Pilgrim Talks: Aggie Kobrin

CrowdFundingLIVE Introduction to Crowdfunding

Aggie Kobrin Founder Crowdfunding is taking the world by storm, as people seek funding for their passion-driven projects. Yet, more than half of the people who opt for crowdfunding fail to reach their goal by the end of the campaign and walk away with nothing. What's missing is education about crowdfunding, to help people guide their crowdfunding projects to success.

That's where CrowdFunding LIVE (www.CrowdFundingLIVE.com) comes in. CrowdFunding LIVE is an all-day educational and networking event on Saturday, June 9, 2012 at the Radisson Hotel LAX. Attendees will meet industry experts and gain valuable pointers on funding from well-known crowdfunding success stories, such as Nick Lewis, who raised nearly $250,000 for the film Rise and Shine. CrowdFunding LIVE projects include the latest by Betsy Chasse, co-writer, director and producer of the popular film What the Bleep Do We Know? Her crowdfunding project is Killing Buddha, a comedy inspired by Chasse's life and her experience making What the Bleep?

Crowdfunding is a way to get small amounts of money from a large number of people to fund a project. People worldwide are using crowdfunding to raise money for films, books and technology products development. CrowdFunding LIVE was founded by three women as their own passion project. Their goal is to bring more crowdfunding to women-owned projects and concepts that focus on women. The site certainly accepts projects founded by men, but that is not the focus.

"Women own 48 percent of the small businesses in the U.S., yet only 5 percent of traditional funding goes to them. Even with crowdfunding, more than half the projects fail to gain traction, so we decided to bring experts, successful crowdfunders and those hoping for funding together on one day to discuss how to set up a powerful and ultimately successful crowdfunding pitch," says CrowdFunding LIVE co-founder Aggie Kobrin. "If you have a good idea you have not been successful raising money, come learn how crowdfunding can help you get the money you need." CrowdFunding LIVE has achieved certification from Crowdsourcing.org and is the female voice on the National Crowdfunding Association. People interested in posting a project on CrowdFundingLIVE.com should contact Aggie@CrowdFundingLIVE.com.

Purchase tickets for the event at www.CrowdFundingLIVE.com. The event is June 9, 2012 at the Radisson Hotel LAX, 6225 W. Century Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90045, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Highlights include:

• An overview of crowdfunding including creative, legal and financial aspects by Carl Esposti, and Glenn Weisberger. Esposti is  founder of  Crowdsourcing.org(www.crowdsourcing.org) and CEO of Massolution, which specializes in crowdsourcing solutions. Weisberger is cofounder of FunderThunder, a crowdfunding site.
• The facts behind the crowdfunding business model and the market.
• Q&A panel with successful fundraisers such as Nick Lewis, who raised $250,000 for his film on Kickstarter and Tiamo De Vettori, who raised $35,000.
• The Next Steps - Marketing Your Website, with Kathy Clark of Internet Dominators.

The Women Behind CrowdFunding LIVE

CrowdFunding LIVE was founded in early 2012. After working together toward the first live event, longtime entrepreneurs Aggie Kobrin, Deb Augur and Debe Fennell decided to take the next logical step and start a full-fledged crowdfunding site to help "idea people" (especially women) get the funding they need to take their best ideas LIVE!

To learn more about CrowdFunding, go to CrowdFundingLIVE.com