It was observed that there seem to be a lot of innovative fundraising efforts in Detroit, so it seems worthy of a section. This list includes both groups who build their own crowdfunding software and those that use external software but focus their efforts on Detroit in whole or in part, as well as some notable one-off crowdfunding projects.
- http://www.endlesscrowds.com/ - Endless Crowds provides an exclusive fundraising platform to raise money for startups and community projects created by Active / Veteran Military & First Responders. They have a network of supporters that believe in helping our heroes achieve their goals and succeed in business.
- Kickstarter has a steady stream of Detroit-based projects. Organizations from Focus: Hope to local music groups and artists have used it to raise funds. A statue of Robocop might be the most well-known Detroit Kickstarter project -- it raised over $67,000 and sparked much more in conversation.
- FundPerk.com is headquartered in Detroit and provides a crowdfunding platform that rewards donors with items that feature the fund-raising group's logo (e.g. high school sports team, charity, etc).
- LOVELAND Technologies has created a number of crowdfunding tools, including "inchvesting," or buying a square inch of a Loveland-owned lot in Detroit. They also ran a number of successful Kickstarter campaigns,
- Detroit4Detroit recruited 150 "citizen philanthropists", each of whom is assigned a fundraising project. These people commit to raising funds for local groups, including education, arts, health, and community groups. Most projects are in the $1,000 - $5,000 range. Funded by the Knight Foundation and others; connected with the DC-based Citizen Effect.
- Detroit Big F Deal raises funding for Detroit-based "social enterprises." Current projects include a downtown boxing gym for youth, a sweet potato-focused shop, and a community film production company.
- Detroit SOUP is a monthly dinner. The admission price is pooled and diners vote for one of several projects -- the winner receives the pool as a grant with no strings attached. Amounts are generally in the $600-900 range. Projects like "Belle Isle to 8 Mile," a guide to the city, and "Urban Recovery Farm," a service provider for recovering addicts, have received grants.
- SaveTheBagel.com was a fundraising campaign by the Detroit International Bagel Company (DIBCO) that earned them $10,000 towards their new kitchen and storefront.
- SOUP at Spaulding, in the same vein as Detroit SOUP, has been regularly raising funds for Spaulding Court.
- Fundington, is a Detroit-based crowdfunding organization that has their own crowdfunding portal and helps people successfully crowdfunding their project across other portals.
Cool funding opportunities that aren't quite crowdfunding:
