How to Crowdfund $1 Million For Your Web3 Startup

When you think of startup funding, you might envision competitions that have almost no chance of winning, or solid venture capitalists that won’t be surprised by your concept. “Whoever raises millions to implement their ideas is lucky,” you might think. It sounds surprising, but a strong community can help you achieve success much faster and easier.

The explanation is simple: the less a person has to contribute or “risk,” the more likely you are to receive a contribution. In this article, I want to share some tips from my own experience that can help you engage your audience in your solution and convert them into supporters. Every sensible idea finds supporters. Believe me.

Related: Who needs venture capitalists when you can crowdfund?

1. Make sure your idea has a solution

In today’s world, no idea can be completely original, but it’s better if you can find a unique solution or significantly improve something that has already been made. How did we do it? We’ve long seen the ins and outs of working in the music industry and wanted to create something that would truly bring innovation to the space we know.

Before building the platform, we did market research. We researched whether there are already similar initiatives, what they are doing and what mistakes they have made. In addition to estimating the lifetime value of the product, we compared our idea to the needs of our target audience. It is important to understand whether our project is on a solid footing in the long term.

In our case, we’ve seen fans not included in the journey and how the number of independent artists has skyrocketed, but the ability to get funding for your projects was still limited to signing a label deal. Artists can invite their fans to be part of the journey while giving back to the community of people who have supported them along the way.

2. Show the audience a clear strategy

Be ready to tell the truth. Explain in detail how your platform works, say at least a few words about potential risks, and show how the money you raise through community power will be used to improve the project and make it more useful to that audience make. Giving people a strong reason to support you is very important.

Why am I emphasizing this so strongly? People are always reluctant to part with money when there is no obvious use for it. Once participants are clear on how their money will be used, what features they have access to, and what the ultimate goal is, a significant portion of them will be willing to help you crowdfund.

Keeping in touch with your audience isn’t just about keeping them interested, it’s also about showing how much you appreciate their ongoing support.

3. Make it easy to support you

The more clicks it takes, the less likely people are to join you. So make the funding mechanism user-friendly. It determines the stability and success of your monetization. Prepare a brief registration guide and make sure that navigating the site is easy to understand. People in 2023 value their time and expect everything they use to be convenient.

There are numerous crowdfunding platforms specifically tailored for startups or projects in the Web3 niche. Patreon, SeedInvest Technology, GoFundMe, and other similar sites are examples. I’m not going to recommend any particular platform, but I’ll share some criteria that will help you choose the most suitable tool.

First, look for a solution that integrates directly into your platform in the form of a button or direct link on the main page. Again, convenience is one of the top priorities for successful and predictable financing. Second, choose the one with the most built-in payment methods. Even the most passionate supporters of your idea can walk away if they have to make multiple transactions to pay you. Third, because there are so many fake website versions out there, don’t forget to educate your users on how to spot a rogue link or platform page.

See also: 9 steps to launching a successful crowdfunding campaign

4. Don’t forget to spread the word

When choosing the best way to share your initiative, consider which social media networks or media channels your audience uses to get ideas. Participate in networks and exhibitions. Connecting with thought leaders and others in the industry you want to enter increases your chances of success tenfold.

We played more than one instrument at the same time. We worked hard to improve our social media, pitched our idea to top journalists and regularly attended events where we could meet potential investors.

The specific marketing plan you use will depend on the market you’re trying to reach, your target audience, and the services you’re trying to offer, but the following tools will come in handy 99% of the time:

Develop your media relationships: Promotion through press releases in global and specialized media is beneficial both in the initial and mature phase of the project. You will create “hype” in the first place and increase your expertise second. Create articles for publications, comment on current events, take part in interviews and share announcements in the media and on the project website.

Use advertising services: Set up targeted ads on social networks that your primary audience trusts, use retargeting, and connect with influencers. Brand ambassadors who are thought leaders in your chosen niche add credibility to your project.

Educational content: Blockchain, Web3 and other complex topics require user training. This task can be easily accomplished with quality content: a site blog, FAQ, research, white papers, videos (both long and short, like TikToks), podcasts, AMAs, and case studies. In this case, the user interaction path with your product could be: reading a blog post, visiting a landing page, and finally requesting a demo of your product or leaving a request.

Effective social media marketing: Over time, it helps build a community of loyal brand fans. Share news, solicit feedback, introduce the team, post behind-the-scenes content, use different forms of storytelling, use memes or niche jokes, and so on. A funnel might look like this: Click on ads, subscribe to a channel, visit the website and request a demo.

Affiliate Marketing: Startup founders often don’t have enough time to advance their business, which is understandable given their other responsibilities. Because of this, outsourcing advertising or starting affiliate programs can be a good option. The latter allows you to get a predictable result at a predictable price, which is especially important in the early stages when resources are scarce.

See also: 12 key strategies for a successful crowdfunding campaign

As you can see, an idea lays the foundation for a project but does not guarantee its success. Even ideas that aren’t very original can sometimes work because the people who came up with them assessed their resources well, chose the best ways to market them, and, perhaps most importantly, didn’t give up.

My goal was to show you that angel and venture capital investors are not the only sources of multi-million dollar funding. Creativity and consistency make millions. You can design your own strategy that will ultimately produce excellent results using the resources I have provided from personal experience.