Three friends from Quebec are leveraging the power of Indiegogo to launch their first business. So far, they’ve been able to raise more than $13,000 of their $15,000 goal to build a yoga and surf hostel in Nicaragua next to the Pacific Coast.

“We want to inspire a generation and tell them that we can still believe that one day we will achieve our dreams,” says Karl Pineault, co-founder of Free Spirit Hostel.

Not every campaign succeeds, however. In fact, 80 per cent of Indiegogo projects fail to raise more than a quarter of their goal, according to 2013 results from its search engine. So why do some crowdfunding campaigns flourish while others flounder?

On Friday, Sept. 19 at 1 p.m. (ET) we will hold our first microbusiness live discussion focused on crowdfunding tips and put reader questions to our participants: Karl Pineault and Laurent Champagn of Free Spirit Hostel and Daryl Hatton, founder and CEO of FundRazr, Canada’s largest reward-based crowdfunding portal.

We’ll consider the importance of crafting a compelling message and setting realistic goals, as well as the kinds of incentives to offer funders or investors.

Posted from : http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/small-business/sb-tools/sb-how-to/chat-microbusiness-crowdfunding/article20510810/