MyKronoz ZeTime: The Hybrid Smartwatch Makes Crowdfunding History Raising $5.3 Million on Kickstarter

The Swiss challenger is not stopping there; ZeTime pre-orders are now available on Indiegogo from $149, a discount of the future retail price of $199

By Robert Hoskins

Geneva, Switzerland – In just 35 days, Swiss brand MyKronoz, has now entered crowdfunding history: at $5.3 million, the game changing timepiece ZeTime has become the most-funded project from a European company, as well as the most-funded hybrid smartwatch ever.

ZeTime pre-orders now available on Indiegogo for $149, a discount of the future retail price of $199

Pre-orders for the ZeTime are now continuing on Indiegogo. With this achievement MyKronoz aims to become the worldwide leader in the hybrid smartwatch market segment.

Having already sold more than 2 million wearables since its launch in 2013 thanks to its “smartwatches for everyone” approach, accessible price points, a wide variety of models, and on-trend designs, MyKronoz is today an established and leading player in Europe.

The latest success of its crowdfunding campaign confirms MyKronoz bold leadership ambition to conquer the world outside Europe, especially in North America and Southeast Asia where thousands backers have supported this Swiss innovation.

MyKronoz is determined to accelerate its expansion across a network of strategic retail partners and increase its global market share, both with ZeTime and the rest of its $39 – $199 product range.

Today, MyKronoz is the first to offer a smartwatch with mechanical hands over TFT color touchscreen. This pioneering engineering means ZeTime is able to blend the classic design of a traditional timepiece with the most advanced features of a smartwatch, while making no compromises in quality of the materials, water resistance or battery life.

Proprietary ‘Smart Movement’ technology enables these always-on hands to function for up to 30 days with a single charge, while adjusting to users’ timezone, as well as aligning to make sure they do not obstruct visibility of the screen when reading notifications.

Combining Swiss watchmaking with wearable tech expertise

“We are achieving this success in the context of a wearables market where mainstream adoption has not yet taken off. So we decided to create a new dynamic by delivering the perfect hybrid smartwatch without compromises,” said Boris Brault, CEO and founder of MyKronoz. “Bringing the best of Swiss design and watchmaking expertise into a wearable device. ZeTime embodies this vision, and demonstrates our position as a game changer and fierce challenger to both established watchmakers and wearables players.”

Brault continued, “The huge momentum of this Kickstarter campaign has really been another market validation for us: both on the potential of hybrid smartwatches, and the international growth of our Swiss Brand thanks to this fantastic innovation. We have really felt an incredible amount of passion from our backers, and impatience for our product. This helps us to pursue our ambition to become tomorrow’s leader in new generation watches.”

Behind this groundbreaking success story lie 26,828 backers, a community that truly collaborated to build the ZeTime together. After raising 500% of their original funding goal in less than 24 hours on Kickstarter, MyKronoz surveyed contributors for stretch goal ideas.

Suggestions flooded in, ranging from “Kickstarter exclusives” such as a limited-edition watch engraving and “Kickstarter Green” stitch carbon wristband, to the more technically demanding such as upgrading the watch’s original Gorilla Glass protective screen to Sapphire Glass.

While pursuing its mission to make the perfect and most universal smartwatch, MyKronoz was able to integrate not only these features, but also to launch a much-requested 39mm “Petite” version of ZeTime, ensuring that all consumers could find the model that fits their wrist, however wide or small.

This community engagement, visible in the over 8,000 comments posted on the campaign’s front page alone, was amplified further during its two Kickstarter Live broadcasts: more than 3,000 simultaneous users attended to meet and chat with the company CEO, CPO and CMO, and see close-ups of product prototypes.

MyKronoz is extremely grateful to Kickstarter community for ZeTime’s success: the $5.3 million total has earned the campaign a solid place in the platform’s hall of fame.

However, the Swiss challenger is not stopping there: with pre-orders now available on Indiegogo from $149, a discount of the future retail price of $199.90 (shipping in October for Regular version, December for Petite version), it is not too late for those who missed the Kickstarter to claim a piece of this smartwatch revolution.

ZeTime: Breaking tech barriers to be an elegant daily companion

A classic take on wearable technology, ZeTime has a sleek stainless steel watch case available in two sizes (44mm & 39mm) inspired by the finest Swiss design, along with a variety of interchangeable digital watch faces and straps created to fit every style.

ZeTime is set for action with a 3-axis accelerometer and an optical heart-rate sensor to track activity and sleep. With waterproof performance (up to 30 meters’ depth), ZeTime provides the quality and versatility expected from traditional high-end timepieces, at a much lower price.

ZeTime belongs to the fast-growing segment of hybrid smartwatches, which at first glance look and function like traditional analogue watches but include smart features such as activity tracking, heart rate monitor and notifications. Accounting for a 7% share of smartwatch sales in 2016, market research firm Counterpoint Technology predicts hybrid smartwatches will rise to a 12% share in 2017, doubling in revenues to more than US$ 1 Billion.

Though both luxury traditional watchmakers and wearable tech brands are turning towards hybrid models, with ZeTime, MyKronoz is the first to drill a hole in a TFT color touchscreen display to incorporate mechanical moving hands.

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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 crowdfunding campaigns.

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Titan Note Earns more than $500k with Four Days to Go via Perks-Based Indiegogo Crowdfunding Campaign

Titan Note’s innovative technology promises to make pen and paper a thing of the past for taking notes in school and office environments

 By Robert Hoskins

Malmo, Sweden – Titan Note, the pocket-sized transcription device, has passed their most recent stretch goal of $500,000. Titan Note is a groundbreaking device that will forever change the way someone take notes. Since the beginning of time, people have taken notes by hand. Titan Note paves the way for the future and it is giant leap forward in a field that has not seen much progress. Titan Note uses cutting edge speech recognition that records audio by multiple microphones. It is equipped with advanced voice biometrics to identify who is speaking. It’s sleek and simple design is portable, water resistant, and now comes in a variety of colors.

Titan Note allows students around the world can now spend their time focusing in class, rather than taking notes that cause distraction

“Titan Note is a device that millions of people will benefit from. Students around the world can now spend their time focusing in class, rather than taking notes that cause distraction,” Titan Note CEO Erik Jansson said. “We’re very proud to announce new features for Titan Note and continue to perfect the device.”

Titan Note transcribes in real-time, so there is minimal delay between recording and transcription. Titan Note’s application allows users to edit and add information as the transcription is rolling in. The word error rate for Titan Note is roughly the same as human transcription, so there is little need to go into the Titan Note application and edit. Titan Note can decipher between multiple speakers in a large lecture hall or office and is effective up to 70 feet. Titan Note is equipped with noise-canceling microphones combined with noise-canceling algorithms to filter out background noise and improve the accuracy.

On Indiegogo, Titan Note began with a goal of $35,000, which was quickly surpassed over only a couple of days. After fully funding, Titan Note announced a new goal of $150,000 then they were onto another goal of $250,000, which was rapidly reached. After that exciting jump, Titan Note was onto their next goal of $500,000. By reaching this stretch goal, the campaign has unlocked two new colors, genius green and success yellow.

Titan Note’s technology has incorporated extra features to make note-taking more fun. Titan Note is also endowed with a Bluetooth speaker that is able to play music through the Titan Note Application. The application will be available for free on Android and iOS. In addition, the device doubles as a power bank for any USB compatible charger. To ensure Titan Note is never left behind, it is equipped with an anti-lost system that will alert the user via the Titan Note app.

Titan Note created their first hardware prototype almost a year ago and are working hard to add more languages into the device’s translation capabilities. The team at Titan Note is thrilled to announce their new stretch goal of $1,000,000. They will be updating the device with new features and colors and will be introducing Savvy Silver and Focus Blue as two new color options. Two new features will include being able to upload old recordings to the app for transcription and getting timestamps to see how long each person has been talking.

Titan Note is currently being sold for $80 on Indiegogo. To learn more about Titan Note or to pre-order, visit bit.ly/TitanNoteIGG.

When Titan Note CEO, Erik Jansson, was in college and university, many complained that it was hard to listen and take notes at the same time. It was then he realized that there had to be a better way. It was then he got to work developing a more advanced and accurate method of taking notes. Jansson has a goal to save people time, headache and missed information with the introduction of Titan Note.

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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 crowdfunding campaigns.

IBM, Indiegogo and Arrow Electronics Partner to Fuel the Next Generation of Internet of Things with Crowdfunding

Entrepreneurs to Get Free Access to IBM’s Watson IoT Platform and Discounts on Cloud Services

By Robert Hoskins

Munich, Germany – IBM (NYSE: IBM) announced a partnership with Indiegogo and Arrow Electronics (NYSE: ARW) to help bring new Internet of Things (IoT) ideas to life. This collaboration brings IBM’s Watson IoT platform and cloud services together with ideation to production services from Arrow Electronics and Indiegogo – the world’s largest crowd sourced funding platform with more than $1.1 billion raised.

IBM, Indiegogo and Arrow Electronics Partner to Fuel the Next Generation of Internet of Things Startups

Now, qualified Indiegogo entrepreneurs will have no-charge access to IBM Watson IoT Platform via Bluemix for an unlimited amount of time, giving them access to more than 160 industry-leading cloud services to incorporate ready-to-use capabilities, such as artificial intelligence, Blockchain, advanced data analytics and cyber security into their latest IoT inventions. In addition, qualified startups will have access to IBM’s global network of technical and industry expertise, education, mentoring and enterprise customers and business partners, all of which can help to bring new and innovative IoT products to market quickly.

“We’re very excited to be partnering with Arrow and IBM to help entrepreneurs bring their wildest IoT dreams to life,” said David Mandelbrot, CEO of Indiegogo. “We know that fundraising is only one piece of the entrepreneurial puzzle, and by working together with IBM and Arrow we’ll be able to continue making it easier for entrepreneurs to bring their ideas all the way from concept to market.”

Experts predict that by 2022, the IoT landscape will be worth $14.2 trillion.¹ A critical driver to this growth will be entrepreneurs and early-stage businesses which, while armed with ideas, lack the resources and skills to develop these next-generation IoT innovations and bring them to market.

Early examples of Arrow Certified Indiegogo IoT startup projects include:

• Fitly, which created Smart Plate, the first intelligent nutrition platform that instantly analyzes and tracks what you eat. An industry first, Smart Plate was developed with support from Arrow and IBM Cloud, and was successfully funded on Indiegogo.
• PlayDate, a startup that launched on Indiegogo, created the first smart ball for pets that lets owners interact with their dogs and cats from anywhere in the world. The PlayDate team ran the highest grossing pet tech crowdfunding campaign to date, but used Indiegogo for much more than just funding. They were one of the first campaigns to get Arrow-certified, a badge of approval on their manufacturing plans, and they received $100,000 in flash funding as well as engineering design support. “Arrow and Indiegogo’s support was incredibly valuable,” said Kevin Li, CEO at PlayDate. “Our campaign with Indiegogo opened doors with partners and acted as market validation for investors. Indiegogo and Arrow partnering with IBM will be a huge benefit for entrepreneurs using the platform.”

Through this partnership, IBM, Indiegogo and Arrow are removing key barriers and providing the expertise, resources and funding that entrepreneurs need to develop innovative new connected products and quickly and cost-effectively bring them to market. Combining IBM’s powerful cognitive capabilities with Indiegogo’s entrepreneur platform and Arrow’s end-to-end technology design and production expertise will rapidly increase the volume and quality of IoT devices in market and help fuel a new generation of entrepreneurs.

“Entrepreneurs and startups play a vital role in creating the next generation of businesses – their drive, innovation and passion for bringing new ideas to life is particularly important in building the IoT,” said Harriet Green, General Manager Watson IoT. “We are thrilled to partner with Indiegogo and Arrow Electronics to accelerate IoT innovation and development around the world working hand in hand with some of the best and brightest entrepreneurs, developers and startups to build an even better IoT.”

In addition to IBM’s benefits, Arrow provides qualified Indiegogo campaigns with up to $500,000 in benefits, such as component parts, online product design and prototyping tools, comprehensive technical reviews with Arrow engineers, manufacturing and supply chain services and sustainable recycling. As the only global technology company capable of providing comprehensive, sensor-to-sensor, full IoT product lifecycle solutions, Arrow is uniquely positioned to guide the biggest names in technology, and startups and makers alike, along their IoT production journey.

“IBM will take our groundbreaking collaboration with Indiegogo to a whole new level, helping us reach more entrepreneurs and get their innovative products to market quickly and cost-effectively,” said Arrow’s Chief Digital Officer Matt Anderson. “As one of the world’s largest providers of electronic and IT products and services in the world, Arrow has the breadth of resources and depth of expertise to successfully shepherd promising entrepreneurs along their path to market. Arrow engineers around the world are eager to collaborate with Indiegogo entrepreneurs on cutting-edge tech designs that incorporate the best that IBM’s Watson IoT and cloud services have to offer.”

IBM made the announcement at its first-ever Genius of Things Summit at the company’s Watson IoT headquarters in Munich, where customers, partners and influencers gathered to examine how Watson clients are implementing IoT solutions that drive exceptional outcomes. Around the globe, IBM is working with more than 6,000 clients, across industries, to help them truly realize the benefits of IoT. For more information, please visit:on IBM Watson IoT

Originally launched as a crowdfunding platform, Indiegogo is the place for entrepreneurs to move their ideas quickly from concept to market. Entrepreneurs on Indiegogo are able to showcase their ideas directly to users, take orders for products early in their lifecycle and ultimately build direct relationships with their first customers. Indiegogo is the platform of choice for early stage entrepreneurs and the creative teams of some of the most successful consumer product companies in the world. The company was launched in 2008 and is headquartered in San Francisco, with offices in Los Angeles and New York.

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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.

Arrow Electronics Brings Technology and Design Hardware to Life with Up to $1 Million for Indiegogo Crowdfunding Campaigns

Arrow Electronics and Indiegogo launches groundbreaking crowdfund-to-production service aimed at accelerating the pace of innovation for technology entrepreneurs

San Francisco, California – Arrow Electronics, Inc. (NYSE:ARW) and Indiegogo launched their groundbreaking crowdfund-to-production service, which is aimed at accelerating the pace of innovation for technology and internet of things (IoT) entrepreneurs.

Entrepreneurs can apply for Arrow certification on the Indiegogo platform. Arrow Electronics’ engineers will then analyze the design and manufacturability of each application. Projects deemed “ready for manufacturing” will be denoted with official “Arrow Certified” badges on their Indiegogo campaign site to let potential backers know the project is ready for production.

Every “Arrow Certified” campaign on Indiegogo that meets certain eligibility criteria can compete to receive a share of $1 million in flash-funding that Arrow will give away to 20-50 campaigns during the next 12 to 15 months. Click here for full funding details and rules.

“Arrow Certified” campaigns on Indiegogo will also lock-in up to $50,000 in benefits that help entrepreneurs succeed in prototyping and manufacturing their innovative products, which include some or all of the following:

• Direct, online access to the prototyping tools available through Arrow.com and Silicon Expert, one of the world’s largest and most comprehensive database for technology component design
• Comprehensive technical reviews of the raw materials, sub-assemblies, intermediate assemblies, sub-components, parts and the quantities of each needed to manufacture a product
• Professional design-for-manufacturing product reviews and certification
• Up to $1,000 in materials for prototype development
• Free access to the Arrow Testdrive program to try out the latest innovations from leading semiconductor manufacturers with no up-front investment
• Customized marketing and promotional support on Arrow.com and through Arrow’s extensive technology-focused media network
• 10 percent off and free shipping on millions of products available through Arrow.com that will help accelerate prototyping and bringing innovations to market

In addition, a handful of “Arrow Certified” campaigns that Arrow experts deem truly technologically exceptional will qualify as “Arrow Innovator” campaigns and receive additional support, which includes some or all of the following:

• Supply chain services and contract manufacturing support worth up to $500,000
• Up to $10,000 in materials for prototype development
• A dedicated local Arrow technical concierge available for on-call or on-site support
• Perk protection that guarantees campaign backers will get their money back if for some reason the product is never manufactured—providing current and future campaign backers with increased confidence
• A fast-tracked review with Arrow’s in-house financing team to help fund the cost of getting production up and running

Arrow and Indiegogo formalized an alliance in May after Indiegogo entrepreneurs had been increasingly turning to Arrow to help transition innovative ideas into successful commercial products. Arrow is now a key component of Indiegogo’s efforts to support the entire product lifecycle for entrepreneurs on the platform.

Current and new Indiegogo technology or design campaign entrepreneurs interested in applying to become “Arrow Certified” should visit www.arrow.com/indiegogo.

“This groundbreaking crowdfund-to-production program will help so many tech entrepreneurs and startups accelerate their path to market and revenue. Halo Smart Labs didn’t have access to a formal production program like this when we were successfully crowdfunded on Indiegogo. However, we did have the good fortune of getting introduced to Arrow experts early on who helped us refine designs, source the right components, tackle first runs and scale to full production,” said Ben Stagg, Halo Smart Labs’ CEO. “Without the crowdfunding support we received on Indiegogo and without the go-to-market support we received from Arrow, we wouldn’t be preparing for the first Halo and Halo+ smart fire alarms to hit the shelves of major retailers this fall.”

“Arrow is leading IoT design and production for many of the world’s largest companies. We are broadening these capabilities to support the rising wave of innovation coming from crowdfunding,” added Arrow’s Chief Digital Officer, Matt Anderson. “The comprehensive design, manufacturing and go-to-market support that Arrow will provide Indiegogo campaigns will help IoT and technology innovators succeed in even greater numbers, making Indiegogo the only game in town when it comes to launching an IoT or technology idea.”

Indiegogo CEO’s David Mandlebrot commented, “This collaboration improves the experience for both entrepreneurs and backers on Indiegogo. Supporting the entire lifecycle for technology entrepreneurs—from idea, to funding, to manufacturing and ultimately retail selling—is a priority for Indiegogo and this collaboration with Arrow allows us to build on those efforts in an incredibly impactful way. At the same time, this alliance will enable backers to have greater confidence that they will ultimately receive their perks.”

Arrow Electronics is a global provider of products, services and solutions to industrial and commercial users of electronic components and enterprise computing solutions. Arrow serves as a supply channel partner for more than 100,000 original equipment manufacturers, contract manufacturers and commercial customers through a global network of more than 460 locations serving over 85 countries.

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VerteCore Technologies Raises $344,894 for New Mobile Back Pain Relief Medical Device

Chiropractor Explaining How a VerteCore Lift Can Help Overweight Patients with Back Pain Relief

More than 740 backers will receive affordable, convenient, and comfortable back pain relief beginning July 2016

By Robert Hoskins

Dallas, Texas – VerteCore Technologies announced that the company’s Indiegogo “Instant Back Pain Relief” crowdfunding campaign continues to exceed fundraising expectations raising more than 424% of the planned crowdfunding goal of $65,000, which makes it one of the Top 10 most crowdfunded health projects on Indiegogo. To continue this momentum the crowdfunding campaign team has decided to add several more last minute perks/rewards and a Memorial Day Special for Veterans that will allow enthusiastic customers to order the new “VerteCore Lift” before the price goes back up to the MSRP of $599 on June 5, 2016.

VerteCore Technologies Soars 410% Past Indiegogo Crowdfunding Goal to $266,151

Customers will receive the VerteCore Lift and instant lower back pain relief beginning July 2016: https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/vertecore-lift-receive-instant-back-pain-relief/x/10787427#/

The VerteCore Lift provides instant back pain relief for Bulging or Herniated Discs, Sciatica, Functional Scoliosis, S I Joint Disfunction, Stable Spondylolisthesis or Degenerative Disc Disease. If any of the above applies to you or a loved one, then this product was created to make your life better and give you immediate back pain relief! Please share this story with people that have these conditions.

Unlike many crowdfunding campaigns that are funding entrepreneurs who are trying to raise money to cover startup costs and/or prototype development, VerteCore’s products have been developed, tested and recommended by leading medical professionals. They see this back pain relieving, Class 1, FDA-cleared medical device as the most affordable, convenient and comfortable way to treat back pain with on-the-go spinal decompression, making it unique in the orthopedic and spine treatment industry.

“Obviously, we are extremely pleased to see such a huge demand for our VerteCore Lift and we would like to attribute our outstanding success to all of our discerning Indiegogo contributors. With a special thanks to the proactive support and planning from our crowdfunding campaign marketing partner, Robert Hoskins, Front Page PR’s Director of Crowdfunding as well as John Vaskis, Indiegogo’s Senior Director of Hardware, Technology and Design. They were all instrumental in helping us achieve our campaign’s outstanding success,” said Paul Leake, VerteCore’s Managing Director.

“Due to the heavy demand that the Indiegogo campaign has generated to date, we have decided to extend our crowdfunding campaign through June 4th in order to allow as many customers/channel partners as possible to take advantage of our specials and discounts before the price goes up,” Leake continued. “We have had added some cool new stretch goal incentives/product bundles that will make the VerteCore Lift even more attractive as our fundraising campaign comes to an end.”

“This crowdfunding campaign is a text book example of what can be achieved by utilizing a  two-month crowdfunding prep-work campaign prior to launching a crowdfunding campaign to enhance social media credentials, build a very large crowd of crowdfunding campaign supporters and generate as much positive publicity as possible before the crowdfunding campaign begins,” Hoskins added. “This process also allows companies to build relationships with new customers and engage with them to receive important pre-campaign feedback so that 99% of wrinkles can be ironed out of crowdfunding profiles, pitch videos, perks and calls-to-action prior to the fundraising effort, not during the actual crowdfunding campaign.”

For back pain customers that do not want to miss out on VerteCore’s discounts and specials, please purchase one of the remaining Indiegogo crowdfunding perks and rewards before June 4th:

• Late Bird $195 Down Payment Perk (35% Discount)
• Late Bird $369 Freedom in a Box Perk (38% Discount)
• Freedom for Two $699 Park ($350) each Perk (42% Discount)

# # #

(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.

Mr. Hoskins is one of the crowdfunding industry’s foremost crowdfunding advocates and has amassed a huge social media following that is dedicated to supporting donation-, rewards- and equity-based crowdfunding campaigns. Due to the overwhelming demand from the general public for crowdfunding information, he empowers entrepreneurs with some of the internet’s most affordable ($20) online crowdfunding training classes, which provide insight to startups around the world on a 24 x 7 basis.

Mr. Hoskins adamantly believes that the crowdfunding industry will empower everyone in the United States to rediscover the possibility of living the American dream with a little hard work, a great business idea and the dedication to researching, planning and launching a well-thought-out crowdfunding campaign. He consults on a regular basis with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

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BomBoard’s Indiegogo Crowdfunding Campaign Offers $1,500 Black Friday Deal to Powerboat, Sailboat, Houseboat & Yacht Owners That Would Like to Purchase the World’s 1st Modular, Personal Watercraft

This Lightweight, 450cc Wave-Jumping Dynamo Can Be Separated Into Four Pieces and Transported Without a Trailer for Only $2,495, Unlike Jet Skis, Waverunners and Sea-Doos, which Cost Up to $12,000 More Due Powersports Dealer Markups 

Milwaukee, Wisconsin – The BomBoard watercraft Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign opens at 12:01 a.m. on “Cyber Monday,” November 30th. The first 100 Early Birds will be able to purchase a BomBoard for only $2,495, a huge savings off the suggested retail price of $3,995. And for members who are signed up for BomBoard’s direct seller program, they will be offered the opportunity to receive the special offer as soon as Black Friday. To automatically receive the VIP Indiegogo pre-opening invite, the crowdfunding campaign URL, and the Black Friday special pricing offer as soon as it becomes available, please signup now at www.bomboard.com/win/.

BomBoard’s Crowdfunding Campaign Offers $1,500 Black Friday Discount to Powerboat, Sailboat, Houseboat & Yacht Owners that Would Like to Purchase the World’s 1st Modular, Personal Watercraft

“The BomBoard’s patented design is revolutionary. Our unique feature to pull it apart, put it in a car, and then put it back together again at the beach or lake allows for newfound freedom for millions to enjoy fun on the water with high-performance, portability, ease-of-use and a small price tag,” said John West, BomBoard’s CEO and Founder. “You can take the BomBoard out on any body of water. It is simple to operate and with speeds up to 45-mph, this craft offers every rider, from beginner to professional, a very exhilarating experience — no boat ramp, $1,500 trailer or $3,000 lift required. It’s the perfect accessory for lake, beach and vacation homeowners, as well as powerboat, sailboat, houseboat, and yacht owners.”

Unlike other traditional jet ski type products that sell through marine boating retail stores, resellers and distributors that mark up the price by 30% to 50%, BomBoard will be selling their products direct through the Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign first, and then through a worldwide network of lake house owners, houseboat dwellers, watercraft rental companies, marina owners and professional beach bum/surfing personal watercraft brand advocates (direct sellers) and manufacturer representatives.

 

BomBoard watercraft are not only the world’s lowest priced high-performance watercraft, easy to purchase with a credit card, but the company has also implemented a bonus referral program, where participants can earn $125 for each social media/email referral that buys a BomBoard or a free one if they convert 20 friends into buyers. The company uses a sophisticated CRM system to track referrals via Facebook, Twitter, Email, LinkedIn, Instagram and other social media platforms. But you need to get in line as soon as possible because the company has already signed up a network of 2,800 sellers. Join them at www.BomBoard.com/win/.

Sales tracking will begin with the Indiegogo Campaign’s Black Friday Special Promotion Price of $2,495 and will only be available to the first 100 buyers.

The BomBoard’s patented design has already been racking up leading industry awards. In October 2015, the BomBoard Personal Action Watercraft, won the prestigious 2015 NASA Tech Briefs, Create the Future Design Contest for Consumer Products Award and its Founder, and serial entrepreneur, John West, previously won the KPMG, Chicago Entrepreneur of the Year Award.

BomBoard Watercraft Product Specifications:

• $2,495 Black Friday Crowdfunding special (M.S.R.P. – $3,995)
• Stores easily in garages, closets, apartments and boats
• Clean 4-stroke 450cc engine
• 45 mph standing, sitting or kneeling
• Its four modules snap together in less than 60-seconds
• Simple transport in the back of a car or truck
• Only weighs 165 lbs. (heaviest module is 90 lbs.)

# # #

(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

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Mr. 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.

Hoskins is one of the crowdfunding industry’s foremost crowdfunding advocates and has amassed a huge social media following that is dedicated to supporting donation-, rewards- and equity-based crowdfunding campaigns. Due to the overwhelming demand from the general public for crowdfunding information, he empowers entrepreneurs with some of the internet’s most affordable ($20) online crowdfunding training classes, which provide insight to startups around the world on a 24 x 7 basis.

Hoskins adamantly believes that the crowdfunding industry will empower everyone in the United States to rediscover the possibility of living the American dream with a little hard work, a great business idea and the dedication to researching, planning and launching a well-thought-out crowdfunding campaign. He consults on a regular basis with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

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Amazon Demonstrates Its Business Expertise, Provides Superior Marketing and Distribution Services for Entrepreneurs and Startups

Kickstarter, Indiegogo and Other Top Crowdfunding Sites Should Pay Attention and Start Providing a Deeper Portfolio of Marketing and Distribution Channel Services or Suffer the Consequences

By Robert Hoskins

Seattle, Washington – Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) announced Amazon Launchpad, a new program that makes it easy for startups to launch, market, and distribute their products to hundreds of millions of Amazon customers across the globe. The program offers a streamlined onboarding experience, custom product pages, a comprehensive marketing package, and access to Amazon’s global fulfillment network, all geared toward helping startups successfully launch their innovations and share their stories. With Amazon Launchpad, startups can overcome many of the challenges associated with launching new products by using Amazon’s retail expertise and infrastructure to create awareness and drive sales.

Amazon Launchpad for Entrepreneurs and Startups

“As the pace of innovation continues to increase within the startup community, we want to help customers discover these unique products and learn the inspiration behind them. We also know from talking to startups that bringing a new product to market successfully can be just as challenging as building it,” said Jim Adkins, Vice President, Amazon. “Amazon Launchpad gives customers access to a dedicated storefront featuring a variety of innovative new products from emerging brands. For startups, we handle inventory management, order fulfillment, customer service, and more, allowing them to focus their efforts on the innovation that results in more cool products.”

Amazon Launchpad offers participating startups:

• Brand Development: Custom product pages help bring products to life through visually-compelling imagery and videos. Founders can tell their story and connect with customers in a personal way with Q&A about the startup. Products from these emerging brands are featured in the new Amazon Launchpad store, which is dedicated to showcasing startups and their innovations.
• Customer Reach: Amazon’s most powerful marketing tools – including merchandised placements, personalized recommendations, and participation in the Amazon Vine customer reviews program – give products from startups added visibility. Startups also enjoy access to Amazon’s global fulfillment network, fast and free shipping with Amazon Prime, and customer service.
• Global Expansion: When startups are ready to reach customers outside the U.S., Amazon Launchpad can help them expand globally with cost-effective supply chain solutions and marketing programs in more than 10 Amazon marketplaces around the world.

Amazon is working with more than 25 venture capital firms, startup accelerators, and crowd-funding platforms to bring startups into the Amazon Launchpad program. Andreessen Horowitz, Y Combinator, and Indiegogo are a few of the companies that have funded the more than 200 products currently available in the Amazon Launchpad store – which features everything from Electronics to Kitchen to Beauty items. Products from startups in the program include the Bluesmart Smart Carry-On Luggage, eero Home Wi-Fi System, Cuff DVB Smart Sport Band, Fenugreen FreshPaper Produce Saver Sheets, Electric Objects EO1 Digital Art Panel, Soma Sustainable Pitcher & Plant-Based Water Filter, Thync Mood-Changing Wearable System, and Casper Mattress, among others.

Initial feedback from some of the companies in the Amazon Launchpad program includes:

• “Launchpad makes Amazon an ideal partner for the most innovative young tech companies,” said Marc Andreessen, Co-Founder and General Partner, Andreessen Horowitz. “It’s yet another way Amazon fosters a real ecosystem of invention and creativity.”
• “At Y Combinator, our support doesn’t end on Demo Day. With Amazon Launchpad, we are reinforcing our commitment to help bring physical products to a wide audience,” said Luke Iseman, Partner, Y Combinator. “This program will help our hardware startups get in front of more users than ever before.”
• “Indiegogo empowers campaigners to turn ideas into reality through customer engagement and funding mechanisms. By partnering with Amazon Launchpad, Indiegogo entrepreneurs gain instant access to Amazon’s powerful distribution capabilities and massive audience,” said Slava Rubin, Co-Founder and CEO, Indiegogo. “I’m excited to see how this unique partnership enables startups to accelerate their growth and share their innovative products with the world.”
• “Amazon recognizes the increasing importance of fast and reliable home Wi-Fi as consumers stream more video and music than ever before and connected devices go mainstream,” said Nick Weaver, Co-Founder and CEO, eero. “We couldn’t ask for a better partner and are honored to be one of the emerging companies in the Amazon Launchpad program. We’re excited to showcase our product on the world’s largest discovery platform.”
• “Amazon Launchpad is the perfect home for our smart jewelry. This innovative way to shop lets us tell consumers the story and philosophy behind Cuff, and hopefully makes them fall in love with our product,” said Deepa Sood, Founder and CEO, Cuff. “We couldn’t be more thrilled to be a part of this initiative.”
• “I am an accidental entrepreneur – I never dreamed that FreshPaper, which started as my middle school science project, would one day be in the hands of farmers and families across the globe. But my unlikely story is only possible because of visionary partners like Amazon who believe in our product’s potential to change the way the world eats,” said Kavita Shukla, Inventor and Founder, Fenugreen FreshPaper. “By throwing their considerable weight behind ideas like FreshPaper, Amazon is using its technology and reach to make innovation accessible to all.”
• “The sheer scale that Amazon Launchpad offers a startup like Electric Objects is unparalleled,” said Jake Levine, Founder and CEO, Electric Objects. “Working closely with their team these last few months, I’ve been consistently impressed with the level of service and access that this program makes available. This partnership could be game-changing for our company, and we’re thrilled to have the opportunity to participate.”

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(512) 627-6622
@Crowdfunding_PR

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Mr. 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.

Hoskins is one of the crowdfunding industry’s foremost crowdfunding advocates and has amassed a huge social media following that is dedicated to supporting donation-, rewards- and equity-based crowdfunding campaigns. Due to the overwhelming demand from the general public for crowdfunding information, he empowers entrepreneurs with some of the internet’s most affordable ($20) online crowdfunding training classes, which provide insight to startups around the world on a 24 x 7 basis.

Hoskins adamantly believes that the crowdfunding industry will empower everyone in the United States to rediscover the possibility of living the American dream with a little hard work, a great business idea and the dedication to researching, planning and launching a well-thought-out crowdfunding campaign. He consults on a regular basis with crowdfunding campaign managers as well as crowdfunding sites, portals and platforms to deliver successful crowdfunding marketing campaigns.

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IndieGoGo Crowdfunding Campaign Seeks Starting Goal of $50,000 to Spread Early Literacy Skills to One Million Preschoolers Through Storybooks, eBooks, Smartphone Apps, and Ed-Tech Website

Teaching Preschoolers Pre-Reading Skills Improves Academic Development, Promotes Lifelong Learning, Increases Family Engagement, and Instills Confidence and Perseverance When Faced With Challenges

By Robert Hoskins

Toronto, Ontario – Ruth Rumack’s Learning Space (RRLS) launched a $50,000 IndieGoGo Crowdfunding campaign that will pre-sell a set of five Alpha-Mania early childhood learning storybooks and other perks that will make teaching pre-reading skills fun for children, parents, teachers and caregivers. The Alpha-Mania storybooks are the result of teaching early literacy programs to thousands of young children over the past 16 years. Click here to watch the video.

Ruth Rumack’s Alpha-Mania Crowdfunding Campaign to Promote Early Childhood Literacy

All five of the Alpha-Mania books are written and ready to publish. The goal of the crowdfunding campaign will be to pay for large publishing production runs of the Alpha-Mania storybooks, and then digitize the materials and turn them into eBooks and Smartphone apps, and eventually expand the program to an online educational web series and website where caregivers, parents and teachers will be given access to a full library of ed-tech early literacy games and reading resources. The plan is to make ed-tech materials easy to download and use on a wide variety of Smartphones, iPads, tablets and other types of eLearning devices.

Over the years, the Alpha-Mania pre-reading program has given thousands of young children a head start in developing their early literacy skills at RRLS as well as numerous established daycares, preschools, and nurseries throughout Canada. The plan is now to expand the RRLS learning experience and share it with a global audience.

“Using the power of crowdfunding, we would like to not only pre-sell these lifelong learning materials to people and schools that can afford them, but also use a significant portion of the fundraising campaign’s proceeds to ship storybooks to educational centers where they will have the greatest impact,” says Ruth Rumack, RRLS’ Founder and Director of Education. “Regardless of a child’s living environment, many parents are simply not aware of the tremendous benefits that all children receive from learning phonological awareness at an early age.”

“Printing and shipping storybooks to customers is very expensive and time consuming,” adds Evan Brooker, RRLS’s CEO. “But once we raise enough money to digitize our materials and turn our pre-reading games and interactive activities into Smartphone, tablet and laptop apps, we can sell and distribute them worldwide for a fraction of our current costs. Instead of educating thousands, our goal is to raise awareness and teach millions of people the benefits of engaging their children with early literacy skills in order to build a strong foundation for reading and problem solving before they enter kindergarten.”

Crowdfunders who donate to the Alpha-Mania crowdfunding campaign will receive many valuable perks/rewards that will be sold in singles, multi-book packaged deals for small schools and will provide large school districts discounts when materials/training classes are purchased using licensing agreements.

Students, parents, teachers and schools who contribute money to the crowdfunding campaign can choose between unique perks such as attending the launch party, chatting with the author, or naming a character in one of the upcoming stories. Check out the crowdfunding campaign for more details.

Please buy one of the following Alpha-Mania perks to raise awareness for the benefits of teaching preschoolers early childhood learning skills:

• Alpha-Mania eBooks for Smartphones and Tablets
• Alpha-Mania Printed Storybooks for Parents
• Alpha-Mania Book, Tote Bag & T-Shirt
• Alpha-Mania 5-Book Story Book Series
• Alpha-Mania Skype Chat with Author
• Alpha-Mania Name a Character
• Alpha-Mania Family Portrait and Summer Camp in Toronto
• Alpha-Mania Training Classes for Teachers
• Alpha-Mania License for Daycares, Preschools & Kindergartens
• Alpha-Mania Mass Volume Book Deals for Large Schools

Early childhood learning years are critical for preschoolers because research shows that children gain a tremendous advantage in their ability to learn when they are taught to develop, not only academic skills, but also non-cognitive social and emotional skills and behaviors that lead to their long-term success.

There are many non-cognitive skills that are critical for an individual to strive for and succeed in when reaching long-term goals. Researchers have found that habits such as tenacity and perseverance can have just as strong an influence on achievement as intellectual ability.

What attitudes do children have about learning? Do they feel like their abilities in a subject are fixed — “I’m just not good at reading!” or do they recognize they can grow — “I can learn to read, but I need to learn some Alpha-Mania strategies to figure out tricky sounds and words in order to master the fun puzzle of reading.”

“Growth mindset,” for example, is more likely when students believe they can achieve and when they believe that intelligence is malleable rather than fixed. This also helps develop non-cognitive skills such as perseverance, self-regulation, and effective strategies for enhancing student motivation and engagement.

A large portion of the crowdfunding donations will be used to provide Alpha-Mania to underfunded schools and libraries. Donors will receive the satisfaction of knowing that they helped a small child develop pre-reading skills regardless of their current position in society and give them a head start in developing academic skills that will lead to a lifetime of learning as well as arm them with the confidence, tenacity and perseverance they will need when faced with tough lifetime challenges.

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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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Just in Time for Spring BBQs – the GoBQ grill is the Perfect Portable Solution for the Football Tailgating Crowd

The GoBQ Grill is the coolest way to cook a hot meal at the game partying with friends and then put it safely away before the first kickoff

By Robert Hoskins

Chicago, IL – Grilling enthusiasts across the globe are gobbling up a good opportunity to buy a GoBQ Grill during April. Right now outdoor adventurers can get a hot deal on a cool way to grill food at tailgating parties as well as other types of remote grilling opportunities such as hikes, trips to the beach and remote backpacking trips. Apparently the portable grill is serving a big appetite. In less that two weeks, their Indiegogo campaign  has raised more than 120% of their $30,000 goal with 196 backers from over 19 countries worldwide.

The GoBQ Grill is the coolest way to cook a hot meal and pack it away safely before the 1st kickoff!

The Indiegogo campaign can be found here:http://www.IndieGoBQ.com.

I guess that means it’s time to buy a grill and get ready to start cooking outdoors, but now grillers won’t have to be confined to their backyards or tethered to their SUVs.

Weighing in at only eight pounds, the patented GoBQ is a revolutionary grilling system complete with a metal grate cooking surface large enough to feed a family, chain basket to hold charcoal, and lid to contain heat.

But unlike other grills on the market, all GoBQ components fold in on themselves to become a black cylinder that resembles a small, sleek duffel bag. Take it with you camping, tailgating, picnicking, biking, boating or fishing, and people everywhere will ask, “Wait, that’s a grill?”

“What makes the GoBQ unique is you can sling it over your shoulder or stuff it in a backpack,” says co-founder and product chief Eric Goeken, who invented the GoBQ and built its early prototypes in his own garage.

After only five days on the market, critics are already weighing in on the ingenuity of the GoBQ. “Imagine a lightweight portable charcoal grill with nearly 200 square inches of cooking surface that fold up into a tiny little package,” says barbecue and grilling expert Derrick Riches of bbq.about.com. The GoBQ “could revolutionize the portable charcoal grill forever.”

The body of the GoBQ is made of a silicon-coated fiberglass material that can withstand flames and high temperatures. The fabric base, nickel-plated metal grate and charcoal basket all fold up to fit neatly inside the grill’s fabric lid, which also folds together to become its own compact carrying bag. Set up and tear down are a breeze, as the GoBQ body cools to the touch soon after dumping the charcoal embers—unlike other metal grills, which can take forever to cool down.

“The GoBQ is a game changer,” says company co-founder and CEO Todd Zaroban. “Those other so-called portable grills are either too cumbersome to carry or too flimsy to properly cook anything. We believe it will change the way people think about outdoor cooking.”

GoBQ is targeted to ship in August of this year, just in time for college and NFL football tailgating season.

The GoBQ Grill is a portable, packable grill made of heat and flameproof fabric that folds up like a camping chair to fit in a backpack or store in a drawer.  The GoBQ is the patented brainchild of start-up company Grillfold LLC and its founders—product design and engineering guru Eric Goeken, and Todd Zaroban, a successful entrepreneur with 25 years of marketing, branding and web development experience.

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