Crowdtilt – Get Group Funding

Looking for ways to raise money for your campaign, your party, or just about anything else? Crowdtilt is a tool developed with your issues in mind. The web-application offers tools that make it easy for organizers to collect money from people for virtually any purpose whatsoever.

Crowdtilt is often referred to as Kickstarter for friends. The web-application takes the basic premise behind Kickstarter – a funding platform for creative projects – and adapts it for groups of friends and associates. Instead of seeking money to fund a new project you’ve been working on or a business you’re developing, you can use Crowdtilt to collect money for group events, parties, and trips. Start a campaign by typing in a few words about what you’re collecting money for and setting a goal amount, then share your new campaign with friends via Twitter, Facebook, and email. If you raise enough money to meet your pre-determined goals within seven days of your campaign going live, then the campaign will “tilt” and your friends’ credit cards will be charged. The funds that Crowdtilt collects will be deposited in your bank account, for you to use to fulfill the goal you created.

Crowdtilt automatically shuts down any campaign that hasn’t met its financial goal within seven days, and people who’ve pledged to donate to those campaigns can walk away without their cards ever being charged. For groups of friends looking to collect money for gifts, trips, and summer timeshares, Crowdtilt is a great solution.

Practical Uses:

• Collect money to buy a group wedding gift for your friend
• Find out how many friends are willing to go in on a summer beach house
• Solicit charity donations for a fundraising event you’re hosting
• Get your friends to pay up for the dinner your purchased last week

Insider Tips:

• Campaign admins must connect to their Facebook accounts so contributors know who they’re giving money to
• Campaigns that aren’t funded within seven days are automatically shut down
• Crowdtilt only charges people’s cards once a campaign’s goals have been met
• Admins can receive funds by direct deposit, check, or PayPal transfer

What we liked:

• Anyone can use Crowdtilt to collect money for virtually anything
• Contributors never have their contribution amounts displayed publicly
• Users can post videos or photos to give contributors a clearer description of their campaigns
• Contributors’ cards aren’t charged until the campaign goals are met

What we didn’t like:

• Crowdtilt only supports U.S. credit cards and banks

Alternatives:

• WePay – https://www.wepay.com

Company Info:

• Launched: February 2012
• Privately Held
• Headquarters: Palo Alto, California
• Founded by: James Beshara and Khaled Hussein
• Web site: https://www.crowdtilt.com

Costs:

• Admins with successful campaigns pay a 2.5% fee, based on the amount they collect
• Contributors pay a 2.5% credit card processing fee