High-Powered Investing All-in-One For Dummies, 2nd Edition

Chapter 1

Getting the Lowdown on Crowdfund Investing

In This Chapter

Understanding the crowd's collective power

Joining the crowd

Only in very few instances in history has the start date for an entire industry disrupted the way the world looks at business. This chapter is about one of them. For the first time in 80 years, the average Jane and Joe have the ability to start a business with the help of the crowd or own a part of a friend's American dream.

How? Through crowdfund investing, where the social network meets seed/early-stage financing — and where you become an active participant instead of a passive investor. This chapter introduces this new industry and explains what it's capable of accomplishing.

Seeing the Power of the Online Crowd

Although the world is operating more and more as one global community, people everywhere still rely on their local communities for the bare necessities. The goal here is to show you how to rally your online crowd to conquer your own part of the world by connecting people at a local level to create businesses that benefit communities. Instead of doing it at city hall, you do it online, where most people spend their days.

Crowdfunding has many applications: from raising funding for disaster relief and philanthropic causes to supporting creative ...