Jessica Jackley is a Founder and CEO of ProFounder (www.profounder.com), a platform providing new ways for small business entrepreneurs in the U.S. to access start-up capital through crowdfunding and community involvement. ProFounder will launch to the public in the fall of 2010.
Prior to ProFounder, Jessica was a Founder, Chief Marketing Officer, and Director of Kiva (www.kiva.org), the world’s first p2p microlending website. Kiva lets users lend as little as $25 to poor entrepreneurs around the world, providing affordable capital for them to start or expand microenterprises. Since its founding in October 2005, Kiva has facilitated over $160 in loans across 205 countries.I had the pleasure of hearing Jessica speak at a recent Alberta Women Entrepreneurs Conference, on May 4, 2012. Jessica's passion for business and making a difference in the lives of others was contagious. In her presentation, she also responded to questions about crowdsourcing
Raising funds for a small business can be a daunting task for any fledgling entrepreneur. Whether it be from friends and family or from the general public, finding investors, setting terms of the funding, assigning equity and filing compliance documents is a challenge. ProFounder, is a stealth start up that ensures all entrepreneurs and small businesses have access to an easy and simple fundraising platform.
My book, On Toby's Terms is in development to become a major motion picture! This is incredibly exciting, and a great learning opportunity. The movie producers launched a short window crowd sourcing campaign through Indie GoGo. You can learn more here: http://www.indiegogo.com/On-Tobys-Terms-The-movie
It will be interesting learning more about how these sites can assist small businesses and community organizations.
