Effect of Storytelling on Crowdfunding Campaign Success

Sammanfattning: Storytelling is an important skillset for an entrepreneur to possess in order to appeal to funders. Crowdfunding is a relatively new funding mechanism, involving the crowd to fund projects or ideas. The evolution of crowdfunding has created an alternative to traditional means of funding such as bank loans, venture capital and angel investors. This paper examines the effects of storytelling on an entrepreneur’s ability to secure funding at crowdfunding platforms. We argue that stories help leverage funding by conveying a comprehensible story with a clear sequence of events and entrepreneurial identity for the project. Quantitative analysis of 60 Kickstarter crowdfunding campaigns within technology sector reveal that successful crowdfunding campaigns have more comprehensive stories than unsuccessful crowdfunding campaigns. Also, an increase in the comprehensiveness of the stories has a positive influence on the funding success. Findings inform research on storytelling in entrepreneurship and innovation and, research on mobilization of resources from crowds.