This is an op-ed by Kroum Kroumov, copywriter, editor, and UX writer.
Crowdfunding has always been a great way to get funding for your work and fly your ambitions. Most Internet crowdfunding platforms have not kept up with changes in politics, technology, and advances in online interaction, primarily the growth of online communities. Censorship and government overreach have played a critical role in generating a need for innovation in crowdfunding.
Here, we’ll explore how Lightning is redefining crowdfunding, what new features are becoming possible, and which crowdfunding platforms are leading the way in innovation and elevating the bitcoin/Lightning ecosystem to new heights.
Traditional crowdfunding platforms are outdated
Unfortunately, not everyone is interested in new technologies, and many institutions and companies will struggle to maintain the status quo as they profit from them. Therefore, innovation often becomes a threat in their eyes. Governments, with their drive to keep a fiduciary system in place, are an example of this. Another example is the government’s attempts to digitize fiat currencies through CBDC to keep your fiduciary system running.
Crowdfunding platforms have also been slow to adopt bitcoin. We could easily attribute the slow acceptance of bitcoin by crowdfunding platforms to government rhetoric, which has sown the seeds of uncertainty. Regardless of his reasoning, platforms that don’t adapt will be rendered obsolete, because they will miss out on the possibilities that Lightning brings.
Government overreach and censorship
Nothing has shown that we need to fund decentralization more than recent censorship events, such as the truckers’ protest in Canada. A popular crowdfunding platform, GoFundMe, froze donated goods of protestersyielding to government pressure. This protest and the resulting government reaction, i.e. censorship of donated funds, demonstrated that governments reach into people’s pockets to try to stop our right to disagree.
A bitcoin-only crowdfunding platform that stepped forward during the protests was TallyCoin. TallyCoin allowed protesters to receive funds in bitcoin. This showed the world at large the censorship resistant properties that Bitcoin brings with it. As long as the project remained open, truckers could receive funding.
As unwarranted as the government’s overreach was during the truckers’ protest, full decentralization of crowdfunding platforms is not something anyone is looking to do. The funds are censorship resistant, while the project is not. TallyCoin did eventually close the project, but the truckers received their funds and no one could take the money from them while the project was active on the website, since bitcoin transactions are peer-to-peer.
A crowdfunding platform cannot take responsibility for helping finance illegal activities, in this case hosting projects that they would consider criminal. While we can decentralize money, making it censorship-resistant thanks to bitcoin, it is a problem to decentralize the content of the platform entirely.
Lightning-enabled crowdfunding
Bitcoin adds a layer of censorship resistance to crowdfunding. The crowdfunding platform hosts projects in the role of a third party, while bitcoin donations remain decentralized as they are peer-to-peer. Therefore, the money a user receives is as resistant to censorship as bitcoin itself.
The Lightning layer is a game changer because it allows donations to come through third-party websites and various social media platforms. For example, you can receive donations directly to your wallet by posting your static Lightning address or QR code in tweets and blog posts. This means that a user would not need to log in to the crowdfunding platform to donate to your cause.
One platform that is driving the agenda for Lightning integration is Geyser.Background. This platform is a good example of what the new generation of dynamic crowdfunding platforms looks like. It is a Lightning-native crowdfunding platform that takes advantage of the innovation opportunities Lightning brings, including:
- Lightning Addresses – Every project in Geyser gets a built-in Lightning address that creators can take advantage of.
- Static QR codes. Creators receive money directly to their wallets from their social media accounts by posting their static QR code, eliminating the need to log in to Geyser. This allows you to receive funds from anyone, anytime, anywhere.
- WEBLN browser integration. If you don’t prefer QR codes, you can use WEBLN browser integrations like Alby to receive direct payments through your permanent Lightning address.
- Live fund updates. The project page is updated as soon as the funds come in. This shows users how their project is speeding up.
- Totally borderless crowdfunding. With Lightning, you can send and receive funding for your project no matter where you are, and from anywhere users can scan your code to send you suggestions.
- Commitment to donors and the community. Project owners can write articles and post updates on their project page to keep their community informed and engaged. In this way, the project is in a recurring live state.
- Interoperability with podcasting 2.0: Earn sats tips for your crowdfunding campaign through the Font podcast app
- Censorship resistant funding. The funds go directly to your Lightning wallet without going through a third party, in this case, Geyser. The platform only hosts the project, not the funds.
Dynamic Crowdfunding with Lightning
If you think about it, all traditional crowdfunding platforms look alike: they are static pages. There is no compromise between the communities and little to nothing happens live on screen.
On the other hand, Lightning-enabled crowdfunding websites are dynamic. Everything is alive, engaged, changing, and interacting with users on both ends. Dynamic crowdfunding expands the reach of your project and generates more funds through interaction and interoperability across social media platforms and browser integrations.
conclusion
The traditional crowdfunding model has become obsolete due to government overreach and the technological opportunities provided by the Lightning layer of bitcoin. Now, native bitcoin/Lightning crowdfunding platforms such as Geyser.fund, TallyCoin, and OpenSats they are taking advantage of the innovation opportunities provided by Lightning to revolutionize the field.
Through the Lightning layer, crowdfunding is becoming decentralized, censorship-resistant, peer-to-peer, and dynamic. We immediately reaped the benefits of better marketing reach through social media, diversifying ways to get paid, interoperability, and community engagement, all of which improve funding, audience, and accessibility.
So why not take advantage of it? If you’re looking to help fund a cause, you can now do so from your favorite social media platform, and if you already have a project, share it on social media and get funded. It’s time for crowdfunding to evolve through Lightning interoperability and innovation.
This is a guest post by Kroum Kroumov. The opinions expressed are entirely their own and do not necessarily reflect those of BTC Inc or Bitcoin Magazine.
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