What is FundaGeek?

FundaGeek is the first crowdfunding platform designed expressly for technical innovation – commercial projects based on technology, scientific research projects at universities and research institutions, inventions, education, outreach and community support. FundaGeek is designed for securing funding for these projects without giving up equity interest and without incurring debt. Funding is provided via micro-pledges through use of social media in return for rewards.

FundaGeek is part of a new trend of tapping into the power of crowds. Crowdsourcing has become popular in many areas of business, so it is a natural progression to make its way into funding new ventures, especially those based on technology.

Many excellent technical ideas never become a reality because the odds of obtaining funding from a traditional Angel investor, venture capitalist or lending institution are like hitting the lottery. Going to “friends and family” as sources of seed capital may not be an option for you, and maxing out your credit cards is just a bad idea.

If you have a compelling technical idea, you can post a project on FundaGeek for free and anyone, anywhere in the world, can pledge money to support it. We accept projects from all areas of technology – computer software/hardware, web services, bio-tech, inventions, renewable energy, robotics, smart phone apps, etc.

Why FundaGeek?

We feel the timing is perfect for a new funding paradigm like FundaGeek. The Great Recession has tightened credit sources and restricted the flow of traditional venture investing. Many great technology ideas are not moving forward due to lack of funding. Over the past few years, this means the world has undergone a period of “innovation atrophy.” We hope to break this unfortunate trend and get the ideas flowing again by – engaging technical innovation, starting new businesses and creating jobs. In a small way, we hope that FundaGeek will help turn around the global economy.

The Concept

Crowdfunding is a rapidly emerging phenomenon that combines small online contributions (“micropledges”) from many individuals who want to support a project. Crowdfunding circumvents traditional funding mechanisms such as bank loans, venture capital and individual investors for obtaining early-stage financing. Anyone can make online monetary pledges in return for a reward or as a donation just because they’re excited about the project. The major benefit is that project backers do not expect to be paid back or receive any ownership interest in the project, nor are project owners shackled with onerous State, Federal or International regulations in the process.

One important characteristic of crowdfunding is the “all or nothing” approach in determining which projects get funded. In order for a project to be funded, it must meet or exceed the goal amount as specified by the project owner. This guarantees that a project is properly funded and has a good likelihood of being completed. This is the approach used for commercial technology projects, but for basic research projects it works a bit differently. At the end of the campaign period, scientific research projects receive whatever funding the project has attracted up to that point. This difference in approach is due to the fact that a research project, at a university for example, may be on-going like in cancer research, so an end result like a commercial product or service is less well-defined for research projects. In addition, basic research is generally considered not-for-profit.

FundaGeek also includes in the "research" classification, all projects for non-profit organizations, education, outreach and community support.

How it Works for Backers

If you are looking for a project to support, simply create a FundaGeek member account and search our project catalog for interesting projects that match your areas of interest. You can search by category and/or keyword. Once you find a project that you may be interested in backing, you should review the project profile carefully to make sure it’s right for you. We encourage you to verify everything for yourself so you feel confident the project is viable. If you decide to back the project, simply click on the Pledge button on the Project Detail page to make your payment. You will not be charged until the end of the campaign period. You can back as many projects as you wish. The project owner will contact you about reward fulfillment.

How it Works for Commercial Project Owners

If you are seeking funding for your project, then you can follow the process for Project Owners. Start by creating a FundaGeek member account and be sure to complete your member profile in full. Potential backers want to know all about you so they’ll feel comfortable supporting your project. To create your new project, just use the New Project Wizard process to enter your basic project profile information.

You will likely need to revise your profile several times in order to come up with the most compelling story that will attract backers. Show your passion, and make your project come alive and scream - “This is a great idea!” Make references to images, videos, recordings, and anything else you can think of that supports your case. Answer who, what, when, where, why and most importantly how. Give people a reason to want to see your project funded. You can return to edit your Member or Project Profiles as often as you’d like through the My Account menu option on the Main Menu which appears after you’ve Logged In.

Once you’re happy with your project profile, you must submit it to us for approval. The approval process is a manual one that involves a thorough review of all details of your project. We may choose to contact you directly with questions we might have. We may also provide you with useful suggestions to better maximize attraction by backers. Approval usually takes only a day or two. Once your project has been approved, it becomes visible to other members (or to the public at large if you specified “Public” view) and backers can then submit pledges. It is now time to aggressively work your social network to drive potential backers to your project and to encourage them to share your project with their social network.

At the end of your campaign period, if you’ve managed to attract enough pledges to meet or exceed your goal amount, then you get your funding.

How it Works for Research Project Owners

FundaGeek is the perfect adjunct to your research program’s current and ongoing fund raising activities. With the tightening of fiscal budgets everywhere and fierce competition for the shrinking availability of grants, FundaGeek is an opportunity to expand your program’s funding reach to an international private funding source, the crowd.

The process for creating and submitting your project for research is the same as a project for a commercial technical project. However, there is one difference that comes at the end of the funding period. Recognizing that every dollar donated in support of research furthers the goals and objectives, we do not apply the “all or nothing” rule for research Projects. ALL pledges that have been made for your research project will be processed by PayPal and the net proceeds distributed to your PayPal account. We also encourage you to re-submit your research project after its successful campaign and continue your funding efforts for another new funding period.