Cundari is looking to step up Canada’s non-profit game with the launch of a unique, crowd-funding tool for small charities.
Dubbed Kickstopper.ca, the ad agency hopes the website and project will become a useful destination for small groups seeking to raise cash.
While plenty of bigger charities, such as the Red Cross or the United Way, have promotional muscle, many small groups with good causes lack the means and the platform to reach the public.
“In all our years in business, we have seen a lot of well-intentioned charitable advertising that invokes sympathy, but does not provoke action,” said Andrew Simon, CCO at Cundari.
“Our Cundari team wanted to help charities raise more than just awareness; we wanted to help them raise the funds needed to make a difference.”
Unlike Kickstarter, the popular crowd-funding company that’s become a major tool for startups in recent years, Kickstopper is designed solely as a non-profit.
A video outlining the project has also gone live on YouTube.
Cundari, with offices in Toronto and Montreal, launched the project this week, and already, at least six charities have signed up.
Projects on the website include Project Water, which gives bottled water to Toronto’s homeless, and KidSport, which provides financial assistance for kids to play organized sports.
“Online crowdfunding has helped people achieve big dreams,” said Simon.
“Our goal with Kickstopper.ca is to move the needle on social giving in order to help people attain basic necessities in life, from food, to shelter and safety. Our Cundari team is incredibly excited to launch this initiative, which will ultimately help many grassroots charities at once.”
While a small fee goes toward the website’s payment administrator, Kickstopper itself collects no fees from the projects.
By comparison, Kickstarter’s fees in Canada end up being 5% of the total funds raised, along with a payment processing fee of between 3-5%.
Another key difference is that any funds raised on Kickstopper still go to the project, regardless of whether a target is met. On Kickstarter, hitting a target is required, otherwise funds are returned to the donors.
Simon said a team of Cundari volunteers—which included staff members from the finance team all the way through the agency’s development group—have been working on the project for the past six months
“Because our goal is to help grassroots charities who have a direct impact in local communities, our initial focus is Canada,” said Simon.
“But we certainly welcome and encourage all grassroots charities to register and participate.”
