About StartSomeGood
FAQ
Big Picture Stuff
Q: What do you do? One sentence. Go!
A: We empower people from around the world to create social impact by connecting those with ideas for improving the world with the financial and intellectual capital they need to take action.
Q: What’s the difference between a venture and a campaign?
A: Campaigns are the fundraising endeavors run by a venture. They have a specific fundraising goal and end date.
Q: Tipping-point fundraising model? Huh?
A: Yep! We took what we’ve learned from studying other crowdfunding models and created a fundraising scheme that directly addresses the needs of a social entrepeneur. Each campaign will identify a tipping-point goal as well as the ultimate fundraising goal. The tipping point is the amount that is needed to truly start doing good. Without raising this much the project cannot happen. Fundraising up to the tipping-point is therefore done in an all-or-nothing fashion: friends and strangers will pledge support, but will only be charged if and when a campaign reaches its tipping point. Once the tipping point has been reached, funds are applied to reaching the total fundraising goal which is a "keep what you raise" model -- ventures get to keep all funds raised beyond the tipping point even if they don’t reach their total goal. We leave it up to each venture to set their tipping anywhere from 25 to 100% of their total goal. Read more about our model and why it works for social entrepreneurs in this post on our blog.
Q. How do you support yourself?
A. StartSomeGood levies a fee of 5% of the total funds received by a campaign (after 3rd party transaction fees of ~3%). However, we only receive our share if a campaign reaches its tipping point. If a campaign fails to reach its tipping point, then, just like the campaign itself, StartSomeGood does not receive any fees.
Q: Are you a non-profit?
A: No, we are a socially-conscious for-profit. We plan to apply for B Corporation status after a year in operation to signify our commitment to being socially and environmentally conscious in all of our decision making.
Q: How do I delete my account?
A: We’re sorry to see you go! Simply email hello@startsomegood.com with “delete account” in the subject line and we’ll take care of it right away.
Supporter Questions:
Q: How do I support a campaign?
A: Easy! Just find the campaign you wish to support, and make a pledge at the level of your choosing. All payments will be processed by PayPal.com. You will need a PayPal account and can pledge your support through any method available via PayPal. Need assistance? Drop us a line at hello@startsomegood.com and we’ll be happy to help!
Q: What’s in it for me?
A: You’ll be helping to ignite social impact! What issue do you care about? There is probably an entrepreneur here with a great idea to impact that area, who needs support to move from idea to action. If that’s not enough, though, every campaign will develop its own levels of support and rewards associated with each. This means that for any given pledge of support you make, you’ll probably have some kind of awesome reward coming your way to thank you.
Q: How does your fancy hybrid/tipping-point fundraising model work for supporters?
A: You’ll pledge support, but your credit card will only actually be charged if a campaign reaches its tipping point. If a campaign is successful, then once the campaign’s deadline has passed, your card will be charged in the amount you have pledged.
Q: So what happens if a campaign I support reaches its tipping point?
A: Both you and the venture behind the campaign should celebrate (start thinking of some great victory dance moves), and as soon as the campaign deadline has passed, the amount of support you have pledged the campaign will be officially charged to your credit card.
Q: So what happens if a campaign I support fails to reach its tipping point?
A: No harm no foul. Your card will not be charged and no money will change hands.
Q: Is my financial support tax deductible?
A: Unless otherwise stated, your support is not tax deductible. However you will get some awesome rewards, and the even more awesome feeling of helping someone start good!
Q: How do I get my sweet rewards?
A: It’s up to the individual venture to make arrangements to deliver the rewards that they have promised their supporters. The venture will receive a list of email addresses of its supporters and will reach out to you to make arrangements to fulfill the rewards it has promised.
Q: Do I have to be based in the United States to support a campaign?
A: Absolutely not! As long as you can create a PayPal account, you can support a campaign. For a list of countries supported by PayPal, please visit www.paypal.com/worldwide
Q: What if I’m not quite ready to donate to a campaign, but I want to learn more?
A: No problem! We allow you to follow a venture on StartSomeGood - just press the icon in the top right of a venture’s page -- and you’ll automatically receive updates from that venture on your “MyGood” page.
Venture Questions:
Q: I want to use StartSomeGood to raise money for my (awesome) idea! How do I do it?
A: Great! The first thing you’ll need to do is create a personal profile by clicking "Join" in the top-right. Once you’ve created your personal profile, go to "StartSomeGood" where you’ll be able to apply to add your venture to our site and start your first campaign. Your venture and campaign will be reviewed by our team and our mobilizers to make sure that you’re a great match for the mission and goals of SSG at which point we’ll follow-up with more information.
Q: What do I need in order to apply?
A: First of all you need a great idea for improving the world! From there, you’ll need to think about a tangible campaign you want to run that will excite supporters around the world. You’ll want to think strategically about how much money you want to raise -- both for your tipping point goal as well as your total fundraising goal -- and how you plan to reward your supporters for believing in you. You’ll also need a campaign video. Don’t be scared -- it needn’t be anything fancy. In fact some of the best videos we’ve seen are simply people talking, straight from the heart, into their webcam.
You’ll also need to create a PayPal Business Account, and you’ll need to make sure you’re in a country that allows you to withdraw funds (PayPal limits accounts in some countries to only make payments, but not receive them). For a list of countries in which you can create the necessary PayPal account, please visit www.paypal.com/worldwide
Q: Why do I need an Paypal.com Business Account?
A: To make sure that people from around the world can support you, with the confidence of the security that is required in making an online donation, we have partnered with Paypal to process our support payments. It’s a name everyone knows around the world, and it makes sure that a variety of credit cards and payment options are available to supporters and that you’re able to receive your well-deserved funds in a timely manner. A business account, rather than a personal account, is required for our unique hybrid-tipping-point model. Trust us, we did our research!
Q: Are there fees associated with Paypal?
A: Yes, PayPal has fees associated with processing transactions. The fees for PayPal can be seen here: https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_display-fees-outside In general, PayPal fees are 2.9% of the total amount, with an additional 1% added for cross-border transactions.
You will receive all funds raised, less the percentage received by SSG and less the fees associated with the payment processor.
For example, if your campaign raised $5000, PayPal would receive approximately $150. Then, StartSomeGood would receive 5% of the post-fees total of $4850, or about $240. This means a campaign would receive approximately $4610.
Q: Can I donate to my own campaign?
A: Absolutely not! Not only does doing so go against the spirit of StartSomeGood, any pledges made by a campaign starter to themselves (such that the name on the supporter's PayPal account and the name on the venture's PayPal account are the same) may cause PayPal to cancel that venture's account, making it impossible to receive or withdraw funds. PayPal will check names and credit card numbers to make sure that such payments are not made. Please note that PayPal may not detect this outlawed transfer of funds until after a campaign has reached its deadline, at which point it may suspend that account, making withdrawing and receiving funds impossible for a venture that has engaged in this activity. The moral of the story: please don't try to pledge support to your own campaign.
Q: Do I need to be a 501(c)3 in order to raise money?
Absolutely not! StartSomeGood cares about your idea for improving the world, not the organizational structure behind it. We allow socially-conscious for-profits, non-profits, 501(c)3’s, not-yet-established 501(c)3’s, and one-time projects to use our site.
If you are a 501(c)3 and want to run your campaign as such, when signing up for your PayPal Business Account, you will then follow the steps for joining as an officially recognized non-profit. Please be aware that doing so results in a verification process by PayPal which can cause a delay.
Q: What are tax requirements for my campaign?
A: StartSomeGood cannot provide any legal or tax advising, but we strongly recommend that you get counsel. There are lots of variables, including how you are incorporated (LLC, non-profit, etc.), where you are located, and how you reward your supporters. We recommend that you speak with a tax professional about your specific campaign.
Q: Why do I need a video?
A: Let’s be honest: people love them. It’s a great way for people to see the people behind a venture, the people creating real change in the world. It allows you to connect with potential supporters from around the world in a more intimate way than the written word can provide, and it gives you an outlet to be incredibly creative. The sky’s the limit, though there’s nothing wrong with a simple video recorded with your webcam.
You can even create videos from stills using pan & fade functions at http://animoto.com/
Q: I’ve never started a social enterprise before, can I still apply?
A: Of course! StartSomeGood focuses on empowering people to take an idea for improving the world and make it happen. We of course review every single venture and campaign to make sure they are a great fit for our site, but there are no prerequisites for starting a venture. It will be up to you to convince enough supporters that your idea is ready to happen!
Q: Who reviews my venture and campaign?
A: Your venture and campaign information will be thoroughly reviewed by our team as well as our StartSomeGood Mobilizers to make sure that you are a great match for StartSomeGood’s vision and mission, and that you are poised to have incredible social impact. This also allows us to provide you with feedback to make sure that you are leveraging the StartSomeGood platform to its full potential. We also access submissions to ensure the quality and coherence of campaigns. After submitting an application to be reviewed, we promise to respond in a timely manner with next steps.
Q: What criteria do you use to judge my venture and campaign?
A: We are looking for ventures that have world-changing, social impact. Ventures featured on our site must:
- be social-impact focused;
- be creating social-impact directly. While we think organizations that donate a portion of their revenue to charities is fantastic, we don’t accept businesses that run normally then send 20% of profits to charity, or are purely-fundraising projects which send money to another organization to create impact.;
- have a specific project for which they are fundraising. Launching a business or organization counts, as does entering a new market, creating a new product, serving a new population and countless other types of initiatives.
- have a compelling pitch, dynamic leadership and a vision for improving the world.
Q: Who are the SSG mobilizers?
A: We’ve assembled a group of ridiculously talented social innovators from around the world who believe in the mission of StartSomeGood and want to help empower people like yourself to become social innovators. They’ve started their own enterprises, they’ve traveled the globe in search of interesting opportunities, and they’ve consulted some of the finest organizations out there. In addition to other projects, they use their incredible knowledge of social enterprise to help review ventures on the site and provide crucial feedback.
Q: How much control do I have over how I run my campaign?
A: We believe in giving entrepreneurs the opportunity to use our platform as they see fit. We do not have any minimum or maximum amount of money that can be raised, and we give you the freedom to make your best pitch and convince others of your idea.
Q: What kinds of rewards should I give?
A: Be creative and tie in rewards to the work of your venture. Do you produce a tangible good? If so consider providing one to supporters at a sufficient level. Better yet, create a limited edition one only for supporters of your campaign. Provide unique opportunities -- a chance to attend a special screening of a film you created, tickets to an event your venture is putting on, or the opportunity to connect with the founder of your venture directly. Smaller rewards include things like recognition on your website, a special supporters-only email newsletter, or a photo of your venture in action. The more creative you are, the more you’ll inspire others to support you.
Rewards tend to take four main forms:
- Object(s) created by the project (in some cases, the project is the creation of an object). Eg. publications, technology, art, food.
- Access: Eg. invitations to events, contact with the entrepreneur, exclusive webinars, phone calls, voting, etc.
- Tokens of thanks/souvenirs. Eg. hand-written thank-you cards, t-shirts, limited-edition somethings, etc.
- Acknowledgment: thank-yous on websites, "associate producer" credit, naming rights, etc.
Q: Are there any rewards I can’t provide?
A: Due to SEC regulations, you are not allowed to offer any type of equity in your venture in exchange for support. Other no-no’s: loans, lotteries, raffles, sweepstakes, and coupons/discounts on future goods. Like a chaperone at a middle school dance, we don’t make the rules, we just enforce them.
Q: Can I provide updates to on our campaign/venture to our supporters?
A: Absolutely! We let you provide updates from your venture page, and all information will automatically be streamed to anyone who has supported or decided to follow your venture (no pressure).
Q: Got any tips for starting a great, compelling campaign?
A: Thanks for asking, you read our mind! It’s best to have a tangible goal for a campaign with a theme and deliverables. It could be $1,000 to host an unconference, $5,000 to kick-start your venture, $8,000 to expand a tutoring program to four new schools, $12,000 to build and promote a social change app, $25,000 for an advocacy campaign or $100,000 to create an open-access media laboratory. Something specific that will happen and create impact within a specific period of time, that relates to a specific challenge or realizes specific opportunities in your community. Create a compelling campaign and people will be more likely to want to support it because they’ll know exactly where their financial support will be going.
Q: What is your start strong requirement?
A: Starting strong is both a recommendation and a requirement. Like a tip-jar at a coffee shop, no one wants to be the first person to put their money in the jar, so thatʼs why smart employees stuff it with a few bucks ahead of time. You should do the same thing with your campaign -- make sure to get your first five pledges of support lined up and ready to go before your campaign starts. That way, immediately upon being approved as a campaign your best friend, college roommate, and Mom (awww) can pledge their support right away and give you that crucial momentum. How important is starting strong? It’s so crucial that we’ve created the following requirement: in order to have your campaign appear on our homepage, our list of campaigns page and to remain active, you must receive three pledges within the first 7 days of your campaign launching. The size of the pledges does not matter. What does matter is getting momentum from the start. Nearly every campaign that has successfully reached its tipping point on StartSomeGood received a good number of pledges in the first day and first week of their campaign. We’ll send you reminders if you haven’t received three pledges, because we want to make sure your campaign remains active. But as long as you plan ahead and tell your community about your campaign, it shouldn’t take long at all to start off on the right foot. For more, check out this post about our Start Strong Requirement on our blog.