into its alpha phase testing version of the platform this month, however entrepreneurs are encouraged to begin fundraising. Follow BlackStartup.com on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Natasha Brown is a writer and founding communications strategist of Think Brown INK, a creative think tank and communications agency, focused on social responsibility branding for artists, entertainers and entrepreneurs. Follow her on Twitter @NBrownINK or @TBINatasha or her company @ThinkBrownINK.