Kickstarter is a great resource to raise money from strangers for recording an album, putting out a comic book, or developing innovative new hardware. But what if you need an easy way to raise money for a non-creative pursuit from people you may already know?
Enter Crowdtilt, the site that lets you raise money for absolutely anything you want. Fundraising campaigns can range from the noble, such as this one that raised over $10,000 to help pay for an international student's education, to the fun or silly, like raising $2,340 to take a party bus to see Phish in concert.
It's straightforward to use—create a Crowdtilt page that outlines what you're raising money for, set a monetary goal, then solicit contributions via your social networks. When your goal is met, your campaign "tilts" and only then are contributors' credit cards charged.
Crowdtilt keeps a flat fee of 2.5% of what you raise. Compare this to Kickstarter, which keeps 5% of what you raise, plus an additional 3-5% in payment processing fees.
For any campaigns aimed at Hurricane Sandy relief, Crowdtilt is waiving its fees when you go here and use the promo code "sandyrecovery." For other projects, using the promo code "movember" starts you off with $20 towards your cause, and the highest fundraiser at the end of November gets an additional $250.
Those lower fees and the emphasis on social connections make Crowdtilt campaigns very different from Kickstarter's.
These folks raised $30,000 to rent a yacht for a huge Halloween party
Here's $8,000 raised to throw a "silent disco," where everyone listens to the music through headphones and the room is totally quiet
Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian used Crowdtilt to raise awareness of proposed Internet regulations with a billboard
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