Raise Money: The $100 Million Funding Secret

via inc.com

I often help entrepreneurs raise money from investors. I'm not a venture capitalist or investment banker, but I have raised millions of dollars for companies I've started, so I know what works.

A few years ago, some technology company founders I was mentoring asked me to come with them to their investor pitch. I helped them get the presentation fine tuned and ready. But we never got to the presentation. Five minutes into the introductions, the lead investor stood up and said: "We don't do technology investments, why are you even here?"

How could this happen, you ask? I did too. But here's the No. 1 rule of working with investors that this company, and so many others, failed to follow: Do your homework.

Posted via email from Create | Inspire - DM2 Studios

Here's How Many Kickstarter Projects Are Successfully Funded

via businessinsider.com

More and more people are posting projects on Kickstarter, hoping to get their business ideas funded by peers.

But that doesn't mean their ideas are finding any more success on the crowdfunding site.
In the past six months, the amount of Kickstarter projects posted has grown 50% to 76,909, GigaOm reports.

Less than half of the projects -- 44% according to a Kickstarter spokesperson -- have successfully meet their monetary goals. And on Kickstarter, it's an all or nothing deal. If posters don't raise the full amount of money they're seeking, they don't see a dime.

When you think about it, 44% is actually a pretty high success rate. The average fundraising on Kickstarter is between $1,000 and $10,000, so it's no small amount of cash that's being swapped between strangers.

Posted via email from Create | Inspire - DM2 Studios

Kickstarter lays down strict new rules for creators

via technologytell.com

Kickstarter has exploded in popularity in the past year. It has become the go-to place for companies or individuals to showcase ideas for products and services they hope will become a reality. Backers are led to believe it only takes the right amount of money to turn an idea into an actual product, but it’s much more difficult than that. Kickstarter wants the public to know that Kickstarter is not a store where they can buy products that aren’t found anywhere else. To accomplish this, Kickstarter has created new guidelines for creators that are effective immediately.

Posted via email from Inspiration

How To Set Up A Trust Fund If You're Not Rich

via forbes.com

If you’ve heard of trust funds but don’t know what they are or how they work, you’re not alone. For a large amount of people, they may know one key fact about trust funds: They’re set up by the ultra-wealthy as a way to give to their family, friends or entities after they pass away. But only part of the conventional wisdom is true. Trust funds are designed to allow a person’s money to continue to be useful well after they pass away, but trusts aren’t only reserved for ultra-high net worth individuals. Middle class citizens have the ability to set up trust funds too.

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Bill Gates Donates $750 Million to Global Fund

via nytimes.com

The donation was made as a promissory note intended to tide the fund over regular cash shortages.

Mr. Gates, who made the announcement at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, said tough economic times were “no excuse for cutting aid to the world’s poorest,” and called the fund one of the “most effective” entities to which the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation donates.

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How to Get Crowdfunding for Your Small Business

via openforum.com

Now there's a Kickstarter for small business.

New York City-based Lucky Ant launched Jan. 2, hoping to link small businesses with their neighborhoods (and, of course, make some money in the process). In exchange for funding for improvement projects at local businesses—the site will feature one per week—users receive loyalty rewards and other perks.

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