Anyone and everyone who is interested in this new crowdfunding industry should attend the Crowdfunding Bootcamp 2013: 2nd Annual Global Crowdfunding Convention and Bootcamp October 14-16th in Las Vegas. Designed for portals, startups, entrepreneurs, companies, investors, and service providers; the three days are packed with inspirational and practical education plus networking opportunities.
Education, Education, Education
Education is the key to the success of Equity Crowdfunding. Even though equity crowdfunding under the JOBS Act, passed in April 2012, is not legal until the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) promulgates the rules, companies can learn how to become compliant and fill the pipeline with qualified companies now. The recent release of the SEC rules for other parts of the JOBS Act have re-energized the industry.
In order to get started, companies interested in crowdfunding should start learning the requirements and understand the landscape. Many of the requirements are good practices for any business and necessary for accessing capital, regardless of the source. Best practices from portals, broker/dealers, service providers, and entrepreneurs will be shared at the Bootcamp, allowing for discussions and synergistic learning from industry leaders from in and outside the US.
Learning and Connections
The 2012 Bootcamp was a ground breaking gathering of the who’s who in the then nascent industry. The 2013 bootcamp builds on last year’s well attended event and expands to be global. The Funding Portal PavilionTM is back and the event will also feature a “Crowdfunding Expo Showcase†and “Crowdfunding Expo Marketplace†in addition to the workshops that provide hands-on access to industry leaders.
Jay Abraham, leading marketing strategist and business innovator, is a keynote speaker. Jay’s comments on crowdfunding’s possibilities, “ …maybe an epic turning point in the history of entrepreneurship…,†sets the tone for the potential of the bootcamp and industry.
Getting Compliant
There are minimum requirements that startup and emerging business owners will need to fulfill in order to be admitted to online funding portals. For example, entrepreneurs or “Issuers†need to be completely prepared in the areas of having a plan for their business, along with legal, financial, marketing and social network capital, thus meeting the mandated requirements for registration with the SEC.
The sooner entrepreneurs start the preparation of completing the mandatory requirements for their online campaigns, the sooner they will have a competitive advantage to compete for capital formation from the “Crowdâ€.
Entrepreneurs who are ready and take the appropriate steps towards building an effective and compliant Crowdfunding campaign will be able to quickly onboard to a registered funding portal, showcasing their business for the huge ground swell of investment capital that is projected to flood the crowdfund investing marketplace later in 2013. Getting complaint is a process that will be explored in depth in October.
Crowd is Key
The UK and Australia have experience in equity crowdfunding. Lessons learned suggest that building this crowd is a critical step. Providing education is a method to increase the crowd. Thought leadership or content creation can produce a good following on social media sites. Not only will the Bootcamp be educational but also the networking opportunities will help with building a crowd.
Content
Giving information and content in your field, creates loyal followers whether on a blog, Facebook, or twitter. Prior to launching a campaign, building social capital is almost as important as becoming compliant. Several workshops will focus on building this skills set. Again this takes time so it is critical to get started now.
In summary, entrepreneurs must educate themselves on what it takes to be compliant, grow the crowd, and prepare and launch campaigns. There is no better way than attending the Crowdfunding Bootcamp 2013!
Register today at for the 2nd Annual Global Crowdfunding Convention and Bootcamp here.