(Press-News.org) Contact information: Jerry Barach
jerryb@savion.huji.ac.il
972-258-82904
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
How best to go about getting seed money through crowdfunding
It can be by touting yourself, Hebrew University research shows
Jerusalem, January 1, 2014 --- Early on in our careers, many of us were tutored as to how to best write an effective and attention-getting curriculum vitae (CV) in looking for a job. But in today's world, many are looking not for just a job, but are engaged in wide, often Internet-based searches for seed money to launch entrepreneurial ventures of one sort of another. But what guidelines exist as to the best way to go about securing this kind of funding?
To look into this issue and provide some answers, an extensive research project was launched at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, in which the researchers sought to resolve these questions: Are prospective investors being influenced in their investment decisions by the entrepreneurs' description? Should entrepreneurs focus their business pitches on themselves or on their projects?
The answer, for some fund seekers, is: don't hesitate to boost yourself
The research on the issue was carried out by Prof. Orly Sade and her graduate student Dan Marom of the Jerusalem School of Business Administration at the Hebrew University.
Securing seed funding is one of the biggest challenges for any entrepreneur, notes Prof. Sade. When pitching the initiative to investors, there are various methods the entrepreneur can call upon in order to convince the investor to fund the project. Most notably, the entrepreneur may decide to place the emphasis of the pitch on the business idea. Alternatively, the entrepreneur may center the presentation on his personage, calling upon his name, resume, or past accomplishments.
Sade and Marom's research empirically investigated the importance of the entrepreneurs' description in the early investment pitches of more than 20,000 fundraising efforts, conducted by various entrepreneurs through a leading, US-based crowdfunding platform -- Kickstarter.
Using custom software to collect the investigated data, they amassed a database from Kickstarter consisting of 4,304 ongoing projects, 16,641 successful projects, 4,128 failed projects, 22,274 entrepreneurs, 1,108,233 investors, and investments that sum up to more than $120 million. The period investigated in the project was from the inception of Kickstarter, in April 2009, up until March 2012.
Focusing on the frequency of the mention of the entrepreneur's name in the funding applications, the researchers found that this factor was significantly higher in the applications involving "artistic" projects (those ventures involving such areas as entertainment, food, music, fashion and others) than in the technological category. Further, they found, that this emphasis on the entrepreneur was directly related to the probability of success in securing seed funding in the artistic category.
"In an era in which crowdfunding is a growing source of venture capital (more than $2.7 billion was raised in the US in this manner in 2012), it is important for academics, investors and those seeking funds, to have a basis for aiming their pitches in the most effective manner," said Sade.
INFORMATION:
The paper on the groundbreaking research of Sade and Marom has been presented at conferences in Spain, Norway, Holland, Israel and the US, and will be presented again by Sade on Jan. 4 at the annual meeting of the Association of Financial Economists in Philadelphia.
How best to go about getting seed money through crowdfunding
It can be by touting yourself, Hebrew University research shows
2014-01-02
ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:
Earthquake lights linked to rift environments, subvertical faults
2014-01-02
Earthquake lights linked to rift environments, subvertical faults
SAN FRANCISCO – Rare earthquake lights are more likely to occur on or near rift environments, where subvertical faults allow stress-induced electrical currents to flow rapidly to the ...
Longmanshen fault zone still hazardous, suggest new reports
2014-01-02
Longmanshen fault zone still hazardous, suggest new reports
Seismological Research Letters publishes special issue on 2013 Lushan, China earthquake
SAN FRANCISCO – The 60-kilometer segment of the fault northeast of the 2013 Lushan rupture is the place ...
Jumping DNA in the brain may be a cause of schizophrenia
2014-01-02
Jumping DNA in the brain may be a cause of schizophrenia
Stretches of DNA called retrotransposons, often dubbed "junk DNA", might play an important role in schizophrenia. In a study published today in the journal Neuron, a Japanese team revealed that LINE-1 retrotransposons are abnormally ...
Roses are red -- why some petunias are blue
2014-01-02
Roses are red -- why some petunias are blue
Researchers have uncovered the secret recipe to making some petunias such a rare shade of blue. The findings may help to explain and manipulate the color of other ornamental flowers, not to mention the taste of fruits and wine, say ...
Plant used in Chinese medicine fights chronic pain
2014-01-02
Plant used in Chinese medicine fights chronic pain
A plant used for centuries as a pain reliever in Chinese medicine may be just what the doctor ordered, especially when it comes to chronic pain. A key pain-relieving ingredient is a compound known as dehydrocorybulbine (DHCB) ...
JCI early table of contents for Jan. 2, 2014
2014-01-02
JCI early table of contents for Jan. 2, 2014
Opioid tolerance and pain hypersensitivity associated with mTOR activation
Currently, opioids are the standard treatment for chronic pain. Patients on opioids for long periods of time become desensitized to ...
Opioid tolerance and pain hypersensitivity associated with mTOR activation
2014-01-02
Opioid tolerance and pain hypersensitivity associated with mTOR activation
Currently, opioids are the standard treatment for chronic pain. Patients on opioids for long periods of time become desensitized to these drugs or become paradoxically hypersensitive ...
Doxorubicin-associated mitochondrial iron accumulation promotes cardiotoxicity
2014-01-02
Doxorubicin-associated mitochondrial iron accumulation promotes cardiotoxicity
Doxorubicin is a widely used as a component of chemotherapy regimes; however, the use of doxorubicin is associated with severe cardiotoxicity. It is unclear exactly how doxorubicin ...
Biologists discover solution to problem limiting development of human stem cell therapies
2014-01-02
Biologists discover solution to problem limiting development of human stem cell therapies
Biologists at UC San Diego have discovered an effective strategy that could prevent the human immune system from rejecting the grafts derived from human embryonic ...
Study on pregnancy and alcohol fails to take psychological factors into account
2014-01-02
Study on pregnancy and alcohol fails to take psychological factors into account
"It is OK to drink a little bit of alcohol during pregnancy" or "a pregnant woman should not touch alcohol at all during her pregnancy". These statements represent the ...
LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:
Brian Cleary awarded $2.25 million NIH grant to advance single-cell gene expression research
Gut parasites identified from feces of ancient Mexican people
Remission achievable for 1 in 3 Indian diabetics through intensive app-based lifestyle program
Idiopathic hypersomnia is a rare disease of excessive sleepiness, with patients revealing they never feel rested or awake no matter how much sleep they get, in analysis of online posts
Backyard birders in South Africa may continue to enjoy biodiversity in visiting birds under climate change scenarios, while climate change and declining biodiversity may decrease birding in protected
Ingestible pill developed to diagnose intestinal disorder
‘Chronic lung-transplant rejection has been a black box.’ New study gives answers, drug targets.
Neutrino experiments in US and Japan join forces
Hunting for the chromosomal genes that break the heart
Trial enrollment and survival disparities among patients with advanced epithelial ovarian carcinoma
Adverse pregnancy outcomes and long-term risk of atrial fibrillation
Study: Dangerous E. coli strain blocks gut’s defense mechanism to spread infection
No benefit of ketamine for patients hospitalised with depression, clinical trial reports
Ants use a genetic 'bulldozer' to achieve a hyper-specific sense of smell
Scientists pinpoint a key gene behind heart defects in Down syndrome
$6.2M grant will launch UC San Diego REACH Center for Translational Science on Whole Person Health
Bay Area Lyme Foundation opens applications for 2026 Emerging Leader Awards and research grants
A new post-processing route to improve tensile strength and ductility in 3d-printed alloys
JMIR Publications’ Journal of Medical Internet Research invites submissions on Navigating AI-Enabled Uncertainty
Small changes in alcohol intake linked to blood pressure shifts
Natural Japanese and Taiwanese hinoki cypresses genetically differentiated 1 million years ago
GemPharmatech announces research collaboration with leading cancer center to advance antibody discovery
Deciding whether a breathing tube is best for a child
A ‘dead’ 1800s idea rises again... with clues to the mystery of the universe’s missing antimatter
Roboticists reverse engineer zebrafish navigation
FAU historian traces the transformation of U.S. nursing homes into big business
CABI study reveals major inequalities in global One Health research
Reptiles ‘pee’ crystals, and scientists are investigating what they’re made of
Drug prevents congenital heart block recurrence in a high-risk pregnancy
Wiley announces winners of Advanced Science Young Innovator Award
[Press-News.org] How best to go about getting seed money through crowdfundingIt can be by touting yourself, Hebrew University research shows