FundYourselfNow: Using Blockchain to improve crowdfunding

FundYourselfNow aims to be the one stop platform where users can find talents to realize and fundraise for their ideas.

In this article, I would like to share with everyone on how FundYourselfNow is trying to build a complete ecosystem that will help creators achieve their dreams. If you like this article, please join our slack & telegram chat. For more information on our coin, please visit https://coinmarketcap.com/assets/fundyourselfnow/

How is FundYourselfNow different?

Unlike other platforms out in the market, there will be two modes of funding on our platform: the traditional route & the token crowdsale route. In the traditional route, no tokens are issued and creators get funded in cryptocurrency rather than fiat currency. As mentioned in our white paper, our aim is to become better than Kickstarter, where backers can back the projects that they love.

There has been a huge interest on token sales in the last 6 months, with the recent major news being the ban on ICOs in China. The team at FYN would like to refocus on how we are actually improving traditional Non-ICO crowdfunding to foster greater innovation.

Our aim is to allow creators to create project and to raise funds ranging from as little as $1000 to as much as a few hundred million. In fact, once the platform is up and running, we envisage that most of the projects on our platform that we help, will eventually go through the traditional non-token route. 97% of the projects on Kickstarter raise less than 100,000 USD. From a funding and business perspective, it is impractical for small projects to do token sales because

Almost no centralized exchanges will list the tokens due to almost zero liquidity.
High costs of hiring blockchain developers to integrate tokens into your business.
Potentially no logical tokenization model that makes sense for the business and backers
Currently, we are not aware of anyone in the blockchain industry that is attempting to do something similar to us for traditional crowdfunding. Also, it is important to note that FundYourselfNow is a rewards-based crowdfunding platform, and we review each and every project to ensure that no equity or debt or collective investment schemes projects are listed on our platform so that we remain legally compliant.

Milestone-Based Payments with Refund option using Smart Contracts

At FYN, one of the key features is fraud protection for backers. Currently, there is no existing crowdfunding platform that offers any form of protection for backers against failed projects.

We are solving 2 major roadblocks that traditional crowdfunding platforms face when they try to implement milestone based payments:

Regulated financial entities that provide escrow services to hold funds raised by a company typically charge a high flat fee plus 1%–5% of the funds held on a yearly basis. Obviously, this will not make sense for a huge majority of projects that raise less than 100k due to the cost. We are using Smart Contracts as a trustless, transparent escrow, where creators can only withdraw crypto-currency after they reach certain targets promised to backers. The cost to do so is relatively cheap compared to traditional escrow options.
Cost of processing refunds is extremely high with fiat currency. Wire transfer and administrative processing fees could easily run up to 50 USD or more. Most donations on Kickstarter range anywhere between $10–$200, and it is likely that the refund costs might even cost more than the remaining backed amount. With blockchain technology, the fees can be reduced to less than $1 which makes refunds practical.
In fact, milestone based payments are critical for projects fundraising via traditional crowdfunding route as there is no liquidity for the backed project. For a token-based project, backers can exit anytime by selling their tokens on the secondary market.

Besides outright scams, many projects also fail because of poor business decisions, lack of talented staff, lack of communications etc., which results in the projects not being able to deliver on their promises. We believe with this milestone system, creators will be held accountable and provide proper updates to backers, who have the power to withhold or terminate payment throughout the entire project lifecycle.

Talent Marketplace to support crowdfunding ecosystem

The purpose of the talent marketplace is to help creators get their idea from the idea stage to the fundraising stage. Project Creators will be able to post jobs and find the help they need via the platform. The platform will consist of talents in 4 key areas:

Development
Advisors & Mentors
Marketing
Operations Support/Legal
In our initial launch, we have partnered with trusted and reputable companies that can provide the help that creators need. For projects that are fund-raising via the token model, creators will have the additional option of partial payments in their project tokens, reducing the upfront cash needed. All partners offer a wide range of services that are applicable to both non-crypto and crypto projects. At FYN, we will be using our volume to negotiate a better rate for creators coming in via the FundYourselfNow platform.

Some of the talent partners that we are working with include (not exhaustive):

Netset Software Solutions (Blockchain Development Partner) who can provide a full range of software development services like Mobile Application development,CRM/ERP development,eCommerce, Web Design and Content Management System, including blockchain technology.
NewsBtc (Media Partner)
Blanket Media which can run social media campaigns provide video reviews on channels such as Hackdroid & EnergyModzTech
Coss.io (Exchange & Cryptocurrency Payment Partner)
On top of this, we are opening the talent marketplace to individuals so that they can offer support to the projects that they like, in return for tokens or some cash amount.