Small Business Trends | by Annie Pilon | Aug 20, 2014

When crowdfunding sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo began taking off, some thought they would make venture capitalists obsolete. That has not been the case so far. And crowdfunding sites have actually served as an opportunity for professional investors to easily find new startups to fund.

A report released last week by research firm CB Insights found that about 9 percent of the 443 hardware projects that have reached the $100,000 threshold on crowdfunding platforms have also raised venture capital.

It’s easy to see why this trend has been beneficial for venture capitalists. Thousands of projects and startups looking for funding are all gathered neatly into categories that users can browse through easily. And on top of that, they can gauge how each project might fare in the marketplace by measuring their success on crowdfunding platforms.

Peter Moran, a partner at venture firm DCM spoke about gauging interest through crowdfunding platforms with Bloomberg Businessweek:

“We consider that an extremely helpful data point about whether the public wants a device.”

Though DCM hasn’t yet invested in any projects or startups post-Kickstarter, he said it’s definitely a growing trend. He and his colleagues monitor these sites regularly for potential opportunities.

View:

• How much venture capital are Kickstarter and Indiegogo hardware projects raising

• Canadian Crowdfunding Directory

So for startups considering using crowdfunding platforms, this means there’s potential for even more funding beyond that initial campaign goal.

Certainly, there are startups that turn to crowdfunding because it allows them the freedom to run their businesses without having to answer to investors.

But for others, venture capital can simply serve as the next step in their growth process.

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The National Crowdfunding Association of Canada (NCFA Canada) is a cross-Canada crowdfunding hub providing education, advocacy and networking opportunities in the rapidly evolving crowdfunding industry. NCFA Canada is a community-based, membership-driven entity that was formed at the grass roots level to fill a national need in the market place. Join our growing network of industry stakeholders, fundraisers and investors. Increase your organization’s profile and gain access to a dynamic group of industry front runners. Learn more About Us | About Crowdfunding or contact us at casano@ncfacanada.org.