The Spark Project: Creating spark in crowdfunding

THERE is no doubt that “crowdfunding” has become the default avenue to raise funds for a campaign, a project, an appeal for help, and other issues that tug the heart.

One such crowdfunding website is “The Spark Project,” a Filipino crowdfunding website and community spearheaded by Founder and CEO Patrick Dulay. It aims to create a “spark” among local entrepreneurs or the so-called “changemakers” and doers and empower them through an online platform to showcase their creations and projects while at the same time, attract people who are willing to provide exciting and sociallymeaningful projects.

Thus, Dulay was elated when The Spark Project was chosen as one of the Top 5 winners of the Globe Future Makers (GFM) program, besting 130 other entries.

“Globe enables our technology and there are a lot of potential for synergies with Globe. GFM can really help the project by creating a bigger community and expanding our membership, or through resources to help us grow in the next few months. Our goal is to spark 100 projects and to achieve that, we need all the help we can get,” he said.

“Through our partners in GFM such as Kickstart Ventures, Inc. and Ashoka Philippines, we are facilitating the winners’ access to relevant startup workshops or clinics, introductions to potential partners, mentors, advisers, and investors so that they can build their products faster and launch sooner to benefit the communities that they aim to serve. Together, we hope to influence and build a whole ecosystem of social innovators who use technology to create a positive impact on society,” said Chelle Gray, Director for Globe Citizenship.

It was in 2009 when Dulay started to toy with the idea of funding something by the people. He later on began his own project together with his co-founders.

“I felt there are a lot of ideas and I believe in people’s talent. Being abroad gave me a deeper appreciation of Filipino talent being world class and I’d like to contribute to that, make their ideas happen through technology and crowdsourcing so they can enable their dreams and ideas to fly,” he said.

Dulay said in five years, they were able to “spark” a total of 63 projects valued cumulatively at more than P5.8 million. On average, a project can raise from P80,000 to P120,000. To qualify for crowdfunding, creative entrepreneurs and change-makers should be local or homegrown. Even if not enterprising, the effort should have an impact on society and community and should be innovative enough.

Through crowdfunding, Dulay reported that they were able to help a lot of interesting projects, mostly product-based or consumer goods.

Dulay said that the most challenging part is how to draw the public to a project since there is a high degree of accountability where project proponents have to be able to deliver what they promised. Ther e should always be transparency, Dulay said, so everyone goes through a screening process to determine if they can really deliver.