Crowdfunding: What It Is — And What It’s Not | Idea Lab | PBS

Crowdfunding: What It Is — And What It’s Not | Idea Lab | PBS: The initiative was described to me as being similar to crowdfunding, likely because of its gamified flavor. Although the folks behind it weren't using the language of crowdfunding, several observers were. But it wasn't crowdfunding, and there are a number of important reasons why.

Before I get into that, let's be clear: I'm not making a point about the technical definition of the term crowdfunding. My critique is not that this initiative missed many opportunities to create a compelling campaign that crowdfunders and crowdfunding platforms make use of every day. The following criticisms are not specific to this case, either. They're common problems among inexperienced (and reluctant) online fundraisers, particularly in the non-profit space. That's why I'm not going to name the initiative here, instead I'm going to refer to it as Acme Non-Profit Initiative.
what isn’t crowdfunding