There are numerous universities and academic institutions across the world that today have constrained budgets for doing research. Cuts in regular grants from governments, loss of sponsorships, and the tightening of other traditional funding avenues have had researchers and academics at a crossroads. The challenges of limited research funding are pushing them to explore alternative funding options like crowdfunding research. It opens up possibilities for researchers to access financial resources to pursue their research work in the face of limited opportunities available.
Crowdfunding vs Traditional research funding sources
The traditional research funding sources are typically government and non-governmental funding agencies. It is widely known that securing grants from funding agencies is a long drawn process that takes a considerable amount of time. The success rate in securing funding is also relatively low. In contrast, crowdfunding research is gaining increasing popularity as it helps in securing funds very quickly. Innovative and even unconventional ideas tend to secure finance through crowdfunding.
There are, of course, various types of crowdfunding that have increasing relevance for research projects. For example, through crowd funding that is reward-based, supporters can contribute to individuals or organizations for creative projects in return for non-monetary rewards. These can be in the form of credits on covers, products, or services. Such crowd funding is also a valuable marketing tool. In donation- based crowd funding, a large number of crowdfunding supporters are requested to provide small donations individually. In return, the contributors will receive rewards commensurate with the size of the donations.
Pros and cons of crowdfunding research projects
Crowdfunding has emerged as a popular alternative funding option for research projects in recent years. However, like any other financing option, crowdfunding has its own set of pros and cons. Let’s discuss these in detail.
Pros:
- Crowdfunding allows for obtaining finance quickly compared to the time-consuming traditional funding process.
- Research ideas that may not receive support from traditional funders can secure funding through crowdfunding, thus providing greater independence in research.
- Crowdfunding has the potential to attract media interest and draw public attention to the research, leading to valuable feedback.
- Crowdfunding can serve as a useful marketing tool for researchers to promote their work, despite the nominal upfront fee associated with it.
Cons
- Researchers need to market their ideas aggressively
- Funding is required for social media campaigns, which consumes a lot of time
- There is uncertainty with regard to securing funds. Researchers are typically unable to arrive at an initial realistic estimate of how much money they can secure
- If the funding target is not met, researchers may end up returning the funds that were pledged. There is little or no guarantee of investor protection in case of failures.
- Failure to secure funds can reflect poorly on the researcher’s reputation
Key considerations for crowdfunding success
Achieving success with crowdfunding requires more than just creating a campaign and waiting for the funds to pour in. Let’s discuss some essential elements that researchers must include in their crowdfunding campaign to increase the chances of securing funds.
- Crafting a compelling research narrative: In order to captivate the interest of potential crowd funders, you need to develop a persuasive research narrative. Make sure that you do a thorough study of your audience and build your narrative, taking into consideration the audience’s interest as well. It is essential to state in the beginning what your project is all about, its objective and significance, why people should be interested in it, and the amount of funding that is required. Further, you need to provide details about yourself, your interests, passions, skill sets, and so on. Ensure that you substantiate with supporting evidence and examples. Rewards in terms of products or services need to be provided for those who wish to finance.
- Setting realistic funding goals and budget: Your goals and budget must be clear and practical. Setting realistic goals will win the trust and interest of potential crowd funders. While preparing the budget, you need to factor in all your costs, including that of research, campaigns, rewards, post-campaign costs, etc. It is helpful to understand the market, how much funders will be willing to pay, and so on before finalizing your budget. It is always critical to keep a reasonable budget.
- Developing enticing rewards or perks for backers: In order to incentivize backers, researchers need to create enticing rewards or perks. This will also depend on the size of the donations. The rewards need to be stated clearly in the beginning itself. Make it simple but unique and relevant to your study.
How to navigate challenges and mitigate risks?
Crowdfunding is not without its challenges and risks. In this section, we will explore some of the key considerations that should be kept in mind while engaging in crowdfunding research.
- Addressing ethical considerations and conflicts of interest: While engaging in crowdfunding research to raise finances, it is crucial to understand ethical concerns and conflicts of interest that may be involved. For example, there have been various instances of fraudulent platforms and campaigns in the context of crowdfunding research. Misuse of funds is yet another critical concern. At times, personal information of the researcher or beneficiaries may be revealed, and this could have adverse effects on them. Rules and mechanisms to prevent any conflicts of interest as set by the service provider or regulator should be strictly complied with.
- Implementing effective communication and engagement strategies: To encourage backers to invest in your project, you need to develop and implement effective communication and engagement strategies. Setting timelines for pre-launch, launch phase, and post-launch, creating a solid and persuasive proposal, marketing, aggressive use of social media, and so on can be considered.
- Preparing for the possibility of not meeting funding goals: This factor needs to be kept in mind while engaging in crowdfunding. The best option is to set realistic budgets by evaluating the costs and a close study of the market.
While crowdfunding is a creative and valuable mode for fund raising in research, it is also important to explore alternative funding avenues to advance your work. When you opt for crowdfunding, as discussed above, make sure that you have a well-planned and executed campaign in place to enhance your success rate in raising the required finance.
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