Where Start-Ups Can Get Funding for a Strong Brand (Part 2):
In my last blog, ‘Why Start-ups Need a Strong Brand’, I discussed the importance of branding and how it can drive a start-up’s success. Yet, a low budget can get in the way of building a strong brand.
There are several sources of funding if you’re a start-up looking for support. The COVID-19 crisis has affected some of the funding sources but there’s still support through Business Gateway and the Scottish Enterprise.
When I came to Scotland, I attended a few of the Business Gateway workshops and it gave a great start – I secured some clients in the process. In this blog, I will highlight sources of funding for start-ups, focusing on local council schemes and crowdfunding.
Local Council Schemes
The Business Resilience and Sustainability Scheme (BRASS) is a new initiative to support local businesses and social enterprises.
The scheme complements work undertaken by other business support bodies e.g. Business Gateway, Scottish Enterprise and Opportunity North East (ONE) to boost the local economy and maximise the benefit to the business. BRASS replaces the previous Support for Aberdeenshire Business (SAB) scheme.
If you’re looking to build digital resilience or improve your market position, BRASS could be the right option for you. The scheme also supports businesses in responding to public expectations around climate change and net-zero.
Note that this scheme requires at least 50% match funding if you are to be successful. The match funding could be from a private investor, your retained profits or a loan.
You can follow this link to contact your local Economic Development Officer here.
Crowdfunding
Crowdfunding is a popular way of raising funds for your business and there are a lot of different types of crowdfunding. Many start-up founders use rewards crowdfunding provided by platforms like Kickstarter and Indiegogo. It works by giving funders various rewards when they give to the business or a product/service. The reward depends on how much support the funder provides. It can range from a one-off gift to a life-time supply of products or services.
The general perception is that roughly 70% of crowdfunding fail. The high percentage is due to the founders being unprepared and not knowing enough about how crowdfunding works. Crowdfunding requires a lot of effort; it needs a good strategy to make it a success. Founders need to give some thought to what rewards the funders will care about and how they will manage the process to drive engagement. The key is to create interest in your crowdfunding campaign BEFORE it goes live by engaging with existing and potential funders. Use your marketing efforts to drive awareness of your product or service.
Crowdfunding tends to work more for charities and social enterprises where it’s easier to create an emotional connection. But several for-profit and private companies have done well with crowdfunding. Some locally known businesses that have seen crowdfunding success are UDrafter, EBar and BrewDog.
If you’re a female founder, also check out Back Her Business. It’s a crowdfunding programme run by RBS, NatWest and Ulster Bank. The scheme has backed S’Wheat, a reusable bottle made from plants. As well as being a female-led business, you and your business must be based in the UK. Your business should not have cross £1,000 in annual revenue at the time of your application. See the full eligibility terms here.
If you’d like to discuss branding your start-up, don’t hesitate to contact me via mail@anjapeter.com.