Crowdfunding is a popular way to help startups get seed and capital funds from a large number of small donors. The challenge can be reaching and convincing strangers of the value of your product or service. That is one of the reasons for the launching of The Local Crowd (TLC) Monadnock, a crowdfunding platform for individuals, businesses and organizations, based in Keene, Chesterfield, Hinsdale, Swanzey and Winchester, that are looking for funding.
In 2015, the National Small Business Association noted that 27 percent of small businesses were unable to access capital to fund the growth of their business as traditional lenders reject 80 percent of small business loan applications. Closer to home, the NH Small Business Development Center (NH SBDC) says 45 percent of businesses they work with are looking for capital at any given time.
“Often these companies are not quite ready for conventional financing, or need only a small amount of debt or equity leveraged by their own personal investment to start or grow the business,” says Nancy DuBosque from the Keene office of the NH SBDC. “We see entrepreneurs struggle to financially bootstrap their business at these early stages, or fail to grow in the absence of sources of flexible and smaller capital investments.”
The TLC Monadnock crowdfunding platform is hosted by The Southwest Regional Planning Commission, and managed by a team of community and business leaders from Monadnock Buy Local, the NH Small Business Development Center, the Greater Keene Chamber of Commerce, the Monadnock Economic Development Corporation and the Hannah Grimes Center for Entrepreneurship.
The Local Crowd Monadnock represents a group of regional economic development organizations working together to cultivate a stronger ecosystem of investors, service providers and local economy champions that will provide access to capital to both the for profit and nonprofit organizations throughout the region. By leveraging the power of crowdfunding, TLC Monadnock's fundraising platform will help startup ventures, early-growth stage companies and community-based projects find funding while simultaneously creating a way for community members to support projects they care about. Contributions are tax deductible if people forego a reward.
The site is now seeking proposals for projects to post. Applications are available at monadnocklocal.org/rfp and all proposals are due before 5 p.m. on January 6, 2017.
The following criteria must be met in order for a project to be posted:
- The project is based in Keene, Chesterfield, Hinsdale, Swanzey or Winchester.
- The project proposes a measurable benefit to the local economy and/or improvement to the quality of life in the Monadnock Region.
- The project does not propose any illegal activities and would not be considered malicious or hateful toward any individual or group.
- Projects that complement the mission of Monadnock Buy Local to promote the positive economic and community benefits of spending dollars locally, while supporting programs and policies that forward a local, green and fair economy.
- Projects that support community and economic development goals as put forth in a designated town or city master plan, and/or the Southwest Regional Planning Commission’s Monadnock Region Future Plan.
TLC Monadnock is one of only 13 nationwide pilot sites set up to demonstrate how crowdfunding can serve as an economic development tool in rural areas. The project is managed by The Local Crowd, a Wyoming-based company, and funded by a U.S. Department of Agriculture Small Business Innovation Research grant. To learn more, visit thelocalcrowd.com.
Monadnock Buy Local is a regional network of citizens, businesses and organizations that promotes the positive economic and community benefits of spending dollars locally, while supporting programs and policies that forward a local, green and fair economy.
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