Crowdfunding Australia – Is Your Idea Or Business Crowdfunding Ready?

So you’ve got a unique business idea that you want to validate and realise into reality! The next step is to make it suitable for crowdfunding in Australia, where many factors need to come together powerfully to give your crowdfunding project its greatest chances for success. 

At Lift Women, we are passionate about making crowdfunding in Australia as accessible and as successful a funding option as possible for women. In this article, we share the 5 key things we guide our Lift Angels™ members through to ensure their project is crowdfunding-ready.

Your checklist for success in crowdfunding in Australia

First, what is Lift Angels™?

Lift Angels™ is our shared-value community of founders and backers who are passionate about inspiring, elevating and funding female entrepreneurs. 

50% of annual membership fees are reinvested back into this mission via our Pay-It-Forward Fund which is distributed as additional funding for live crowdfunding projects on the Lift Women platform. By reinvesting profits, we propel a circular funding ecosystem to support female entrepreneurship.  

Our Lift Angels™ members benefit from:

• access to synergistic relationships including with potential mentors and investors
• valuable opportunities to increase the exposure and visibility of their businesses
• exclusive access to free copywriting services to ensure their project pitch is well-written and engaging
• invitations to member-only events and masterclasses for networking and skill development.

Q1: Does my idea or business solve a real problem people have?

Let’s start at the very beginning — your business should be able to solve a real problem and provide a real solution. 

The process of writing your unique value proposition ensures that there is a measurable need for your business and that people are willing to pay for it.

Your UVP communicates how your product or service helps the customer and why it is different from the rest; it is essentially convincing customers why they should buy from you! 

Your UVP should be one of the first things potential backers read on your crowdfunding page — and it should also feature prominently on your website, social media channels and any marketing collateral. 

Wondering what the difference is between your UVP and mission statement? While your UVP is more product and service-focussed, your mission statement is more goal-oriented. 

As an example, Uber’s UVP is, “Uber is the smartest way to get around. One tap and a car comes directly to you. Your driver knows exactly where to go. And payment is completely cashless.” 

Q2: What is the goal of my crowdfunding campaign?

Part of getting your idea ready for crowdfunding in Australia involves being 100% clear on:

• why you are raising funds; what is the objective of your crowdfunding campaign and how does it ladder up to your business’ mission and vision?
• how much you need to raise; be realistic in the amount while ensuring that it covers the scope of your project
• what you will use the money for; clearly outline the allocation of funds with an itemised breakdown and even a timeline if necessary.

All of this needs to be transparently communicated to potential backers and investors to build trust and demonstrate accountability.

Q3: Can I easily explain it to others in 1 to 2 minutes?

When building a campaign for crowdfunding in Australia, you should be able to explain your business in a few sentences, without being too in-depth or technical; this can also be called your elevator pitch!

How you communicate your business idea is pivotal in rallying support because if your potential customer doesn’t understand what you’re doing in the first place, how can they buy into it (literally and figuratively-speaking)? 

At Lift Women, we see female entrepreneurs who are so passionate and deeply involved with their businesses that they struggle to succinctly articulate it in layperson’s terms. We offer free 30-minute consultations with our platform experts where we can help you workshop your elevator pitch as part of helping you best use Lift Women to achieve your business goals.

If you’re seeking more tailored or in-depth assistance, consider joining our Lift Angels™ community to have access to complimentary copywriting services (and much more) so that our resident writer can help refine your brand communications.

Q4: Does my business idea have strong emotional appeal?

The best campaigns that are successful at crowdfunding in Australia are often the ones that deeply connect with people, whether through the actual mission and vision or through the way you tell your business story. 

You can find out if your business idea is emotionally engaging simply by speaking about it with trusted friends and family members. Take note of what they latch onto and want to hear more about, while also explicitly seeking their honest feedback on whether and how the project resonates with them emotionally. 

As mentioned above, we provide complimentary copywriting services to our Lift Angels™ community to help them craft the most effective pitch possible that both articulates the offering and objectives and evokes emotions to captivate potential backers. 

Q5: Am I truly dedicated to bringing my idea to life?

This last question is the most critical question to ask yourself. 

If you’re not passionate about your idea and willing to spend time on it, then crowdfunding may not be for you. A successful venture requires inordinate amounts of time, energy and resources, potentially including financial resources. If you aren’t willing to go all-in, then consider if this project would make a good side hustle!

Additionally, people can see and feel your passion from what you write and present in your project page. As the saying goes, people don’t buy your business, they buy you; if you are coming to your crowdfunding project with lacklustre energy, potential backers and investors will notice so be sure you really love what you are doing and are committed to solving the problem that you’ve identified.

Set up for success in crowdfunding in Australia!

Crowdfunding is an increasingly popular form of funding for business and while the benefits are abundant, the process does require your smart preparation and dedication. By being honest with yourself on the above questions, you are setting your campaign up for success. And remember that at Lift Women, we want to be your safe go-to platform to connect, back each other up and cheer each other on so if don’t hesitate to book your free 30-minute consultation and get the most out of your experience.