TOR157: How Crowdfunding Is Shifting The Financial Landscape For The Social Sector with Jason Best

If there is any one question I get asked more than any other from professionals in the social sector, it is some variation of this: “How do I raise money for my organization, cause or program?” And, there is usually a quick follow up that goes something like, “and, how do I raise money sustainably?”

Fundraising, marketing, business development, sales… call it what you want… will always be the greatest problem for the social sector. The reason I know this is because it remains the greatest problem for any business, regardless of the sector. Getting individuals to part with their hard earned cash is never an easy prospect, whether your talking about a new pair of shoes, supporting Syrian refugees or anything in-between.

There are many good answers to this question, depending upon a number of variables, and there are actually a ton of fantastic success stories in the social sector.

But today’s episode is focused on crowdfunding and how this powerful platform can be used as a part of a successful strategy within the social sector.

My guest for the 157th Terms of Reference Podcast, Jason Best, is more than an expert on crowdfunding - he actually is one of the original authors of what eventually became the Jobs Act in the United States, a law that fundamentally changed the investment landscape by allowing crowdfunding for equity, or an ownership stake of a company. Jason is a Co-Founder of CrowdFund Capital Advisors and a Venture Partner at Vectr Ventures. He works with governments and policy makers about how to make online fundraising available, with financial technology innovators about how to create solutions that respond to opportunities created by new policies and regulations and with large institutions and corporations to understand the market shift brought about by crowdfunding.

This is an important episode where Jason and I talk about the 460 day campaign to get the Jobs Act signed into law, and how crowdfunding has fundamentally shifted how the social sector should think about fundraising now, and for the future.