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.

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ArborCrowd Offers Investors Estimated 13%-17% IRR with 4-7 Year Hold Period on $69.7 Million Crowdfunding Real Estate Investment Opportunity

The business plan is to cultivate tremendous value upon sale of this property, while maintaining strong annual returns for new investors that want to invest alongside seasoned, experienced ArborCrowd institutional investors

By Robert Hoskins

Miami, Florida – ArborCrowd, one of the top commercial real estate equity crowdfunding sites, announced today a new real estate investment opportunity – known as the Lago Paradiso. A profitable and stabilized multifamily complex, this property is located in Miami, Fla., one of the most international and desirable marketplaces to live in the United States.

A new commercial real estate investment offering, Lago Paradiso is a value-add, multifamily lakefront apartment complex located in Miami

ArborCrowd investors have the opportunity to own a piece of a $4 million equity stake in Lago Paradiso. The Property has a targeted 13 percent to 17 percent Internal Rate of Return (IRR) and a projected hold period of four to seven years.

The goal of the business plan is to cultivate tremendous value upon sale of the Property, while maintaining strong annual returns for investors. This will be executed through a value-add repositioning, experienced property management and operational efficiency.

“ArborCrowd is the engine that brings successful real estate investments with the industry’s best sponsors and crowd investors,” said Ivan Kaufman, Co-founder and CEO, ArborCrowd. “The long-standing relationships that ArborCrowd has developed with institutional real estate investors has enabled us to attract a network of successful leaders who know how to source, manage and execute some of the best multifamily deals in the country.”

ArborCrowd’s investment model is unlike other crowdfunding platforms – the quality of the real estate is at the core of the business. Other models pool investors’ money into funds that are blindly allocated to different assets. ArborCrowd created a better way to invest by providing investors the transparency and knowledge to choose what deals their money goes into.

“Looking at just the returns of a property are not enough. ArborCrowd will only post what we believe is a strong investment offering. In order to be confident in the deal, we hone in on the depth and breadth of the sponsor’s experience,” said Adam Kaufman, Co-founder and Managing Director, ArborCrowd. “This commitment to only presenting high caliber deals is proving to be successful as all our previous deals funded quickly – with ArborCrowd’s last equity raise oversubscribed in just three business days.”

Lago Paradiso Deal Highlights
The Property was acquired in May 2017 for $69.7 million. Lago Paradiso is a lakefront apartment complex that consists of 27 buildings with 424 one and two bedroom units – currently 97 percent occupied.

Lago Paradiso, a new commercial real estate investment offering, consists of 27 buildings with 424 one and two bedroom units

The business plan is to create value by increasing rents through renovations, and by implementing new property management and operational expertise. Robbins Electra and its affiliates own and operate more than 22,000 units. This extensive management experience, particularly in Florida, means the Sponsor is well equipped to manage rent escalations while leveraging proprietary systems to improve operational costs.

Key benefits for ArborCrowd investors, include:

• Basis: As an off-market transaction, this property was acquired at a favorable purchase price.
• Proven Plan: Prior to the acquisition, 14 units were renovated and re-leased at higher rents. The current plan is to significantly expand this proven approach and accelerate renovations to generate even more cash flow and increase overall property value.
• Cash-on-Cash: The projected cash-on-cash return remains strong during the renovation period, approaching 10 percent in the second year. Once renovations are complete, the new units are expected to enable an even stronger cash-on-cash return throughout the holding period.
• Experienced Management: The deal sponsor is an affiliate of Robbins Electra, one of the fastest growing operators in the country. The key principal of the Property, Joseph Lubeck, is CEO and Co-Manager of Robbins Electra and has executed similar business plans with aggregate deal capitalization in excess of $3 billion since 1991.

Lago Paradiso is located 20 miles southwest of Miami’s Central Business District and South Beach. This helps to strengthen the demand for the Property.

Key stats of the Miami/South Beach area:

• Miami and South Florida is base to more than 1,100 multinational corporations, including American Airlines, Cisco, Exxon, FedEx, Microsoft, Sony, Visa and Wal-Mart.
• The metro area has high demand as occupancy rates are 97 percent with rents increasing in the past 5 years.
• The Property’s rent price point appeals to the middle and working class – one of the most stable tenant bases in multifamily. This base also achieves the highest rate of lease renewals. Overall, Miami ranked in the top 10 nationally for 2016 renewal rates.

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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

Park Place Communities Tapping Residential Real Estate Equity Crowdfunding to Finance Affordable Homes

The Company purchases existing mobile homes, renovates them and then resells them to qualified buyers using five-year amortized mortgages

By Robert Hoskins

Jacksonville, Florida – Park Place Communities (PPC) is raising up to $1 million in capital from accredited investors under SEC. Reg. D with as little as $1,000 to finance new large-scale affordable home projects.  The residential real estate company purchases existing mobile homes with funds raised through crowdfunding, renovates them and then sells them to qualified buyers using five-year amortized mortgages. The first round of financing will be used to renovate more than 125 units.

Park Place Communities Tapping Real Estate Equity Crowdfunding to Finance Affordable Homes

“The home buyer makes monthly payments for five years at 12-percent interest,” said Andrew Lanoie, Park Place Communities’ CEO. “This allows home buyers to purchase the mobile home for about the same monthly cost as renting an apartment.”

PPC is currently raising money via IHT Realty’s Real Estate Crowdfunding Portal. The real estate crowdfunding site helps individual sponsors raise capital for their acquisitions and will be assisting PPC’s customers in securing funds as it looks to expand its operations by acquiring an additional 15,000 to 20,000 mobile homes over the next few years.

“There is a huge demand for affordable housing right now and there are not enough parks to fill that void,” Lanoie said. “Right now, there are roughly 50,000 affordable housing parks in the United States.”

As the U.S. population continues to increase, the need for affordable housing will continue to rise. It’s simple supply and demand. In 2013, there were close to 2.3 million births added to the U.S. population, but less than 1 million new homes were constructed.

And with housing costs projected to rise by 5.4 percent from July 2016 to July 2017 — according to a study by CoreLogic Home Price Index — mobile homes are becoming a practical alternative.

“As the wage gap in the United States widens, there has been a shift towards lower paying jobs, which leads to an increase in demand for affordable housing,” Lanoie said.

According to the most recent report by the Social Security Administration, 36 percent of U.S. wage earners make less than $20,000 per year and 50 percent earn less than $30,000 per year.

“With 10,000 Baby Boomers retiring every day, 47 percent of which don’t have any retirement savings,  affordable houses are their last opportunity of home ownership,” said Dan Summers, IHT Realty’s, CEO.

PPC currently owns 13 affordable housing parks in eight states with nearly 1,000 total home pads.

The company is building a $1 million mortgage pool to issue fixed-rate mortgages to buyers. It is offering a debt investment opportunity secured by a first lien, which is also backed by a corporate guarantee with a 10 percent interest rate paid to investors.

“Mobile home parks are one of the most stable and predictable investments during a recession and recovery and contrary to popular belief, mobile homes are not really mobile,” Lanoie said. “It costs over $3,000 for a resident to move their home out of a park, which is the reason 98-percent of mobile homes will remain in the same location.”

IHT Realty Crowdfunding LLC offers investors the opportunity to capitalize on the demand for affordable residential and multifamily real estate properties across Northeast Florida.

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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.

What Equity Crowdfunding Campaign Types Are Best for Startups and Small Companies – Title III or Title IV, Reg A+ ?

A Quick Guide to Launching Title III vs. Title IV Equity Crowdfunding Campaigns

By Robert Hoskins

VerifyInvestor.com’s Guide to JOBS Act Crowdfunding Options and Rules

Trying to Determine What Equity Crowdfunding Option is the Best Method of Fundraising to Fund Entrepreneurs and Startup Companies?

Here are some simple questions that you might ask yourself when planning a fundraising campaign to raise money in order to launch a new startup or expand an existing business:

• Maximum Offering for Equity Crowdfunding

How much money do you want to raise? And what step of the crowdfunding escalator does your company currently reside?

1. Donation Crowdfunding – For ideas or concepts, entrepreneurs should consider Donation Crowdfunding and try to raise $10,000 or less with the goal of putting together a business plan, developing a website and begin working on prototypes or service beta programs.
2. Rewards Crowdfunding – Once a prototype and/or beta test program has been developed and is ready to be tested for marketplace acceptance, startups should consider using Rewards/Perks Crowdfunding and set a goal of raising $25,000 to $100,000, but should have a crowdfunding PR and social media marketing campaign designed to raise up to $1 million or more based on marketplace demand. This crowdfunding step should be targeted to raise enough money to pay for the first manufacturing production run or minimum viable product (MVP) and provide a sufficient marketing budget to continue selling the produce/service and gaining marketplace traction once the crowdfunding campaign concludes.
3. Equity Crowdfunding – Depending on the marketplace success, the final step is using equity crowdfunding to raise sufficient capital to launch a business on a regional, national or international level. Similar to an Initial Public Offering, the company can offer investors convertible notes, debt, revenue sharing or equity shares via a Title II (Rule 506 and Rule 144A offering), Title III offering or Title IV offering, which each has its own set of rules briefly outlined in the chart above.  Title III is capped at $1 million every 12 months, Title IV is capped at $50 million every 12 months and Title II can raise unlimited funding with no time limit.
4. Crowdfunding Escalator – This entire process is called a crowdfunding escalator by many in the crowdfunding industry, which is a step-by-step process that allows a creative ideas to work their way into becoming successful and thriving businesses via larger and larger crowdfunding campaigns as a company grows, matures and gains marketplace traction.

• Investor Types for Equity Crowdfunding

Do you want to target 8.7 million sophisticated accredited investors or open the offering up to 188 million non-accredited, novice investors throughout the U.S. (and Canada)? 

1. Accredited Investors – Only about 3% of the accredited investors are active investors in the United States because until 2013 it was illegal to use general solicitation to reach this target audience and most deals were channel through registered broker dealers. The key is to know how to reach these angel investors and venture capitalists with advertising, email marketing, publicity and targeted social media marketing.
2. Non-Accredited Investors – The other 97% of the population falls into the novice investor category that is literally an untapped target audience because it has been illegal to market fundraising campaigns to this segment of the population since 1934.  Title III and Title IV crowdfunding are designed to educate this new class of investors, teach them how to vet deals and allow them to make the same type of early stage investment usually reserved for venture capitalists by carefully researching the Form C disclosure documents for Title III and Form 1-A disclosure documents for Title IV, Reg. A+ offerings. And now that marketing offerings to this audience is legal, success is only limited by a company’s marketing budget.

• Method of Offerings for Equity Crowdfunding

Do you want to utilize a registered Title III crowdfunding portal or regular website combined with general solicitation (advertising/PR/social media)? 

1. Title III/Advertising Offering Terms is Prohibited – In contrast to Rule 506(c) offerings, which permits general solicitation if certain conditions are satisfied, an eligible issuer or persons acting on its behalf cannot advertise, directly or indirectly, the terms of a crowdfunding offering.  However, an issuer can publish notices (for example, in newspapers or on social media sites or the issuer’s website) that direct investors to the intermediary’s platform and contain only limited factual information about the offering and the issuer.   Despite this advertising prohibition, an issuer (or persons acting on its behalf) may communicate with investors about the offering terms through communication channels provided on the intermediary’s platform if the issuer identifies itself (or persons acting on its behalf identify their affiliation with the issuer) in all such communications.
2. Title IV Utilizing General Solicitation – Title IV offerings are allowed to use any website/portal combined with advertising, email marketing, PR and social media to market the terms of their offerings in order to attract new investors, which means investors throughout the entire United States and Canada.

VerifyInvestor.com’s Guide to JOBS Act Crowdfunding Options and Rules – Page 2

 

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

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.

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What New Title III Investors Should Be Trying to Learn Before Making Their First Crowdfunding Investment

Whether You Are One of the 188 Million New Non-Accredited Investors or a Small Startup or Existing Business that Wants to Learn More about Issuing a Title III or Title IV Reg. A+ Equity Crowdfunding Campaign You Should Read through All of the Information Below

By Robert Hoskins

Austin, Texas (May 2, 2016) – The best way to educate yourself on the Title III investment/investing marketplace is to perform a thorough competitive analysis on all of the Top Equity Crowdfunding Sites and/or the Top Reg. A+ Equity Crowdfunding Sites in the United States, the United Kingdom and Israel, which is where most of the top crowdfunding platforms are based.

A Crowdfunding Guide to Risks, Returns, Regulations, Funding Portals, Due Diligence, and Deal Terms

Our Top 100 Crowdfunding Lists are based on website traffic, which should be a first step in determining how many eyes are being delivered by every site.  This will highlight how many crowdfunding campaigns are being launched as well as how many investors are visiting the equity crowdfunding site on a monthly basis.

There has been a great deal of content generated that covers that the Title III Equity Crowdfunding rules that will begin on May 16, 2016 so I will skip repeating the basic information. Up until the past 12-months not much has been written about how to evaluate the up an coming Title III equity crowdfunding deals.

So the purpose of this article is provide lots or relevant documentation that has been written by leading university legal departments and law firms that will soon be guiding investors and issuers through the process of issuing Title III and Title IV Reg. A+ equity crowdfunding securities.

Great Equity Crowdfunding Research Articles:

1. The Coming ‘Transformation’ in Private Capital Markets – This article provides a really good overview of the equity crowdfunding industry to date.

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2. Duke Law School – The Social Network and the Crowdfund Act: Zuckerberg, Saverin, and Venture Capitalists’ Dilution of the Crowd – This provides really good a good overview of how to avoid stock holder dilution and making sure that early stockholders are included fair and justly in every exit strategy. It also provides examples of how Zuckerberg diluted one of his business partners right out of the Facebook fortune.

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1. CROWDFUNDING OVERVIEW
   A. The Five Models of Crowdfunding
   B. Examples of Crowdfunding
   C. The Transformative Power of Crowdfunding
2. POLITICAL INFLUENCES
   A. Securities-Law Prohibitions on Crowdfunding
   B. Democratic Push for Crowdfunding
   C. Crowdfunding under the JOBS Act
3. THEORETICAL TENSIONS
   A. Paternalistic Impulses: The Rule 504 Lesson
   B. Securities Regulation: Disclosure vs. Merit Review
4. VENTURE CAPITALIST ELITES AND THE MASSES
   A. Vertical and Horizontal Risks
   B. Downside and Upside Risks
   1. Financing Rounds, Exits, and Protecting Crowdfunders

a. Price-Based Anti-Dilution Protection
b. Shares-Based Anti-Dilution Protection
c. Tag-Along Rights
d. Preemptive Rights

5. QUALITATIVE PROTECTIONS FOR CROWDFUNDERS

A. Contractual Provisions
B. Venture Capital–Deal-Terms Disclosure Table
C. Congressional and Regulatory Action

CONCLUSION

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3. Harvard Business Law Review – Equity Crowdfunding: The Real and the Illusory Exemption – This document has a good section that discusses investment syndicates and why novice investors should follow lead angel investors until they get the hang of assessing crowdfunding securities risk.

TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION

I. BACKGROUND

A. An introduction to crowdfunding
B. The rationale for a new exemption
C. The legislative history of the retail crowdfunding exemption
D. The quiet compromise

II. TWO CROWDFUNDING EXEMPTIONS COMPARED

A. Affordability in small offerings
B. Access to potential investors
C. Investor protection
D. Summary and implications

III. AN INCENTIVES-BASED THEORY OF INVESTOR PROTECTION

A. The public theory and retail crowdfunding
B. The private theory and accredited crowdfunding
C. A theory to describe the spectrum

IV. ASSESSING POTENTIAL SEC ACTION

A. Pooled investments managed by a lead investor
B. Public company regulation
C. Verification
D. Liquidity risk
E. Integration and aggregation
F. Substantial compliance
G. The accredited investor definition

V. RECOMMENDATIONS

A. Strengthen accredited investor bargaining power
B. Encourage retail investors to piggyback
C. Harmonize the resale and substantial compliance rules
D. Generate empirical data and conduct a special study

CONCLUSION

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4. David M. Freedman and Matthew R. Nutting – Equity Crowdfunding for Investors: A Guide to Risks, Returns, Regulations, Funding Portals, Due Diligence, and Deal Terms, which I have not read, but the following paragraph descriptions definitely look worth reading while learning the the Title III equity crowdfunding securities investment process.

Preface: The New Angel Investors

In 1977, Mike Markkula became the first angel investor in Apple Computer. His $80,000 stake in Apple grew into about $200 million when the company went public three years later. Few opportunities can generate personal wealth as profoundly as being a founder or early investor in a startup that achieves that sort of grand success. Before 2012, however, angel investing was strictly limited to wealthy and extremely well connected people. Thanks to Title III of the JOBS Act of 2012, tens of millions of average investors will, for the first time in several decades, have an opportunity to invest in growing startups and early-stage companies via equity crowdfunding portals. This book covers not only Title III crowdfunding, but Regulation D offering platforms and intrastate securities exemptions (in at least 18 states) as well.

Chapter 1: The Foundations of Online Crowdfunding

Internet crowdfunding gained traction around 2003, starting with rewards-based platforms like ArtistShare, Kickstarter, and Indiegogo. They were followed by donation-based platforms like GoFundMe. Securities (debt- and equity-based) offering platforms launched around 2011 in the United States. Equity offering platforms were still open to accredited investors only, however. The JOBS (Jumpstart Our Business Startups) Act of 2012 legalized a new form of equity crowdfunding for all investors regardless of income or net worth. This chapter clarifies the differences between the various kinds of crowdfunding and provides lessons for investors about risk, reward, fraud prevention, and the wisdom of the crowd.

Chapter 2: Equity Offerings under Reg. D

Starting in 2011 in the United States, startups and early-stage companies began offering securities to accredited investors through Web-based offering platforms, under Rule 506 of Regulation D. Issuers could raise an unlimited amount of equity capital via Reg D platforms. Title II of the JOBS Act of 2012 lifted the ban on general solicitation for offerings made under new Rule 506(c). We profile two pioneers in Reg D offering platforms: MicroVentures (focusing on tech startups) and CircleUp (focusing on earlystage consumer products and retail companies).

Chapter 3: Equity Crowdfunding for All Investors

Title III of the JOBS Act of 2012 created a legal framework for equity crowdfunding, whereby all investors (not just wealthy “accredited” investors) can buy securities issued by startups and early-stage companies. The regulations limit the amount of money investors can invest in equity crowdfunding offerings each year, based on their income and/or net worth.

Chapter 4: Intrastate Crowdfunding, Non-accredited Investors

At least a dozen states got a jumpstart on equity crowdfunding, using the “intrastate exemption” to initiate regulatory frameworks for in-state equity crowdfunding. Georgia was the first U.S. state in which an equity crowdfunding portal successfully funded a startup with participation of non-accredited investors.

Chapter 5: Deal Flow

What kinds of companies will offer equity shares on Title III crowdfunding portals? Will they really have high growth potential and be worth investing in? Will there be a big enough supply of offerings to meet the demand of tens of millions of new angel investors? In this chapter we forecast what kinds of companies— in terms of industry, development stage, growth potential, and other characteristics—will represent the most attractive Title III deals for all (including non-accredited) investors.

Chapter 6: Angel Investors

In depth, we discuss the benefits, returns, costs, and risks of investing in startups and early-stage companies via equity crowdfunding. The possibility of earning spectacular return on investment (even if not very likely) is one attraction of angel investing. We discuss how the emergence of equity crowdfunding creates a new class of angel investors, with some of the same motives and benefits as traditional angels but some new ones, too—especially social benefits.

Chapter 7:  How to Navigate through Title III Offerings

This chapter offers a glimpse behind the scenes of equity crowdfunding portals—how they are regulated, the difference between “funding portals” and broker-dealer platforms, how they decide whether to approve or reject issuers’ applications, how investors communicate with each other, and using an investor dashboard.

Chapter 8: How to Invest, Part 1: Portfolio Strategy

A three- to five-year plan for building an equity crowdfunding portfolio Investing in private securities, including Title III offerings, is one way to diversify your investment portfolio. This chapter helps you decide what percentage of your portfolio assets should be devoted to “non-correlated” alternative assets like Title III offerings; identify your primary motives for investing in startups and early-stage companies so you can narrow down the kinds of offerings that you consider; create an equity crowdfunding budget, pinpointing the amount of money that you can invest each year over three to five years; and build a diversified equity crowdfunding portfolio.

Chapter 9: How to Invest, Part 2: Identify Suitable Offerings

How narrow down your choice of Title III offerings, based on your selection criteria—the first of which is identifying your social, personal, and/or financial motivation for investing in startups and early-stage companies.

Chapter 10: Equity Crowdfunding Securities

Title III equity offerings are predominantly C corporation stock, limited liability company membership units, and convertible debt. This chapter covers the fundamentals of each of those securities (including both common and preferred stock), and their advantages and drawbacks for both issuers and investors.

Chapter 11: Deal Terms

We provide concise explanations of the terms of private securities deals, in four categories: economic terms (like price per share, minimum investment, fully diluted valuation, etc.); control terms (protective provisions, veto power, etc.); terms relating to liquidity events and future financing (liquidation preferences, anti-dilution provisions); and other terms (conversion rights, dividends, redemption rights, right of first refusal, etc.).

Chapter 12: How to Invest, Part 3: Due Diligence

How to research an issuer’s management team, financial reports, revenue projections, business strategy, regulatory compliance, and other key indicators. You have the option of conducting due diligence independently, relying on a sophisticated “lead investor,” hiring a professional adviser, and/or collaborating with members of the crowd through on-platform discussions and Q&A forums.

Chapter 13: How to Invest, Part 4: Funding and Post-funding

We talk about the on-platform investment transaction, your rights and obligations as a shareholder, and how to monitor and manage your equity crowdfunding portfolio.

Chapter 14: Liquidity and Secondary Markets

Equity crowdfunding securities are relatively illiquid, especially in the first 12 months that you hold the investment. Secondary markets will probably develop over the next few years to provide liquidity to Title III securities. We look back at how secondary markets developed for accredited investors in the past 10 years, and project how they might develop for all investors in the near future.

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5. Charting a New Revolution in Equity Crowdfunding: The Rise of State Crowdfunding Regimes in the Response to the Inadequacy of the Title III JOBS Act – Good analysis of intrastate crowdfunding exemptions.

6. The Next British Invasion is Securities Crowdfunding: How Issuing Non-Registered Securities through the Crowd Can Succeed in the United States – Good analysis of equity crowdfunding in the U.K.

7. Breaking New Ground: The Americas Alternative Finance Benchmarking Report – Research report on peer to peer lending, another form of alternative finance.

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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.

Top 100 Crowdfunding Sites in the United States, Europe, Asia, South America, Africa and other Global Markets in 2016

Seeking the Top 100 Crowdfunding Sites
in the United States or the Rest of the World? See Our Updated 2016 Rankings!

Crowdfunding PR’s 2016 Top 100 Global Crowdfunding Sites

 By Robert Hoskins

[Click Here to Tweet this Top 100 List to Your Business Colleagues]

United States – We have updated our List of the Top 100 Global Crowdfunding Sites for 2016 in the United States, Europe, Asia, South America, Africa and other global markets.  

Clicking on the website traffic ranking links below will take readers to one of the most insightful resources of information that details each website’s traffic ranking; the number of unique visitors per month; the average time spent on each site per visit; and the number of pages viewed per each visit.

Of more interest to crowdfunding campaign managers will be the precise ratio of social media, content marketing, search engine marketing, email marketing and display advertising that is being utilized by each crowdfunding site’s marketing campaigns to drive readers and investors to their crowdfunding profiles.

GoFundMe vs Kickstarter SimilarWeb Stats

Even though these numbers reflect the aggregation of all of a given portal’s crowdfunding campaigns marketing efforts, they offer direct evidence of what is working and what is not.  Note the difference on how much social media and display advertising is being used by the Top 10 Crowdfunding Sites compared the lower 90 crowdfunding sites. 

This information can be used by crowdfunding sites as well as their crowdfunders to get a thorough understanding on how to plan future marketing campaigns that will have a higher than average success rate.

Want to know how Kickstarter has just retaken GoFundMe as the world’s #1 crowdfunding platform? Click on the Global Rank number links below and then use the comparison tool to show side-by-side comparisons of SEO keywords, link referrals, and social media usage. See the bottom of the page for more crowdfunding marketing tips.

[Click Here to Tweet this Top 100 List of Crowdfunding Sites]

2016 Rank	© Front Page PR	Global Rank
#1 (2015: #2)	www.kickstarter.com	692
#2 (2015: #1)	www.gofundme.com	1,805
#3 (2015: #4)	www.indiegogo.com	2,126
#4 (2015: #3)	www.angel.co	4,550
#5 (2015: #5)	www.lendingclub.com	9,781
#6 (2015: #6)	www.justgiving.com	10,950
#7 (2015: #9)	www.ulule.com	15,943
#8 (2015: #7)	www.youcaring.com	22,315
#9 (2015: #8)	www.kiva.org	24,366
#10 (2015: #12)	www.crowdrise.com	24,617
#11 (2015: #10)	www.donorschoose.org	33,737
#12 (2015: #16)	www.fundingcircle.com	37,717
#13 (2015: #11)	www.pledgemusic.com	42,380
#14 (2015: #13)	www.tilt.com	51,509
#15 (2015: #50)	www.seedandspark.com	64,606
#16 (2015: #22)	www.circleup.com	68,095
#17 (2015: #24)	www.kickante.com.br	69,483
#18 (2015: #15)	www.crowdcube.com	73,968
#19 (2015: new)	www.seedrs.com	90,162
#20 (2015: #28)	www.gogetfunding.com	97,023
#21 (2015: #29)	www.fundrise.com	117,386
#22 (2015: #20)	www.firstgiving.com	117,598
#23 (2015: #17)	www.razoo.com	126,920
#24 (2015: #14)	www.giveforward.com	126,939
#25 (2015: #38)	www.seedinvest.com	135,275
#26 (2015: #18)	www.fundly.com	140,609
#27 (2015: #27)	www.zeczec.com	151,454
#28 (2015: #25)	www.crowdfunder.com	158,984
#29 (2015: #23)	www.fundable.com	185,100
#30 (2015: #19)	www.pozible.com	189,422
#31 (2015: new)	www.companisto.com	201,708
#32 (2015: new)	www.wiseed.com	211,628
#33 (2015: #21)	www.fundrazr.com	214,382
#34 (2015: #31)	www.experiment.com	217,304
#35 (2015: #53)	www.peerform.com	222,324
#36 (2015: #53)	www.startengine.com	227,165
#37 (2015: new)	www.seedmatch.de	227,277
#38 (2015: #86)	www.bnktothefuture.com	279,553
#39 (2015: new)	www.fundersclub.com	284,743
#40 (2015: #45)	www.ourcrowd.com	286,808
#41 (2015: #26)	www.equitynet.com	293,867
#42 (2015: new)	www.syndicateroom.com	293,940
#43 (2015: #32)	www.realtymogul.com	332,585
#44 (2015: #42)	www.pledgie.com	351,524
#45 (2015: #39)	www.slated.com	354,964
#46 (2015: #44)	www.fundanything.com	361,785
#47 (2015: #40)	www.patchofland.com	364,803
#48 (2015: #33)	www.geldvoorelkaar.nl	367,546
#48 (2015: new)	www.anaxago.com	392,914
#49 (2015: #48)	www.ppl.com.pt	407,009
#50 (2015: #30)	www.fundedbyme.com	410,994
#51 (2015: #41)	www.givezooks.com	443,766
#52 (2015: #76)	www.joinmosaic.com	472,517
#53 (2015: #43)	www.microventures.com	504,408
#54 (2015: #new)	www.invesdor.com	520,978
#55 (2015: #37)	www.offbeatr.com	526,705
#56 (2015: #36)	www.wefunder.com	586,450
#57 (2015: #57)	www.plumfund.com	603,093
#58 (2015: #65)	www.crowdstreet.com	616,566
#59 (2015: #49)	www.dragoninnovation.com	635,079
#60 (2015: #52)	www.opportunity.org	669,915
#61 (2015: #61)	www.flashfunders.com	693,854
#62 (2015: #58)	www.fundraise.com	744,583
#63 (2015: #46)	www.pave.com	748,172
#64 (2015: #64)	www.symbid.com	884,303
#65 (2015: #68)	pitchfunder.asufoundation.org	1,072,918
#66 (2015: #34)	www.onevest.com	1,098,541
#67 (2015: #66)	www.assetavenue.com	1,124,447
#68 (2015: #69)	www.artistshare.com	1,135,924
#69 (2015: #70)	www.nextseed.com	1,138,179
#70 (2015: #63)	www.piggybackr.com	1,162,479
#71 (2015: #62)	www.trucrowd.com	1,246,018
#72 (2015: #60)	www.barnraiser.us	1,288,466
#73 (2015: #54)	www.bolstr.com	1,477,216
#74 (2015: #59)	www.earlyshares.com	1,585,544
#75 (2015: #80)	www.pledgecents.com	1,597,425
#76 (2015: #82)	www.crowd2fund.com	1,776,210
#77 (2015: #47)	www.growvc.com	1,791,220
#78 (2015: #87)	www.acquirerealestate.com	1,989,566
#79 (2015: #71)	www.appsfunder.com	2,649,175
#80 (2015: #78)	www.dreamfunded.com	2,760,699
#81 (2015: #72)	www.assob.com.au	2,767,540
#82 (2015: #90)	www.massivemov.com	3,234,838
#83 (2015: #55)	www.investx.com	3,486,195
#84 (2015: #75)	www.faithlauncher.com	3,605,295
#85 (2015: #75)	www.crudefunders.com	3,792,211
#86 (2015: #84)	www.texasenetworks.com	3,923,796
#87 (2015: #51)	www.pubslush.com	4,078,981
#88 (2015: #73)	www.foodstart.com	4,358,969
#89 (2015: #56)	www.uinvest.com.ua	4,483,866
#90 (2015: #79)	www.propellr.com	4,516,046
#91 (2015: #85)	www.icrowd.com	4,629,191
#92 (2015: #67)	www.microgiving.com	4,757,890
#93 (2015: #81)	www.massventure.com	5,544,974
#94 (2015: New)	www.offerboard.com	5,968,517
#95 (2015: #99)	www.cMEcompete.com	6,363,051
#96 (2015: #83)	www.ipledg.com	6,460,243
#97 (2015: #93)	www.funderhut.com	6,764,561
#98 (2015: #97)	www.crowdfundingbank.com	7,068,480
#99 (2015: #77)	www.crowdfundingpays.com	7,667,040
#100 (2015: #88)	www.sterlingfunder.com	7,951,827

Source: Feb 2016 SimilarWeb Website Statistics

Crowdfunding PR’s goal is simple. We want to make it possible for crowdfunders to shop for  crowdfunding platforms in a similar manner to the way media planners/buyers used to analyze ABC and BPA audit statements to buy advertisements in the business-to-business trade publication industry, where important media buying decisions were based on straight mathematics, not popularity or random guessing.

For example, would you rather run a crowdfunding campaign on a site where visitors are looking at 2-3 pages in around 3 minute’s time or a site where buyers are spending 6 to 11 minutes reviewing 6 to 10 pages?

This is the difference between shoppers who are visiting a site to see a particular crowdfunding campaign based on a marketing campaign versus people who are visiting a site to explore and actually shop around to find good deals to buy or invest their money.

This is why launching a campaign on Kickstarter or GoFundMe does not guarantee success. While Kickstarter, GoFundMe or Indiegogo may be the largest sites in the world, people are only spending enough time to shop through more than 2 to 3 crowdfunding profiles before they exit. While other sites like Razoo.com, DonorsChoose.org, and FundingCircle.com have visitors that stay more than 6 to 11 minutes and view 6 to 10 pages.

When researching, planning and executing successful marketing programs for both crowdfunding platforms as well as their individual crowdfunding customer profiles, it is extremely important to see what is driving the most traffic to any given crowdfunding site.  Success is usually determined not only by what site the crowdfunding campaign is being hosted on, but also the marketing programs being harnessed to drive potential donors/investors to a specific crowdfunding profile.

Clicking on each link above will allow media planners/buyers to understand what role direct traffic (content marketing), search engines (SEO, PPC Advertising), social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Reddit, Quora), email marketing and display advertising (Google Display, Outbrain, AppNexus) are having on the success of crowdfunding campaigns.

For example, when planning a social media strategy, one of the most popular questions we get asked is – what social media networks are driving the most visitor traffic? Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter, Quora, Reddit, YouTube, Pinterest, Instagram? The links above will make this answer crystal clear.

Not satisfied with your position on the list? Front Page PR’s team of crowdfunding PR, social media and marketing experts can help crowdfunding sites and crowdfunding campaigns plan the perfect mix of integrated marketing programs to significantly improve the amount of website traffic being driven to any given fundraising campaign or crowdfunding platform.

Feel free to call (512) 627-6622 with questions or request help to improve your website statistics before June.

More Top 100 Crowdfunding Site Lists:

• Top 100 Global Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 100 Equity Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 100 Real Estate Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 100 Reward/Perks Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 Donations Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 University Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 Texas Equity Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 Crowdfunding Cities

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If you’d like to add your site to the Top 100 list, please fill out the form below.

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Crowdfunding PR Seeks Equity-based and Rewards-based Crowdfunding Sites to Add to Its Top 100 Crowdfunding List

Add Your Site to Our 2016 Top 100 List

Do you know of a new crowdfunding site that has been launched in the last 12 to 24 months? If so, we want to know the company name and what URL we should review for our Top 100 Crowdfunding Sites list.

Either follow us on Twitter @Crowdfunding_PR or connect with us on Linkedin at https://www.linkedin.com/in/roberthoskins and then share the information you’d like to add to any of our lists.

Is your crowdfunding site listed?

• 2015 Top 100 Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 Equity Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 Real Estate Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 Rewards/Perks Crowdfunding
• Top 10 Donation Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 Texas Crowdfunding Sites
• Top 10 College/University Crowdfunding Sites

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SEC’s Title III Equity Crowdfunding for Non-Accredited Investors

 Title III Crowdfunding Rules per the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act

SEC to Approve Final Title III Rules for Equity Crowdfunding for Non-Accredited Investors

SEC’s Crowdfunding Title III Open Meeting:

The Securities and Exchange Commission will hold an Open Meeting on Friday, October 30, 2015 at 10:00 a.m., in the Auditorium, Room L-002.

SEC Title III Open Meeting Discussion Points:

• The Commission will consider whether to adopt rules and forms related to the offer and sale of securities through crowdfunding under Section 4(a)(6) of the Securities Act of 1933, as mandated by Title III of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act.
• The Commission will consider whether to propose amendments to Securities Act Rule 147 and Rule 504.

Commission Stein, as duty officer, voted to consider the items listed for the Open Meeting in open session, and determined that Commission business required consideration earlier than one week from today.  No earlier notice of this Meeting was practicable.

View the Archived SEC’s Title III Crowdfunding Open Meeting Video:

https://www.sec.gov/news/openmeetings.shtml

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SEC Approves Regulation A+ Rules under Title IV of the JOBS Act that Pre-empts State Law and Paves the Way for Selling Up to $50 Million of Equity Crowdfunding Securities to Unaccredited Investors

There are no general solicitation restrictions so companies can freely advertise, market and publicize offerings at demo days, trade shows, mass media and via social media networks

 By Robert Hoskins

Washington, D.C. – The Securities and Exchange Commission adopted final rules unanimously to facilitate smaller companies’ access to capital.  The new rules provide investors with more investment choices.The new rules update and expand Title IV Regulation A+, an existing exemption from registration for smaller issuers of securities.

SEC Approves Regulation A+ Rules under Title IV of the JOBS Act

The rules are mandated by Title IV of the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act.The updated exemption will enable smaller companies to offer and sell up to $50 million of securities in a 12-month period, subject to eligibility, disclosure and reporting requirements.

“These new rules provide an effective, workable path to raising capital that also provides strong investor protections,” said SEC Chair Mary Jo White.  “It is important for the Commission to continue to look for ways that our rules can facilitate capital-raising by smaller companies.”

The final rules, often referred to as Regulation A+, provide for two tiers of equity crowdfunding securities offerings:

• Tier 1:  Offerings of securities of up to $20 million in a 12-month period, with not more than $6 million in offers by selling security-holders that are affiliates of the issuer; and
• Tier 2: Offerings of securities of up to $50 million in a 12-month period, with not more than $15 million in offers by selling security-holders that are affiliates of the issuer.

Both Tiers are subject to certain basic requirements while Tier 2 offerings are also subject to additional disclosure and ongoing reporting requirements.

The final rules also provide for the preemption of state securities law registration and qualification requirements for securities offered or sold to “qualified purchasers” in Tier 2 offerings.

Tier 1 offerings will be subject to federal and state registration and qualification requirements, and issuers may take advantage of the coordinated review program developed by the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA).

The rules will be effective 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.

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