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Crowdfunding

lastmod 2025-08-26created 2020-08-0917 edits

Crowdfunding is the act of raising funds from many individuals through platforms such as the internet, using social network services to receive small donations or for purposes such as investment. It is also called 'social funding', but that is not an accurate term.

Funds are mainly raised for charity, hosting events, product development, and so on. Depending on the investment method and purpose, it can be classified into equity investment, lending, rewards, donations, and so on.

Site

Ko-fi
https://ko-fi.com/
Donations and Monthly Support from Fans For the Price of a Coffee
The friendly and free way for fans to support your work for the price of a coffee. Get paid directly with 0% fees from Ko-fi.
Buy Me a Coffee
https://buymeacoffee.com/
Accept support. Start a membership. Setup a shop. It’s easier than you think.
Patreon
A US-based fundraising and patronage site founded by Jack Conte. The name is pronounced 'PAY-tree-un'. The name comes from 'patron'. It is a type of crowdfunding platform where content creators in many fields such as drawing, music, video, fiction, and software receive recurring or one-time support from subscribers (patrons) and provide rewards corresponding to the amount.
Open Collective
Open Collective is a crowdfunding platform focused on grassroots groups.
GitHub Sponsors
That thingamajig run by Github
Indiegogo (Korean: 인디고고) - https://www.indiegogo.com/
A platform with somewhat more flexible rules than Kickstarter. Setting the campaign type to Flexible Funding has the advantage of letting you keep the funds raised even if the goal is not met. However, Indiegogo success stories in the software app field are generally rare, and according to one report, the success rate of apps/software on Indiegogo is about 9%, lower than on Kickstarter. Since it tends to be strong mainly for hardware and gadget projects, developer tool software like this project may find it harder to get as much community response as on Kickstarter.
Kickstarter (Korean: 킥스타터) - http://kickstarter.com/
The most famous crowdfunding platform in the world, with many success stories in the technology/software category as well. It has many visitors and high recognition, so the exposure effect is large, and because of its All-or-Nothing model, in which no pledges are collected if the goal amount is not reached, backers trust it highly. In fact, Kickstarter's project success rate is estimated at about 39%, much higher than competing platforms such as Indiegogo. The software examples introduced earlier, such as OpenShot and Krita, also did well on Kickstarter. However, Kickstarter is limited to creative projects and has an approval process, so you need to prepare thoroughly in advance, such as preparing prototype videos/demos.
Tumblbug
~
Wadiz
The largest crowdfunding platform in Korea, with the advantage of running campaigns in Korean and accepting payments in won. It is a familiar channel for targeting the Korean IT community, but Wadiz's main backers are more interested in lifestyle products or hardware, and the software field is not large. Also, the potential users of this project are likely to be more numerous abroad than in Korea. However, if you want to run a separate funding round or presale for Korean-speaking users, you can use Wadiz or Tumblbug as a secondary option later.
crowdy (Korean: 크라우디)
https://www.ycrowdy.com/

Best crowdfunding sites and platforms of 2024

Comparative analysis of successful desktop application crowdfunding cases

WARNING

Result of a Deep Research query

I researched cases of desktop software projects that secured funding through crowdfunding and succeeded. Representative examples include the OpenShot video editor, the Krita digital painting tool, and the Blender 3D software; let's look at the key features and funding success factors of each:

OpenShot Video Editor
An open-source cross-platform video editing program. In 2013 it successfully raised more than about $45,000 in a Kickstarter campaign and proceeded with development of Windows/Mac/Linux support.
  • Key features: non-linear video editing with an easy, intuitive UI, and a variety of transitions/effects.
  • Success factors: with a shortage of editors available on Linux, demand for multi-platform support was high, and the existing user community's support was strong.
Because the project leader was extending open-source software that was already popular on Linux, it had credibility, and the clear goal (releasing a cross-platform version) appealed to backers.
Krita (Korean: 크리타)
An open-source digital painting program. As a tool for professional illustration and concept art, it ran Kickstarter campaigns in 2014 and 2015 in a row, each successfully raising more than €20,000.
  • Key features: rich features rivaling commercial software, such as a brush engine, layers, and HDR painting.
  • Success factors: support from an already solid user base (the open-source artist community) was large, and it raised supporters' expectations by putting forward feature improvement goals that made clear where the money would go, such as "make it faster than Photoshop" and "improve vector tools". The development team's track record of implementing features promised through earlier community funding also raised the funding success rate.
Because the rewards took the form of accelerating development of the features users wanted, it was received as a kind of pre-order, and it is a case that showed open-source projects can also grow professionally.
Blender
Open-source 3D modeling/animation software.
When Blender moved from commercial to open source in 2002, it unusually ran a community crowdfunding campaign, raised €100,000, ????bought the source code license, and switched to open source all at once.
  • Key features: a full package of 3D modeling, rendering, and animation features.
  • Success factors: users who loved Blender at the time voluntarily took part for the survival and free distribution of the software, and the rallying of a strong community was decisive.
Named the "Free Blender" campaign, it had a clear cause of making Blender free, and it reached its goal in a short time.
This case was achieved through self-run fundraising rather than an official platform, but it is often cited as a successful crowdfunding case in which users recognized the value of the software and invested directly.

Looking at the common factors in these cases:

  1. A community of potential users already existed, or they succeeded in building one
  2. They presented clear goals to achieve through funding (e.g. adding specific features, porting to platforms, going open source)
  3. There were attractive rewards or benefits for backers (e.g. early access, voting rights, name credits).

Also, in many cases a prototype or previous version of the software had been released beforehand, giving confidence in the feasibility of the project.

The combination of these elements gave backers the conviction that "if I chip in, the software I want to use will improve", which is analyzed as the key to funding success.

Government support programs

  • K-Startup - a government support platform run by the Korea Institute of Startup & Entrepreneurship Development.
  • SW Convergence Cluster - support for software-focused projects.
  • Startup Leap Package - for early-stage founders.

See also

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