RE-volv and the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Offering Hurricane Zones $120,000 of Matching Funds to Install Solar Panels on Schools, Community Centers, Homeless Shelters, Churches and Other Types of Non-Profit Organizations

Good Samaritan’s that Donate $25 to $1,000 to Help Non-Profits Install Solar Power Arrays Will Receive a Tax Credit in Return for Their Donation to Help Generate Clean, Green Solar Electricity

By Robert Hoskins

Puerto Rico – The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation will provide a $120,000 award of matching funds to RE-volv, a solar crowdfunding platform, to install affordable roof top or community solar power for any non-profit organization located in Florida, Puerto Rico, Texas, and impacted cities throughout the United States. This makes it easy for any charity fundraising organization, school, community center, homeless shelter, pet welfare shelter, church or any other type of 503(c) non-profit organization that would like to install a solar power system to go to revolv.org and build a free crowdfunding profile that will allow them to raise enough money from friends, family and the general public to build solar power arrays that will generate free solar electricity for the next 25 years.

RE-volv and the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Offering Hurricane Zones $120,000 of Matching Funds to Install Solar on Schools, Community Centers, Homeless Shelters, and Churches

Good Samaritans that would like join academy-award winner, Leonardo DiCapri, and RE-volv in supporting solar crowdfunding campaigns to provide free solar power can donate money online with a credit card.  Anyone that makes a donation will receive a tax credit that can be filed with their personal or corporate tax return at the end of the year.

The partnership will provide matching funding for RE-volv’s 503 (c) crowdfunding platform, allowing donors the opportunity to double their contributions with support from the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation.

RE-volv supports solar energy projects for nonprofits that lack access to financing options. An estimated 1.5 million nonprofits in the U.S. face financial barriers to obtaining solar power, as they do not qualify for solar tax credits or are too small to attract traditional investors. RE-volv bridges this funding gap for organizations that provide valuable public services to vulnerable communities, including homeless shelters, schools, community centers, and houses of worship. This is the largest grant to date for RE-volv, a two-time awardee of the U.S. Department of Energy SunShot Initiative.

“RE-volv is working to make sure that the benefits of solar can reach everyone, including nonprofit organizations and the people they serve,” said Andreas Karelas, Executive Director of RE-volv. “Thanks to this generous grant from the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, RE-volv will be able to scale its impact and bring solar to even more nonprofits around the country.”

RE-volv’s unique solar crowdfunding platform is the first to employ a revolving fund. Donors select a specific nonprofit to support and, as the project pays back dividends through a solar lease agreement, the user can then reinvest their earnings into new solar projects through the RE-volv platform. This pay-it-forward model helps to accelerate solar energy deployment in local communities while keeping donors engaged in solar projects.

“The Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation is excited to support RE-volv,” said Gregory Lopez, Climate Program Director of the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation. “Not only is their work important in deploying solar energy and reducing greenhouse gasses, their unique solar crowdfunding business model provides an introduction of accessible, renewable energy to new communities.”

To date, RE-volv has raised over $300,000 from over 1,000 people in 22 countries. It has crowdfunded ten solar projects (150 kW of capacity) in four states, include Harbor House in Oakland, which serves refugee, immigrant, and low-income families with after-school programs and ESL classes, and Morris Chapel Baptist Church, the oldest African American Church in Philadelphia.

Thanks to the solar crowdfunding campaigns, grantees are expected to save between 15 and 40 percent on their electric bills. In total, these ten nonprofits will save more than $1.5 million over the life of their solar energy systems. RE-volv’s solar revolving fund, the Solar Seed Fund, is now worth $650,000 in future lease payments from these ten projects – payments which will be used to finance at least 20 more solar energy projects.

In addition to financing projects, RE-volv invites college students, community volunteers and solar advocates to become RE-volv Solar Ambassadors, who in turn lead ground efforts to deploy solar. RE-volv has educated 10,000 people about solar energy through training, outreach, and more than 100 events.

RE-volv empowers people to take direct action on climate change by crowdfunding solar energy projects for nonprofit organizations. Donations made to RE-volv’s crowdfunding campaigns grow a revolving fund that provides solar financing for nonprofits across the nation. RE-volv is an inaugural member of the White House National Community Solar Partnership.

Founded in 1998, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation (LDF) works to protect the Earth’s last wild places by implementing solutions that restore balance to threatened ecosystems, and ensuring the long-term health and wellbeing of all its inhabitants.

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Robert Hoskins
(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

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Mr. Robert Hoskins is a seasoned marketing veteran with a proven track record of helping entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses as well as Fortune 500 corporations launch successful marketing communications campaigns to gain market traction for a wide variety of products and services.

On a regular basis, Mr. Hoskins consults with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

Google search “Robert Hoskins Crowdfunding” to see why Mr. Hoskins is considered one of the industry’s foremost crowdfunding experts that has amassed a huge social media following, which is dedicated to supporting donation-, rewards- and equity-based crowdfunding campaigns.

 

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GoSun Exhibits Fuel-Free Solar Stove at Consumer Electronics (CE) 2017 to Support Equity Crowdfunding Campaign

GoSun is introducing the world’s first fuel-free solar powered grill, utilizing energy from the sun to bake, boil, fry or steam a meal for six in less than one hour, at the Metropolitan Pavilion during CE Week 2017, July 12 and 13 in New York City

By Robert Hoskins, Crowdfunding PR

New York City, New York – In order to expand its clean-tech business, the GoSun outdoor solar grill is undertaking an equity crowdfunding raise with the assistance of SeedInvest that for as little as $500, anyone can own a piece of GoSun and its solar powered future. GoSun will be tapping is growing crowd of customers to support its crowdfunding campaign with more 11,000+ stoves sold in +60 countries, and major distribution agreements signed with major retailers such as ACE Hardware, Brookstone, Cabela’s, REI, Home Depot and in third world countries where there is no electricity, propane or natural gas to cook with.

GoSun is introducing the world’s first fuel-free solar powered grill, utilizing free, green solar energy from the sun to bake, boil, fry or steam a meal for a family of people six in less than one hour

GoSun’s line of innovative solar cookstoves can bake, boil, or fry almost anything, just by using the power of the Sun’s solar energy. It’s clean and safe: there are no fossil fuels or wood, no smoke or emissions, no hot coals, no open flames, no explosive gas, and no grease or soot, which are major detriments in many undeveloped countries.

“According to the UN, over 3 billion people, are still cooking on fuels, such as Kerosene or wood, that are harmful to their health, contributing to deforested landscapes and a cycle of poverty,” explained Patrick Sherwin, GoSun Founder and CEO. “GoSun is committed to making game-changing clean cooking devices to power the good life in both developed and developing markets. The newly released GoSun Grill is designed to provide a convenient and accessible way to cook with free, clean, green solar energy while promoting sustainability and healthy cooking.”

How GoSun Solar Stove Works
The GoSun solar stoves incorporate a proprietary vacuum tube technology that allows for fast cooking, portability, simple operation, and safe and clean cooking, without propane or charcoal. Sunlight is focused by parabolic reflectors onto the vacuum tube that converts up to 80% of solar radiation into heat that builds up to temperatures of 550°F or 288°C. Despite the high cooking temperatures, the exterior of the grill remains cool. In addition, the vacuum tube also doubles as an insulator, keeping the food hot even with clouds, or in the freezing cold conditions.

How Much Does the GoSun Solar Stove Cost?
GoSun’s cookers are available online at REI, Home Depot, Brookstone or via GoSun’s website, at prices ranging from $279 to $799.

Solar Electric Hybrid Grill
“While we are excited about everything the grill can do, we realized it was lacking one capability – cooking at night,” stated Sherwin. “So we are also developing a solar electric hybrid grill that stores the sun’s energy enabling cooking at night.”

The storage solution includes a Photovoltaic (PV) panel to capture the energy during the day and an option electrical heating element to enable cooking at night. By placing the electrical heating element on the grill and leveraging the vacuum tube’s insulation capability, the hybrid grill cooks using only a fraction of the energy of an electric stove. The hybrid version of the grill will be available in 2018.

GoSun is an innovative manufacturer of solar cookers that can heat up to 550°F and cook a meal in as little as 20 minutes with no fuel other than the sun’s  free, green solar energy. What started as a simple inspiration has grown into the leading name in fuel-free cooking, delivering thousands of stoves in more than 60 countries. Visit www.GoSunStove.com for more information.

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Robert Hoskins
(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

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Mr. Robert Hoskins is a seasoned marketing veteran with a proven track record of helping entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses as well as Fortune 500 corporations launch successful marketing communications campaigns to gain market traction for a wide variety of products and services.

On a regular basis, Mr. Hoskins consults with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

Google search “Robert Hoskins Crowdfunding” to see why Mr. Hoskins runs one of the industry’s foremost crowdfunding PR, social media and marketing agencies that has amassed a huge social media following and is dedicated to supporting a wide variety of donation, rewards and equity crowdfunding campaigns.

Front Page PR Rolls Out Turnkey PR/Media Relations Service Portfolio for Franchises, Construction, Home Services (Solar & Energy Efficiency), Industrial, Manufacturing, and High-Tech Companies

For less than $5k per month, this leading public relations, social media and marketing firm will help startups, existing companies and corporations generate more website traffic and increase monthly sales

By Robert Hoskins

Maryville, Tennessee – Seeking a leading edge PR firm? Whether your company needs help generating publicity for a franchise’s Ripley’s Believe It or Not event or would benefit from generating positive PR publicity for a business-to-business (B2B) home service company that installs solar, saves money with home energy audits or offers HVAC tuneup services to help homeowners save money on monthly energy bills, Front Page PR can provide a cost-effective, turnkey growth-hacking marketing program for around $5,000+tax per month.

Front Page PR Rolls Out Turnkey PR/Media Relations Service Portfolio for Franchises, Construction, Home Services (Solar & Energy Efficiency), Industrial, Manufacturing, and High-Tech Companies

Front Page PR’s team of marketing experts can help growing companies write press releases, develop online press rooms, build social media networks, plan a digital advertising program, write search engine optimized blog pages for content marketing, generate precise databases of vertical B2B media contacts, write effective media pitches, build media relationships with the management team, find trade show panels discussion for subject matter experts to speak at and harvest email addresses for carefully-tailored email marketing programs. An excellent price for a full portfolio marketing services that is hard to beat and represents one of the most cost-effective deals in the B2B marketing industry.

“One of the most challenging decisions that most small companies face is hiring their first marketing consulting firm,” said Robert Hoskins, Front Page PR’s Director of PR and Media Relations. “Regardless of whether it’s a small startup seeking to gain market traction, a small business that wants to expand their existing business operations or a large corporation that is seeking merger and acquisition partners, our team of seasoned media relations experts can help any business move mountains with words and sway public persuasion with positive trade publication and business media interviews.”

“The average rate that most PR firms charge clients is $10,000 to $20,000 per month or $60,000 to $240,000 per year. The metric or question that all firms need to measure when evaluating their PR/media relations budget is, ‘Is my PR firm capable of generating at least $1 of media publicity for every $1 I spend on their PR consulting fees?’ ” Hoskins continued. “With that said, if a company can find a PR firm that can generate a 300% return-on-investment (ROI) for a budget of $60,000 per year, that’s equivalent to hiring three professional, seasoned marketing professionals, and/or receiving a minimum of $300,000 in positive, credible media exposure. Not many firms can deliver on this expectation, but our team can.”

Have an interest in learning more? Please give Front Page PR a call at (512) 627-6622 to learn more and to receive a free 30-minute review of your website, your social media credentials and an off-the-cuff review of what first steps might be taken to generate more website traffic, produce more business leads and how to help your sales team close deals on more new business. Front Page PR wants your business and is willing to work hard to earn your business, complete with a great ROI.

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Contact:
Robert Hoskins
Front Page PR
(512) 627-6622

GridShare Launches New Equity Crowdfunding Site to Provide Investment Opportunities for Solar, Wind and other Types Renewable Energy in the United States’ Booming Clean-Technology Industry

The GridShare Equity Crowdfunding Platform allows accredited and non-accredited investors to make very affordable investments in solar, wind and other types of renewable energy projects and clean-tech companies to raise debt or equity, opening up the renewable energy industry to a larger pool of investors

By Robert Hoskins

Portland, Oregon – GridShare.com announced that it has launched its new independent platform offering debt and equity crowdfunding investments that anyone in the United States as well as accredited investors can provide seed stage funding and venture capital to help renewable energy projects and clean-tech companies fund startups, expand businesses and launch new green energy power projects. The clean tech online investment platform allows investors to independently engage with green project owners to learn about and finance deals that will  help reduce America’s carbon footprint and slow down rapidly advancing global warning.

GridShare enables everyday people to invest in renewable energy projects and clean tech companies

“Raising money has been a huge impediment to the growth of the capital-intensive renewable energy industry,” said Jack Jacobs, CEO and Co-Founder of GridShare. “Now, with GridShare’s help, a project developer or clean-tech venture can tap into a new funding channel and ultimately spend less time fundraising and more time focusing on its core business.”

GridShare is funding portal authorized by the SEC and FINRA to conduct securities offerings under SEC Regulation Crowdfunding. Initial offerings on GridShare.com include a $250,000 secured debt offering for a community solar project, a $350,000 equity offering for a floating solar project and a $100,000 secured debt offering for a community wind project.

Floating on water, this 1.2 MegaWatt solar project in wine country (Sonoma County, California) is part of nearly 20 MegaWatts of floating solar projects awarded to Pristine Sun

Offerings on GridShare.com include a $100,000 secured debt offering for a community wind project

Posting a project on GridShare is free and easy. Once the GridShare team approves the project, it will be published online. Investors will then have the opportunity to review the project details, and invest online. With respect to US offerings, GridShare earns a commission from the offeror only if its funding goal is fully achieved. GridShare also offers optional services, such as assistance in preparing listing materials, filing forms, facilitating investor webinars, and managing the security offerings.

Potential investors can peruse investment opportunities in a variety of renewable energy sectors. GridShare also intends to host funding opportunities for energy efficiency initiatives and early-stage clean technology ventures.

“For too long, large financial institutions and accredited investors have controlled the financing for renewable energy. Finally, project developers like Pristine Sun can rely on GridShare to facilitate innovative solar investments available to all investors,” said Troy Helming, President of Pristine Sun, a major developer of solar projects in the US, and the sponsor of two listings currently hosted on GridShare.com. “Pristine Sun can now get support from the crowd to complete its solar projects, and the crowd can now own part of our projects and participate in the growing market for clean energy in the United States.”

GridShare is an online crowdfunding platform for renewable energy and clean-tech projects registered with the SEC and FINRA, which enables everyday people to invest in renewable energy projects and clean-tech companies based in the US.  By significantly expanding the funding options available to business owners and project developers, GridShare opens up the renewable energy industry to a much wider audience of non-accredited investors.

The platform is a clean technology agnostic, posting investment opportunities from all types of renewable energy projects and clean-tech companies. GridShare allows renewable energy projects and clean-tech companies to raise debt or equity from investors. By diversifying the available investment opportunities, GridShare offers a more inclusive environment for non-accredited and accredited investors alike.

GridShare International, LLC, which is not registered with the SEC,  but does assist issuers in countries other than the United States in listing securities offerings in their own countries.

# # #

Robert Hoskins
(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

---

Mr. Robert Hoskins is a seasoned marketing veteran with a proven track record of helping entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses as well as Fortune 500 corporations launch successful marketing communications campaigns to gain market traction for a wide variety of products and services.

On a regular basis, Mr. Hoskins consults with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

Google search “Robert Hoskins Crowdfunding” to see why Mr. Hoskins runs one of the industry’s foremost crowdfunding PR, social media and marketing agencies that has amassed a huge social media following and is dedicated to supporting a wide variety of donation, rewards and equity crowdfunding campaigns.

Is Title IV Reg A+ Equity Crowdfunding the Right Fundraising Tool for Your Growing Business?

A Checklist of Goals for Businesses Considering Raising Money with a Title IV Reg A+ Crowdfunding Campaign

By Robert Hoskins

Is Title IV Reg A+ Equity Crowdfunding the Right Fundraising Tool?

Austin, Texas – Trying to figure out if Title IV Reg A+ Equity Crowdfunding is the right fundraising tool to help your company move to the next level? Most people consider Reg A+ to be one step below issuing an IPO (Initial Public Offering) at a fraction of what it usually costs, thus it is also known as a Mini-IPO.

Most financial analysts consider existing businesses with several years of operations and generating significant revenue from multiple product/service lines to be the best candidates to launch a Reg A+ crowdfunding campaign. Smaller investment bookrunners will argue that even startups and small businesses are good targets to raise money using Reg A+, especially if they have goal of going public in 18-to-24 months based on certain revenue milestones.

Top Title IV Reg A+ Crowdfunding Questions:

1. Do you have a strong management team?
2. Do your founders or investors have any “Star Power?”
3. Do you need to raise more than $1 million?
4. Have you developed an effective 30-second elevator pitch?
5. Have you developed a 3-minute crowdfunding pitch video with a strong call-to-action?
6. Have you developed a “Pitch Book” for investors?
7. Do you have a lead investor of $25k+ or more?
8. Have you raised at least $100,000+ or more from prior investments?
9. Is your business growing at 20% or more month over month?
10. Have you generated at least $100,000+ of lifetime revenue?
11. Is your business projecting  2x to 3x year-on-year profit growth?
12. Can you provide investors with a 3x to 10x ROI over the next 3 to 5 years?
13. Is your market valuation worth $5 million or more?
14. Is your market capitalization realistic from a VC’s point of view?
15. Have you run a successful rewards/perks-based crowdfunding campaign?
16. Do you have a database of at least 5,000+ customer email accounts?
17. Do you have a database of at least 1,000+ investor email accounts?
18. Have you generated at least 3 or more press articles in the trade press?
19. Do you have a $20,000 or more for a advertising/crowdfunding PR budget?
20. Do you have a strong LinkedIn resume and a large social media following on Facebook and Twitter?

If you cannot answer “yes” to the majority of these questions, then your business may not be ready to launch a Reg A+ equity crowdfunding campaign. These are many of the milestones that private equity investors and venture capitalists like see in a pitch deck to make your company worth serious consideration for a seed stage or private equity investment. If not, use this list to set some goals and objectives for your business and work hard to achieve them.

Title IV Reg A+ vs. IPO

If you think you are serious about issuing a Reg A+ offering, it would be wise to read through the following white papers on Title IV Reg A+ vs. IPOs. Learning how a bookrunner works with various investment banks, institutional investors, venture capital and private equity firms can provide valuable insight into how Wall Street has been raising money for startups for the past 100 years.

The white papers will also provide key insights into how much money it will cost as well as the actual fundraising process including what it takes to put together a “Pitch Book” and how to market it via “Dog and Pony” investment road shows. The key to raising for a company’s management team to travel from city to city meeting with potential investors to pitch Reg A+ investment opportunities.

• A Guide to Title IV Reg A+ – White Paper
• IPO (Initial Public Offering) Guidebook – White Paper
• Managing Key Investors in IPOs (Initial Public Offerings) – White Paper
• Fatal Flaws in Selecting an IPO (Initial Public Offering) Underwriter Selection – White Paper

Title IV Reg A+ Background

The SEC has previously stated that the primary purpose in adopting Reg A+ was to provide a simple and relatively inexpensive procedure for small business use in raising limited amounts of needed capital. Reg A+ issuers submit a paper-based offering statement to the SEC; this offering statement is essentially an abbreviated version of an IPO prospectus and it must be “qualified,” or cleared, by the SEC and delivered to prospective purchasers.

In addition to SEC review, Reg A+ offerings have traditionally been subject to review under state securities laws (also known as “Blue Sky” laws). In comparison, a traditional registered IPO listed on a national exchange is exempt from Blue Sky requirements. Securities sold in a Reg A+ offering are freely transferable in the secondary market, though Reg A+ issuers are not subject to Exchange Act reporting requirements.

Title IV Reg A+ as Outlined by 2012 JOBS Act

Title IV of the 2012 JOBS Act directed the SEC to expand Reg A to exempt offerings of up to $50 million in equity, debt or convertible securities. The law mandated that issuers relying on this new exemption would be required to file audited financial statements with the SEC on an annual basis.

However, without infrastructure currently in place for A+ securities to trade on national exchanges, lawmakers left it within the purview of the SEC to settle the state jurisdiction question by establishing the definition for “qualified purchaser” in the rulemaking process.

The 2nd Tier of Title IV Reg A+ Offerings

The SEC’s final rule was adopted on March 25, 2015, and became effective during the summer of 2015. In the rule, the SEC expanded Regulation A into two tiers: Tier 1 for offerings of up to $20 million and Tier 2 for offerings up to $50 million.

By removing key procedural obstacles and introducing common-sense investor protections, this new Reg A+ framework creates a viable capital-raising alternative for issuers that want to remain independent and innovative. Below are some of the key provisions included in the SEC’s Reg A+ rule:

• Testing the waters: Issuers may solicit interest in a potential offering with the general public, either before or after the filing of the offering statement.
• Blue Sky: Offerings made under Tier 2 are generally exempt from state securities law registration and qualification requirements. And while Tier 1 offerings would still be subject to state Blue Sky regulations, the states’ new Coordinated Review process has dramatically reduced the burdens associated with this process.
• Offering Circular: Issuers can confidentially file statements for SEC qualification. Offering circular must include audited financial statements and balance sheets for the two most recently completed fiscal year ends. The Offering Circular format is narrative disclosure, similar to what is required from smaller reporting companies in a prospectus, but more limited in certain respects.
• Proceeds: For Tier 2 offerings, there is an annual offering limit of up to $50 million in equity, debt or convertible securities, including no more than $15 million from selling security holders. For Tier 1 offerings, the annual limit is $20 million, with not more than $6 million from selling security holders preceded or accompanied by a preliminary offering circular.
• Transferability/Liquidity for Investors: Securities sold in these offerings are not “restricted securities” under the Securities Act, and thus are freely tradable in the secondary market.
• Ongoing Reporting: Issuers that conduct a Tier 2 offering must electronically file annual and semiannual reports with the SEC, but those who conduct Tier 1 offerings generally have no ongoing reporting obligations.

Are Title IV Reg A+ Shares More Liquid?

Securities offered under Reg A+ are freely tradable, which makes them more valuable to employees, investors and founders.  This is beneficial for investors but also for issuer constituents, who may be early investors or insiders, seeking liquidity.  The issuers’ choice of venue is mostly to do with the size of the offering and the company’s market capitalization.

Need Help Preparing a Title IV Reg A+ Offering?

How Much Money Would You Like to Raise?

What Industry Do the Business Serve?

Company Website

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Founder Email(required)

What Crowdfunding Goals Do You Need Help With?(required)

Building a Company Website with Great SEO Developing a Strong Social Media Following Generating Positive PR Articles in the Press Completing One Successful Crowdfunding Campaign Developing an Email Database of ~5k+ Customers Developing a Database of ~1k+ Potential Investors Developing a Customer Acquisition Program Growing Sales and Distribution Channels Raising a $20k Social Media and PR Budget Our Business is Ready to Launch Something Not Listed Here

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Robert Hoskins
(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

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Mr. Robert Hoskins is a seasoned marketing veteran with a proven track record of helping entrepreneurs, startups, small businesses as well as Fortune 500 corporations launch successful marketing communications campaigns to gain market traction for a wide variety of products and services.

On a regular basis, Mr. Hoskins consults on a regular basis with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

Google search “Robert Hoskins Crowdfunding” to see why Mr. Hoskins is considered one of the industry’s foremost crowdfunding experts that has amassed a huge social media following, which is dedicated to supporting donation-, rewards- and equity-based crowdfunding campaigns.

In addition, due to the overwhelming demand from the general public for information on crowdfunding, he empowers entrepreneurs, startups and existing businesses with the internet’s most affordable crowdfunding training classes, which provide insight to startups around the world on a 24 x 7 basis.

Seedrs Equity Crowdfunding Site Raises over £4.5 Million for Assetz Capital, Trillion Fund, Landbay, CrowdLords, PledgeSports and CrowdCanDo

P2P lending and equity crowdfunding campaigns rapidly gaining investors with “equity crowdfunding done right” approach

 By Robert Hoskins

London, United Kingdom – Seedrs, one of the largest crowdfunding firms in Europe focuses solely on equity investments, announced that peer-to-peer lender Assetz Capital has raised £3,179,750 from 731 investors through the Seedrs platform, the second largest campaign hosted by Seedrs to date.

Seedrs makes it simple to buy into the businesses you believe in and share in their success

This raise has cemented Seedrs’s position as “crowdfunder to the professionals.” Assetz Capital followed a number of successful campaigns:

• LandBay, the P2P lending platform for buy-to-let property, raised £569,044 across several fundraising rounds through Seedrs in late 2013 and 2014. LandBay has since gone on to raise a venture capital round from Omni Partners.
• Trillion Fund, a leading solar, renewable energy and environmental social crowdfunding platform, raised £536,800 through Seedrs in December 2014.
• CrowdLords, a property crowdfunding platform, raised £150,000 through Seedrs in November 2014
• PledgeSports, an Irish sport crowdfunding platform, raised €100,000 (£72,000) through Seedrs in April 2015
• CrowdCanDo, a events crowdfunding platform, raised £22,000 through Seedrs in September 2013

“All of these crowdfunding and peer-to-peer  platforms focus on asset classes other than equity, so when raising capital for themselves, they wanted to work with the leader in the equity crowdfunding space,”Jeff Lynn, CEO and Co-Founder of Seedrs. “They chose Seedrs because they understand the importance to them and to their investors of our  ‘equity crowdfunding done properly’ approach.”

The Assetz Capital fundraising, which smashed its initial target of £2 million, was the second largest campaign hosted by Seedrs to date. The largest—which holds the record for the largest equity crowdfunding campaign ever in Europe—was Chapel Down Group’s £3.9 million fundraising through Seedrs in September 2014.

Lynn continued, “We’re proud to have enabled equity crowdfunding and peer-to-peer companies to raise money successfully.  Our peers recognize that our approach, based on simplicity and transparency, consistently delivers results. It’s equity crowdfunding done properly.”

“We chose Seedrs for our crowdfunding round because we know it to be the most professional and respected platform in the equity space,” said Stuart Law, Assetz Capital’s CEO. “Its size and reach were important factors, but so was its focus on helping investee companies grow while protecting investor rights. We were thrilled with the outcome of our campaign and fully understand why Seedrs is the equity platform that other crowdfunding and peer-to-peer lending platforms choose.”

The UK alternative finance market is predicted to grow to £4.4 billion in 2015 up from £1.7 billion in 2014 as businesses increasingly look to source more efficient ways to raise capital.

Between 2012 and 2014 the equity crowdfunding sector alone grew by 410%.  Against this backdrop, in the past three years Seedrs has become the most successful equity crowdfunder in Europe, funding 110 deals in 2014.

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SolBid.com Launches Crowdfunding Campaign to Raise Funds for Initiative ‘Brighter Classrooms’

Solar energy start up, SolBid has made it their mission to help schools from the looming educational budget deficit in the U.S. through the use of solar energy

By Robert Hoskins

Boston, MA – SolBid.com is a nationwide solar energy services provider, whose services have a profound economic and environmental impact. The brilliant idea Brighter Classrooms was conceptualized when SolBid’s co-founders Nate Raymond and Ian Ricci were mapping out the final iteration of their business model when over lunch talks of education in the U.S. manifested. Educational funding from both federal and state is diminishing, while costs to educate children are rising. This is causing teacher layoffs, termination of critical programs, increased pupil to teacher ratios, and school closures across the country.

SolBid Launches Crowdfunding Campaign to Raise Funds for Initiative Brighter Classrooms

“Because of detrimental budget cuts to education, we are taking away critical resources from our children and their teachers are being laid off. These children are our future leaders and something needs to be done. Schools spend an estimated $8billion a year in energy costs, the second largest budget item behind personnel. Instead of cutting personnel costs, why aren’t we tackling energy costs? Now there’s an idea!” said Nate Raymond, CEO.

The two co-founders found themselves in a situation where they could make an impact. SolBid’s solar solutions harvest energy from the sun to produce electricity, are virtually maintenance free, have an average life span of about 30 years, and can offer a return on their investment in little as 4-5 years. Beyond the economic benefits, solar is also a clean energy source that can help offset the use of damaging fossil fuels that release toxic carbon dioxide and mercury emissions that lead to harmful pollution and climate change.

What better than the use of solar energy on schools to reduce operational costs, alleviate budgets and help foster a better education for our children all while saving the environment.

So the men have vowed to take their patronage further by creating a business model which includes donating a portion of SolBid’s sales revenue for the life of the company to an initiative they are calling, Brighter Classrooms. Through this program SolBid will provide solar energy systems to disadvantaged schools across the U.S. and have them installed by local solar installers, generating yet another positive effect on the economy in the school’s surrounding area.

The school in turn will receive up to 30 years’ worth of free, zero-emission electricity generated by solar, saving school districts a tremendous amount of money. This will allow schools to funnel more dollars directly towards the education of our children, and potentially save a number of teachers from unwanted layoffs.

The vision of Brighter Classrooms is to free up school budgets and in return helping schools provide a better education for our children while at the same time reducing our carbon footprint and saving the environment.

There are over 120,000 schools in the United States that could greatly benefit from a solar power system. To support the cause SolBid is launching a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo beginning this Earth Day, April 22, 2015. The campaign will assist in launching the program and in donating the 1st solar energy system. For converting this idea into reality, the founders of SolBid seek the support of the people and are looking for contributions in favor of this campaign.

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RE-volv’s IndieGoGo Crowdfunding Campaign Successfully Raises $50,002 to Fund 36-kW Community Solar Project to Power Organic Food Cooperative in San Francisco

“Solar Seed Fund” finances solar clean energy projects for non-profits and cooperatives by crowdfunding tax deductible donations to fund 20-year solar leases that give back to the community

By Robert Hoskins

San Francisco, California –  RE-volv, a San Francisco-based nonprofit, successfully completed its third crowdfunding campaign on Thursday, raising over $50,000 to finance a 36-kW solar array for the Other Avenues Food Cooperative in San Francisco. RE-volv’s innovative solar financing model, the Solar Seed Fund — the first of its kind — uses crowdfunding to grow a revolving fund that’s continually reinvested in community-based solar projects.

SolarSeedFund Raises Money with Crowdfunding to Build Community Solar Projects

“People are sick of waiting for leaders to take action on climate change. They want to lead the way in their own communities and RE-volv is giving them a tool to do that.” said Andreas Karelas, Executive Director of RE-volv. “Having completed three successful campaigns, we see that this model is replicable and poised to grow rapidly.”

During its first three Indiegogo crowdfunding campaigns, RE-volv has raised over $121,000 from close to 900 donations from people in 38 states and 22 countries. This money is being utilized to finance three community-based solar projects amounting to 68kW of solar capacity.

RE-volv finances solar energy projects for non-profits and cooperatives that serve their community. RE-volv covers the initial costs of a 20-year solar lease by crowdfunding tax deductible donations.

As communities pay RE-volv back through a solar lease over time, RE-volv reinvests those funds plus interest into new projects for nonprofits and cooperatives creating a revolving fund for solar energy that serves the community.

“I’ve been working on this project for eight years, and it’s been difficult to find the right fit for financing this solar project,” said Other Avenues president Darryl Dea. “So when RE-volv came around it was a perfect fit for us because not only do they work with nonprofits and co-ops, but we’re able to contribute to this fund which will further create more solar projects.”

Leading up to Global Divestment Day last week, Bill McKibben, author and founder of 350.org, added, “As everyone’s divesting, might be worth donating a little money to this Solar Seed Fund” which resulted in increased donations for the campaign.

Another factor that helped RE-volv reach its crowdfunding goal was being selected as a winner of the OpenIDEO Renewable Energy Challenge two weeks ago.

As a result, RE-volv will receive resources and support from innovative design firm IDEO and leading environmental foundation, the 11th Hour Project. Open IDEO described RE-volv’s model in this way: “The Solar Seed Fund isn’t your grandma’s crowdfunding platform… It’s a positive feedback cycle that encourages communities to rapidly transition to solar.”

Winning the OpenIDEO challenge adds to a growing line of support for RE-volv. RE-volv has received support for its work from Audubon’s Toyota TogetherGreen program, the San Francisco Foundation, the Rose Foundation, the Yahoo Employee Foundation, Patagonia, KIND Healthy Snacks, Aveda, and Whole Foods.

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GridShare.com Opens New Clean-Tech Equity Crowdfunding Site in San Francisco to Fund Renewable Energy Startups and Community Solar Projects

Potential investors can peruse investment opportunities in a variety of renewable energy sectors, including: solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, and small hydropower

By Robert Hoskins

San Francisco, CA – GridShare.com announced the launch of its clean technology crowdfunding platform to help renewable energy and solar projects and clean-tech companies raise capital. By creating an online platform where investors can independently engage with project owners seeking funding, GridShare is positioned to be the leading force in crowdfunding for the alternative energy industry.

GridShare Enables Everyday People to Invest in Renewable Energy, Solar, Wind, GeoThermal, and HydroPower Projects in the Clean-Tech Industry around the World

GridShare is a unique online platform where renewable energy project developers and clean-tech companies from around the world post their funding needs. Potential investors can peruse investment opportunities in a variety of renewable energy sectors, including: solar, wind, geothermal, biogas, and small hydropower. GridShare also intends to host funding opportunities for energy efficiency initiatives and early-stage clean technology ventures.

“Raising money has been a huge impediment to the growth of the capital-intensive renewable energy industry,” said Jack Jacobs, CEO and Co-Founder, GridShare. “Now, with GridShare’s help, a project developer or cleantech venture can tap into a new funding channel and, ultimately, spend less time fundraising and more time focusing on their core business.”

There are three different types of investment opportunities that a company may offer through GridShare: debt, equity, and donations. High net-worth individuals, or “accredited investors,” can browse projects online, read pertinent information about the venture, and then pledge funding in exchange for equity or interest. Non-accredited investors can donate funds to a project or company that offers this option. As soon as the JOBS Act crowdfunding rules are finalized, all users will be able to invest freely for equity online.

Posting a project on GridShare is free and easy. Once the GridShare team approves the project, it will be published online. Investors will then have the opportunity to review the project details, and pledge their financial support online. The offeror then contacts the investor to arrange payment and finalize investment terms.

“For too long, large banks have controlled which solar projects can be financed. Finally, project developers like Samba Energy can rely on GridShare to offer high quality solar investments to investors nationwide,” said Michael Hidary, Managing Partner, Samba Energy, a national provider of software and services for clean energy and commercial building energy efficiency. “Samba Energy can now complete more installations and private investors can gain strong, predictable returns from solar power projects.”

GridShare earns a commission from the offeror only if its funding goal is fully achieved. GridShare also offers optional services for users that prefer to sell securities through a registered broker/dealer, conduct legal transactions under the guidance of an experienced law firm, and/or develop their materials with the help of a marketing professional.

GridShare enables everyday people to invest in renewable energy projects and cleantech companies around the world. GridShare is an independent online crowdfunding platform for renewable energy projects and clean-tech companies seeking funding.  

Investors can engage directly and independently with owners and developers through the platform. By significantly expanding the funding options available to business owners and project developers, GridShare opens up the renewable energy industry to a much wider audience of investors.

The platform is clean technology agnostic, posting investment opportunities from all types of renewable energy projects and clean-tech companies.

GridShare allows renewable energy projects and clean technology companies to raise debt, equity and/or donations from investors. By diversifying the available investment opportunities, GridShare offers a more inclusive environment for non-accredited and accredited investors alike. 

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Texas Investors, Entrepreneurs and Startups are Invited to Attend a Capital Factory Angel Crowdfunding Event in Austin

“Inside Tips and Secrets on What It Takes to Get Angel Investors to Write the First Check”

Angel Investor Panel Discussion and Question and Answer Session will include guest speakers from the Capital Factory and DreamFunded of Texas

 By Robert Hoskins

Austin, Texas – DreamFunded of Texas, Inc. announced that Manny Fernandez, CEO/Co-founder, will be the featured keynote speaker at an open-invitation angel/venture capital event, DreamFunded: Angel Investment Crowdfunding, from 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Thursday, January 29, 2015 at the Austin-based Capital Factory located at 701 Brazos Street, Austin, TX 78701. Mr. Fernandez’s keynote will provide “Inside Tips and Secrets on What it Takes to Get Angel Investors to Write the First Check” followed by an angel investor panel board discussion/Q&A session.

DreamFunded.com to Launch Texas Equity Crowdfunding Site Pending Approval from the TSSB

Click below to RSVP for a free seat at this exclusive angel investor presentation:
http://www.meetup.com/austin-crowdfunding-network/events/102002392/

The purpose of the event is to introduce a new generation of financial technology (fin-tech) investing platforms called Texas Crowdfunding Portals (TCPs) that will soon be providing equity investment opportunities to more than 20 million new Texas investors, who will have the legal right (when the TCP is approved by Texas State Securities Board) to invest up to $5,000 per startup company as angel investors. Investors can click here to register.

This new-style of Texas equity crowdfunding represents a vast departure from the old-school practice of working with broker-dealers where only accredited investors could get access to investments in up and coming high-tech, rapid growth areas to potentially spawn the next Uber, Google, or Facebook.

“DreamFunded.com has highly vetted startups within its platform for accredited investor members. This streamlines the investment process and makes it much easier for promising entrepreneurs to market their startup to a wide variety of accredited angel investors,” said Manny Fernandez, DreamFunded.com’s CEO. Click here to apply for startup funding at DreamFunded.com.

Currently DreamFunded.com is active for accredited investors only regardless of what state they live in.  When the platform officially opens the site for non-accredited investors, Crowdfunders also known as Issuers will be able to market their private equity investment deals immediately to more than over 3,400 accredited investors.  This represents a large pool worth millions of dollars of seed and venture capital that is ready and seeking to be invested in attractive new Texas business opportunities.

“Our Texas equity crowdfunding portal is awaiting approval from the Texas State Securities Board (TSSB), but the site is currently open to accredited investors,” said Rexford Hibbs, DreamFunded.com’s CFO.

About Manny Fernandez, CEO, DreamFunded.com

Mr. Manny Fernandez is the founder of SF Angels Group, an angel investing group in San Francisco / Silicon Valley tech startups that is now seeking to invest in Texas-based companies.  Some of DreamFunded’s angel investors include a partner of Capital Factory, an angel member of CTAN and also an early investor of Heritage Bank in Texas.

DreamFunded won the equity crowdfunding leadership award by Startup Grind Monterey Bay.

Manny has been selected to join the prestigious panel of investors at South-by-Southwest Interactive 2015 (SXSW) and is a frequent speaker/judge for pitch contents and conferences across the world.

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Contact:
Robert Hoskins
Front Page PR
(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR
@FrontPage_PR