Erfolg bei Crowdfunding-Kampagnen: Eine Perspektive aus E-Commerce und Social Media (Crowdfunding Success: A Perspective from Social Media and E-Commerce)

German Abstract: Mit Crowdfunding hat sich in den letzten Jahren eine neue Finanzierungsform etabliert. Bislang ist jedoch nur wenig darüber bekannt, wie Projektinitiatoren die Erfolgschancen in ihren Crowdfunding-Kampagnen steigern können, indem sie sog. „On-Page“ (auf der Projektseite) und „Off-Page“ Kommunikationsmass-nahmen (ausserhalb der Projektseite) einsetzen. Im vorliegenden Beitrag untersuchen wir bei 740 Crowdfunding-Kampagnen der Schweizer Plattform 100-days.net, inwieweit sich derartige kommunikationsbezogene Massnahmen der Projektinitiatoren auf ver-schiedene Erfolgsmasse der Kampagnen auswirken. Dabei analysieren wir mögliche Effekte auf: (1) die Anzahl der Zahlungen, (2) die durchschnittliche Höhe der Zahlungen und (3) den letztendlichen Kampagnenerfolg. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Nutzung reichhaltiger Medien und zahlreiche Projekt-Updates die Erfolgschancen steigern. Im Gegensatz dazu zeigen sich keine Effekte aufgrund der einfachen Einbindung von Social Media Kanälen in Crowdfunding-Kampagnen. English Abstract: Crowdfunding as a new way of financing in the web 2.0 has increased over the last years, but only little is known how project initiators increase their chances of successful fundraising through on-page and off-page communication activities. Using a dataset of 740 projects published on one of the dominant crowdfunding platforms in Switzerland, we test communication-related determinants of fundraising success in terms of (1) number of donations (2) average amount of donations and (3) total campaign success. Our results show that high media richness in the project presentation and a high frequency of project updates leverage fundraising success. In contrast, no beneficial effects of the mere application of social media channels could be observed. The implications for research on crowdfunding and practice are discussed.

[1]  G. Zaltman,et al.  Relationships between Providers and Users of Market Research: The Dynamics of Trust within and between Organizations , 1992 .

[2]  D. Solomon,et al.  Structuring the concept of relational communication , 1999 .

[3]  J. Block,et al.  Crowdfunding: A Literature Review and Research Directions , 2014 .

[4]  Jan B. Heide,et al.  The Shadow Of The Future: Effects Of Anticipated Interaction And Frequency Of Contact On Buyer-Seller Cooperation , 1992 .

[5]  B. Uzzi,et al.  Social Structure and Competition in Interfirm Networks: The Paradox of Embeddedness , 1997 .

[6]  A. Kaplan,et al.  Users of the world, unite! The challenges and opportunities of Social Media , 2010 .

[7]  Bernard J. Jaworski,et al.  Enhancing Communication between Marketing and Engineering: The Moderating Role of Relative Functional Identification , 1997 .

[8]  Jamie Weatherston,et al.  Academic Research on Crowdfunders: What's Been Done and What's To Come? , 2015 .

[9]  Larry E. Toothaker,et al.  Multiple Regression: Testing and Interpreting Interactions , 1991 .

[10]  Pei-Chen Sun,et al.  The design of instructional multimedia in e-Learning: A Media Richness Theory-based approach , 2007, Comput. Educ..

[11]  B. Bayus,et al.  Crowdfunding Creative Ideas: The Dynamics of Project Backers in Kickstarter , 2015 .

[12]  Robin Teigland,et al.  Crowdfunding in Action: How Institutional Logics Encourage and Constrain Affordance Perception , 2014 .

[13]  Anne P. Massey,et al.  Can You Hear Me Now? Communication in Virtual Product Development Teams* , 2009 .

[14]  Andrew Fink.  Protecting the Crowd and Raising Capital Through the JOBS Act , 2012 .

[15]  Ethan Mollick.  The Dynamics of Crowdfunding: An Exploratory Study , 2014 .

[16]  Todd J. Hostager,et al.  Beyond the Silo Approach: Using Group Support Systems in Organizational Behavior Classes to Facilitate Student Understanding of Individual and Group Behavior in Electronic Meetings , 2004 .

[17]  Morten T. Hansen,et al.  KNOWLEDGE SHARING IN ORGANIZATIONS: MULTIPLE NETWORKS, MULTIPLE PHASES , 2005 .

[18]  Paloma Martínez,et al.  Overlapping factors in search engine optimization and web accessibility , 2013, Online Inf. Rev..

[19]  Rowena Weiss Swanson,et al.  The information business is a people business , 1970, Inf. Storage Retr..

[20]  Paolo Crosetto,et al.  Crowdfunding: Determinants of success and funding dynamics , 2014 .

[21]  Stefan Smolnik,et al.  Return on Investment in Social Media--Does the Hype Pay Off? Towards an Assessment of the Profitability of Social Media in Organizations , 2012, 2012 45th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.

[22]  W. Bains,et al.  Funding biotech start-ups in a post-VC world , 2014 .

[23]  F. Buttle,et al.  Word-of-mouth marketing influence on offline and online communications: Evidence from case study research , 2014 .

[24]  Anindya Ghose,et al.  An Empirical Examination of the Antecedents and Consequences of Contribution Patterns in Crowd-Funded Markets , 2013, Inf. Syst. Res..

[25]  Hsiu-Li Liao,et al.  Impact of media richness and flow on e-learning technology acceptance , 2009, Comput. Educ..

[26]  Liang Chen,et al.  Will video be the next generation of e-commerce product reviews? Presentation format and the role of product type , 2015, Decis. Support Syst..

[27]  Joan Macleod Heminway.  What is a Security in the Crowdfunding Era , 2012 .

[28]  Yong Jin Kim,et al.  The impact of interactivity of electronic word of mouth systems and E-Quality on decision support in the context of the e-marketplace , 2015, Inf. Manag..

[29]  E. Autio,et al.  SOCIAL CAPITAL, KNOWLEDGE ACQUISITION, AND KNOWLEDGE EXPLOITATION IN YOUNG TECHNOLOGY-BASED FIRMS , 2001 .

[30]  Paul Belleflamme,et al.  Individual crowdfunding practices , 2013, Venture Capital.

[31]  H. P. Sims,et al.  Top Management Team Demography and Process: The Role of Social Integration and Communication , 1994 .

[32]  Michael Beier,et al.  Crowdfunding Success of Tourism Projects - Evidence from Switzerland. , 2014 .

[33]  D. Fortin,et al.  Behavioral outcomes from online auctions: reserve price, reserve disclosure, and initial bidding influences in the decision process , 2005 .

[34]  Sumit Lodhia,et al.  Web based social and environmental communication in the Australian minerals industry: an application of media richness framework , 2012 .

[35]  Alexander Benlian,et al.  A Lie Never Lives to be Old: The Effects of Fake Social Information on Consumer Decision-Making in Crowdfunding , 2015, ECIS.

[36]  Mark S. Granovetter.  The Strength of Weak Ties , 1973, American Journal of Sociology.

[37]  Gregory B. Northcraft,et al.  To be or not to be trusted: The influence of media richness on defection and deception , 2008 .

[38]  Jiangchuan Liu,et al.  Understanding the Characteristics of Internet Short Video Sharing: A YouTube-Based Measurement Study , 2013, IEEE Transactions on Multimedia.

[39]  Yun Xu,et al.  The role of multidimensional social capital in crowdfunding: A comparative study in China and US , 2014, Inf. Manag..

[40]  Henry H. Emurian,et al.  An overview of online trust: Concepts, elements, and implications , 2005, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[41]  J. Baron,et al.  Cost of Public Goods Affects Willingness to Pay for Them , 1996 .

[42]  Alexander Benlian,et al.  Understanding the Dynamic Interplay of Social Buzz and Contribution Behavior within and between Online Platforms - Evidence from Crowdfunding , 2014, ICIS.

[43]  Michael D. Smith,et al.  Location, Location, Location: An Analysis of Profitability of Position in Online Advertising Markets , 2008 .

[44]  Sirkka L. Jarvenpaa,et al.  Consumer trust in an Internet store , 2000, Inf. Technol. Manag..

[45]  Richard L. Daft,et al.  Organizational information requirements, media richness and structural design , 1986 .

[46]  Uichin Lee,et al.  Every Little Helps: Understanding Donor Behavior in a Crowdfunding Platform for Non-profits , 2015, CHI Extended Abstracts.

[47]  D. Harhoff,et al.  Venture Capitalists’ Evaluations of Start–Up Teams: Trade–Offs, Knock–Out Criteria, and the Impact of VC Experience , 2008 .

[48]  Brian Baresch,et al.  Friends Who Choose Your News: An analysis of content links on Facebook , 2011 .

[49]  Yong Tan,et al.  Social media research: A review , 2013, Journal of Systems Science and Systems Engineering.

[50]  Julie K. Huntley.  Conceptualization and measurement of relationship quality: Linking relationship quality to actual sales and recommendation intention , 2006 .

[51]  Avi Goldfarb,et al.  Some Simple Economics of Crowdfunding , 2013, Innovation Policy and the Economy.

[52]  U. Klinger.  MASTERING THE ART OF SOCIAL MEDIA , 2013 .

[53]  Calvin Qiu.  Issues in Crowdfunding: Theoretical and Empirical Investigation on Kickstarter , 2013 .

[54]  Zhao Huang,et al.  From e-commerce to social commerce: A close look at design features , 2013, Electron. Commer. Res. Appl..

[55]  Sue Newell,et al.  Knowledge management and innovation: networks and networking , 1999, J. Knowl. Manag..

[56]  Cristina Rossi Lamastra,et al.  Why Crowdfunding Projects Can Succeed: The Role of Proponents’ Individual and Territorial Social Capital , 2013 .

[57]  Joel A. C. Baum,et al.  Picking winners or building them? Alliance, intellectual, and human capital as selection criteria in venture financing and performance of biotechnology startups , 2004 .

[58]  B. Batjargal.  The dynamics of entrepreneurs’ networks in a transitioning economy: the case of Russia , 2006 .

[59]  Kai Fischbach,et al.  Collective Dynamics of Crowdfunding Networks , 2015, 2015 48th Hawaii International Conference on System Sciences.

[60]  Richard L. Daft,et al.  Message Equivocality, Media Selection, and Manager Performance: Implications for Information Systems , 1987, MIS Q..

[61]  Deborah E. Gibbons,et al.  Friendship and Advice Networks in the Context of Changing Professional Values , 2004 .

[62]  T. Lechler.  Social Interaction: A Determinant of Entrepreneurial Team Venture Success , 2001 .

[63]  Line Ricard,et al.  Online relationship quality: scale development and initial testing , 2014 .

[64]  M. Colombo,et al.  Internal Social Capital and the Attraction of Early Contributions in Crowdfunding , 2015 .

[65]  H. Hruschka.  Comparing Small‐ and Large‐Scale Models of Multicategory Buying Behavior , 2013 .

[66]  Chung-Tzer Liu,et al.  he effects of relationship quality and switching barriers on customer loyalty , 2010 .

[67]  Taya R. Cohen,et al.  How Communication Increases Interpersonal Cooperation in Mixed-Motive Situations , 2010 .

[68]  Andrew N. Smith,et al.  How Does Brand-related User-generated Content Differ across YouTube, Facebook, and Twitter? , 2012 .

[69]  Steven Walczak,et al.  The relationship between website quality, trust and price premiums at online auctions , 2010, Electron. Commer. Res..

[70]  Ross A. Malaga,et al.  Worst practices in search engine optimization , 2008, CACM.

[71]  J. Crompton,et al.  The Effects of Different Types of Information Messages on Perceptions of Price and Stated Willingness-to-Pay , 2001 .

[72]  P. Watzlawick,et al.  Pragmatics of Human Communication: A Study of Interactional Patterns, Pathologies and Paradoxes , 1964 .

[73]  Jonathan W. Palmer,et al.  Web Site Usability, Design, and Performance Metrics , 2002, Inf. Syst. Res..

[74]  Mark Batey,et al.  A tale of two sites: Twitter vs. Facebook and the personality predictors of social media usage , 2012, Comput. Hum. Behav..

[75]  Wen Gao,et al.  Vlogging: A survey of videoblogging technology on the web , 2010, CSUR.

[76]  Ke Xu,et al.  Video sharing in online social networks: measurement and analysis , 2012, NOSSDAV '12.

[77]  Paul Watzlawick,et al.  Some Formal Aspects of Communication , 1967 .

[78]  Stuart R. Cohn.  The New Crowdfunding Registration Exemption: Good Idea, Bad Execution , 2012 .

[79]  Armin Schwienbacher,et al.  Crowdfunding of Small Entrepreneurial Ventures , 2010 .

[80]  Alexander Benlian,et al.  Erfolg von Crowdfunding-Kampagnen frühzeitig erkennen: Erfolgsprädiktoren auf Kickstarter und Indiegogo , 2015, Wirtschaftsinformatik.

[81]  Ray Reagans,et al.  Network Structure and Knowledge Transfer: The Effects of Cohesion and Range , 2003 .

[82]  Efraim Turban,et al.  Groups Formation and Operations in the Web 2.0 Environment and Social Networks , 2008 .

[83]  J. Walther.  Interpersonal Effects in Computer-Mediated Interaction , 1992 .

[84]  B. L. Driver,et al.  Contingent value measurement: On the nature and meaning of willingness to pay , 1992 .

[85]  Blakley C. Davis,et al.  Crowdfunding in a Prosocial Microlending Environment: Examining the Role of Intrinsic versus Extrinsic Cues , 2015 .

[86]  Thorsten Semrau,et al.  How Specialised and Integrated Relationship Management Responsibilities Foster New Ventures' Network Development , 2015 .