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The Crowdfund Your Dream Roadmap
10 Steps to Fund Your Dream
Join hundreds of diverse founders and download our 10-step guide to funding your business!
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Raise startup funding for your business on your own terms — without venture capital money.
In my 15+years of business experience, I’ve found that…
Principle #1
Every founder and organization has a story to tell.
Every business makes a unique contribution to the world. What problem do you solve and how do you solve it? If you can craft a compelling story, package it up, and share it with people with a call to action, you can turn a crowd into an engine powering your dream.
Principle #2
A fundraiser is a unique opportunity to share your organization’s story and build community around your work.
A fundraiser isn’t a transactional exercise. Rather, it’s an opportunity to share your story with people and build community around your work. The dollars come as a result of people being inspired enough by your vision to back you.
Principle #3
There are infinite ways to raise money for your business.
While grants and venture capital get a lot of street cred, there are many more ways to raise money for your business. Using basic principles of communications, marketing and fundraising, you can put yourself in the driver’s seat and take control of your future. You needn’t wait for someone else to greenlight your dream when you can greenlight yourself.
Principle #4
Diverse founders need culturally-responsive fundraising strategies to be successful.
The wealth gap, lending gap, and VC funding gap for women and diverse founders have been well documented. That means you’ve got to get creative to overcome institutional challenges when it comes to startup fundraising. Leaning into your culture factor and the community you serve is at the center of a successful fundraising strategy. Work with us and we’ll show you how!
This is for you
if...
You’re a founder looking to raise debt-free funding for your business
You’re seeking alternatives to venture capital and traditional financing
You’re interested in proving demand for your product or service before you invest in supply; or you’ve already proven demand, and need to raise money to grow / build capacity for your business
You’ve been “fumestrapping,” ie, bootstrapping with little to no cash flow
You need a fundraising guide to increase your chances of success
You’re ready to work SMARTER, not HARDER
Here's What People Are Saying:
Laurie
filmmaker, memorial endowment fundraising chair
We met our $200K goal and then some! I gained a whole new skill set, one that I can see applying to filmmaking or any project in the future. This was a confidence game-changer. Thanks so much for your generosity, your time, and your wise counsel.
Iquo B. Essien
With a Bachelor’s degree from Stanford, I got my start in global communications and marketing at nonprofits, startups, and Fortune 500 companies.
Driven to combine my passion for social change and the arts, I earned my MFA in film and launched a consulting career providing storytelling, marketing, and fundraising strategy.
Drawing on 15+ years of experience, I founded Crowdfund Your Dream to teach mission-driven diverse founders how to tell their stories, market their businesses, and raise up to $500K to fund their dreams, by leaning into their culture factor and the communities they serve.
I’ve helped founders raise $300K+. And I’ve learned that when you craft a powerful story, package it up, and share it with people with a call to action, you can turn a crowd into an engine powering your dream. This fundraising roadmap will get you started.
