“The fellow that can only see the week ahead is always the
popular fellow, for he is looking with the crowd. But the one that can see years ahead, he has
a telescope but he can’t make anybody believe that he has it.” - Will Rogers
The concept of crowdsourcing is not necessarily a new
idea. Although, when many people think
about it, they believe it started with social media and the Internet. Not true.
Actually, the basic concept of crowdsourcing has been around for
hundreds of years.
Bloomberg Cities
tells the story of how the British government used “crowdsourcing” to resolve
their issue regarding navigation at sea in the 1700s. Obviously, this was just a few years before
we had social media. That being said,
people use crowdsourcing campaigns for various reasons today. Sites like
GoFundMe and
Kickstarter have been
created so innovative, remarkable, genuine, and sometimes deceitful people can
change the world. Or maybe simply change
one person’s life. Either way, they are
there to make a difference.
There are still good people out there. Sometimes it doesn’t feel that way, but they
do exist. Introduced to the world in
2009, Kickstarter is a website where people present their inspiring and
artistic projects to the public. The
site features hundreds of thousands of unique ideas every day that the public can
view and fund if they determine it to be a valuable investment. There are a lot of people with amazing ideas
and no way to secure funding for their projects.
Kickstarter says that since its launch in
2009, “17 million people have backed a project, $4.8 billion has been pledged,
and 177,464 projects have been successfully funded.”
LEGO uses crowdsourcing to their advantage because they ask
their followers for ideas about new creations they should come out with
next. LEGO maintains a following of all
ages worldwide. I know grown men who
still “collect” LEGOs. I have to admit
myself; I love to look at the catalogs with my son at the new designs they come
out with each Christmas. Then, I look at
the price tag and wonder how much money I have spent through the years on LEGOs. And I can only imagine how much money some of
these grown men have spent “collecting” over the years. However, what LEGO has done is pure genius. A toy made in the 1930s that is such a simple
concept, they have been able to reinvent themselves over and over and remain relevant
for almost 100 years. And crowdsourcing
has played an enormous part in that.
"Crowdsourcing is a great way to approach creation
because in any given point there's always somebody on the Internet who knows
something better than you do." - Guy Kawasaki
Crowdsourcing (or crowdfunding) sites, such as GoFundMe, on
the other hand, are typically used in a completely different manner. People can start a campaign for just about
anything, from medical expenses, emergencies, memorials, education expenses,
nonprofits, and so on. Honestly, if it
can happen, someone has probably thought of it.
And then they start a GoFundMe account for it to raise money for their
cause. Unfortunately, with the good comes
the bad. There are always going to be
unethical, malicious people trying to take advantage of the charity of others. And until recently, I looked at this
differently. I’ve always wondered how people
judge who is and is not taking advantage of their charity. And I was told, in life, we will be lied to
and taken advantage of by others. But if
we are always skeptical and afraid of being taken advantage of, then we might
miss helping someone who truly does need help.
Michelle Kessel with
CBS News, states that medical bills make
up about one-third of GoFundMe’s online campaigns.
The Balance asserts that the average American
spent almost $11,000 towards medical expenses in 2017. That is outrageous! I can remember years ago meeting a man who
had a heart attack, but he also had no health insurance. He explained that he had over $150,000 in
medical bills to pay for after being released from the hospital. He knew he would NEVER be able to pay off any
of the balances, but as long as he made his $10 monthly payments, they could
not send him to collections. This is the
type of person who could greatly benefit from a GoFundMe account, but probably
never would. Then, we have all heard
disappointing stories in the news as well.
I remember the story about the couple who raised $400,000 for the homeless
veteran that turned out to be a complete lie made up by the three of them. But, GoFundMe is committed to its cause and
works diligently to ensure donors are not scammed. Per
GoFundMe, less than one-tenth of one
percent of all their campaigns end up being fake. So, in the end, that’s pretty good odds.
In reality, crowdsourcing is a way for people to connect
with each other. Perhaps a person is
initially asking for money to start a new venture, but what they gain in the
end is so much more. They may also
receive insightful advice from experienced entrepreneurs, or a sense of
confidence, as well as a new following they may not have had without crowdsourcing. It can also inspire people when they
are
creatively in a rut. Maybe someone has
part of an idea but needs advice on how to connect the dots. Crowdsourcing may be the
golden ticket. Or it may tell someone how to market their
product to the public. Sometimes people
have a fantastic product or idea, but if they do not market it correctly, then
it doesn’t matter how remarkable their inspiration is if no one will see
it.
Furthermore, some people see crowdsourcing and crowdfunding
as a way to make a difference in people’s lives. As humans, we feel an overwhelming need to
insert ourselves into life’s catastrophes. Kessel with
CBS News reports that “GoFundMe
campaigns always sprout up after natural disasters and mass shootings.” Social media has merely made crowdsourcing easier
for people to accomplish. Social media
has changed the way not only we as people raise money, but it has also
revolutionized how nonprofits fundraise.
Many well-known charities such as the American Red Cross and United Way
have partnered with GoFundMe to use their site to raise money, for free vs.
paying the 2.9 percent fee everyone else pays.
On the whole, sites like Kickstarter and GoFundMe continue to give me
faith in humans. Because at times, it’s a little
touch and go. Without websites
such as these, countless creative ideas would still be merely just that, ideas. We may never have heard about the little boy
with cancer who wanted to be a police officer before he died and the town who
made it happen. Dogs living in shelters
for three years may never find homes without crowdsourcing and social
media. And, who can forget the famous
ALS Ice Bucket Challenge which began in 2014 and raised $115 million in just eight
weeks that year? In the end, crowdsourcing is limited only by our imaginations and generosity.
"For me, if folks who are watching YouTube can pitch in a bit to help cover the cost for creating this work, that's great, but I don't want folks who can't help to not have access to it. I really like the crowdfunding model in that regard." - Anita Sarkeesian
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