An Exploration Of Crowdfunding On Kickstarter Canada

Abstract

Offline crowdfunding for charitable causes is well-established, but digital fundraising platforms are relatively new. Thus, many elements of digital crowdfunding remain unstudied. Kickstarter Canada, opened in September, 2013, is one such element. This paper explores whether factors linked to success in the U.S. crowdfunding literature are reflected in the Canadian environment. The authors examine four Canadian projects, two successful and two unsuccessful, in depth. They conclude that geographic location, breadth of network, project updates and media exposure appear to contribute to successful campaigns, while other factors do not. The paper concludes with researchable propositions and suggestions for future work.