The world of business is a place full of good choices and bad choices, successes and failures, and most often, risks. Being an entrepreneur can be an area of business that encounters it’s fair amount of successes and failures, but can thrive on calculated risk-taking. So, if you’re an entrepreneur looking for a) funding and b) the best way to encounter your first risk that could lead to a success or a failure, allow me introduce you to Kickstarter.

Kickstarter is a website dedicated to projects looking for audience related funding, instead of major investors. Essentially, Kickstarter projects are crowd-funded on an all or nothing basis, meaning you have a timeline set and if you don’t reach that your goal by the end of the timeline, you receive none of the money pledged to your project. People who begin a project on Kickstarter must follow a specific set of guidelines but, and this is a huge draw, Kickstarter will not assume any creative rights on the project. In other words, if you meet your goal, Kickstarter allows you all of the funds pledged to you as well as your creativity.

Entrepreneurs and do-it-yourselfers alike have been flocking to the campaign in hopes of getting their projects off the ground. Since it’s inception in 2009, Kickstarter has successfully helped for fund 42, 286 projects and amassed a total of 637 million dollars for projects. This has allowed Kickstarter to have a 43.96 per cent success rate, and please plenty of risk taking entrepreneurs.

Bonuses for people supporting these projects are “backer rewards” or perks that people get when they pledge money to the project. These rewards can be the extra oomph some people need to pledge money, because it makes the transaction less like a donation and more like an investment.

Now, just because you may not have heard of Kickstarter, don’t be surprised if you’ve heard about some Kickstarter funded projects. Kickstarter supports artists, filmmaker, authors, illustrators, inventors, and scientists, to name a few. In the past two years, Kickstarter helped fund 10% of the films shown at Sundance, launched the app Dark Sky that helps predict weather patterns, fund the extremely popular board game Cards Against Humanity, publish multiple books and graphic novels (notably reMind by Jason Brubaker, Hatter M by Frank Beddor and The Future of You! Creating Your Enduring Brand by Roz Usheroff), as well as fund two major motion pictures for the upcoming year (the Veronica Mars movie and Zach Braff’s sequel to Garden State.)

In the wake of the virtual world taking over, Kickstarter is another way to use the Internet to your best advantage. It’s not only beneficial to helping people create and build their businesses, but it also provides an amazing network of support. It could be the best risk you’ll ever take. Kickstarter is one of the better ways to step into the virtual world of business with a wide door for expansion.

© Zoe Begopoulos, DemGen Inc. 2013

The key to a successful business is acquiring market edge over your competitors, such as superior products, better marketing, and more efficient business models. Regardless of what gives a business an advantage, it always boils down to having the proper vision and desire. If you’re not sure where you want your idea to take you or lack the motivation to realize it, you’ll never succeed.

Who is in Charge of Most Startups?

With that in mind, it should be no shock that a growing number of successful startups are being launched by baby-boomers, or boomerpeneurs. Who else in this economy is better positioned to craft a compelling vision of a business than someone with the experience, wisdom, and understanding of what it takes to succeed? The problems boomerpeneurs are facing don’t lie in their inability to construct a viable vision or find intense motivation; they know when to quit the job they’ve already found success at to pursue their startup idea.

Financing

Financing is one of the biggest factors when considering a startup. Financing for startups usually includes a loan, selling equity or using a business credit card. Depending on how much capital is needed and the rate of return expected, you should use a mix of these lines of credit. Extreme caution should be used when one mixes their personal credit with their business credit. Entrepreneurs should avoid using their own credit card and instead opt for a business credit card with a reputable institution like American Express. You’re APR can change if you use your card for business and it can be an accounting nightmare. Using a business credit card from American Express and other companies can provide you with small business perks and incentives that are unavailable to a regular consumer. Regardless of where your funding comes from, keep in mind the advantages of different sources and how quickly you plan to turn a profit.

When to Leave Your Corporate Job

Deciding to leave your day job and pursue market dominance on your own is a big decision and should be arrived at carefully. Once you know how you’ll initially pay for business expenses and when you’ll be able to recoup your costs, it’s time to turn your vision into a business plan. To do this, you will have to do your research and formulate an outline with specific deadlines attached to it. For boomerpeneurs, they’ve already amassed a level of expertise in a particular industry, which is one of the reasons they feel comfortable starting their own business. In this case the research should be focused on the nitty-gritty of running a company. Look at the different components of a business, assess your ability to run these areas and plan to hire others for the things you either don’t know how to or don’t want to do.

The intricacies of starting and running a profitable business are vast and, at times, tedious. If you have the experience, vision, and drive, you can become a member of a growing segment of baby-boomer entrepreneurs. You can start your own business today. Quit your day job and begin your dream job.

© 2013 DemGen Inc.