Image credit: Tachi
In Indonesia, crowdfunding is still in its infancy, on par with much of Southeast Asia. For a country with multiple nationalities, different languages, and hundreds of volcanic islands, its government is ready to play a good role in helping crowdfunding, giving it the impetus it needs to grow.
Indonesia is world-famous for its beautiful pristine beaches, volcanoes, jungles, and majestic animals such as tigers, elephants, and Komodo dragons, and indonesia is moving forward guided by the policies set by its current government, hoping to further expand the knowledge and benefits that crowdfunding can bring to its people.
Government support
Indonesian President Joko Widodo, who took office in 2014, proposed what he called the "Nine Priorities Agenda" the same year and has been promoting it during the campaign. After his election, he continued to use the same agenda list as his road map for improving the country's cultural, political, economic, and sovereign independence.
Of the nine agendas put forward by the Indonesian president, crowdfunding could benefit from the sixth agenda on the list. This policy thrust suggests that one of the president's goals in office is to "improve the productivity and competitiveness of its people in international markets so that Indonesia can move forward and stand shoulder to shoulder with other Asian countries." ”
Crowdfunding is a great way to help people or organizations achieve their goals. For example, one of the success stories of trying to raise money in this country is the documentary Atammaua, which successfully raised 312 million Indonesian rupiah (equivalent to $32,800). The theme of the film is poverty, mainly to bring Indonesia's difficult way of life to the big screen.
The Indonesian government is no stranger to the concept of asking people for support to achieve their goals, as President Widodo has used crowdsourcing to get advice on the selection of cabinet ministers for his government. That is, he consulted the Indonesian people to come up with the best candidate for his cabinet minister.
Recently, governments have begun to understand the enormous potential of crowdfunding, even for game development. Recently, Indonesia's Ministry of Tourism and Creative Economy also participated in a focus group discussion on "Crowdfunding as an Alternative Way to Raise Funds for the Creative Digital Industry for Actors."
Culture is the key to crowdfunding
Bali in Indonesia is a tourist destination not only for Asians but also for travelers from all over the world, with a variety of religious sites such as iconic rice paddies, volcanic mountains, beaches and coral reefs. However, in addition to this magnificent island, which is also known as a place of meditation, yoga is also one of the keys to Indonesia's success in crowdfunding.
Indonesian people are very familiar with the concept of "gotong royong", the meaning of gotong royong is very simple, it means working together as a group. This is also one of the principles of crowdfunding, where people use collective power and financial resources to help each other. This actually allows Indonesian culture and crowdfunding to work together.
Challenges in Indonesia
Some argue that inequality in the performance of the private sector and government and capitalism have left marginalized communities in the dark. The economy is in good shape and will get better, but few people who make such economic growth possible share this pie.
Some believe crowdfunding will help the most in this regard. In such a world of advanced digital age and internet age, project sponsors and donors can feel empathetic and collaborative on designated platforms, which can cut a lot of cumbersome procedures and intermediary agencies, and even to some extent, avoid bureaucracy. Money can flow from donors to those who need it without much intervention.
But like most Southeast Asian countries, Indonesia has its own challenges when it comes to crowdfunding. Here are some of the mainstream hurdles they need to overcome to make a crowdfunding platform a viable funding option.
Indonesia's trust issues
Gotong royong means working together as a group. But there are still some serious trust issues with people who make money transactions on the internet. There is still a big problem of trust in having strangers trust a crowdfunded project, accepting payments and various procedures, and pushing the same process toward the project sponsor. But for crowdfunding to flourish in Indonesia, it's a big problem they need to solve.
Indonesia had a population of 249.9 million in 2013, and indonesia currently has about 74.8 million Internet users, but these figures are comforting that Indonesia has maintained a 20% year-on-year increase until 2016. This growth is partly due to increased spending power of Indonesia's middle class and competition among mobile companies that have lowered prices.
Much remains to be done in terms of project presentation
Project sponsors in Indonesia are not very well-versed in how to present their ideas to potential donors who can fund their projects. A cover image and some copies of the explanatory project may not be enough to pique interest. Some of the most successful projects use videos to better illustrate their project offerings. Project sponsors must manage their time and make their pitch sound like a really valuable deal.
When you integrate a project that attracts investment from others, KISS is a great principle that must be adhered to. K means "Keep It Short and Sweet", which means that introducing someone about a project needs to be short and intimate, but be aware that it's a bit too brief to describe your needs in just a few words. Explain your needs and avoid saying rhetoric that might confuse others.
Project activities
Some project sponsors believe that a tweet or an article about the content of the project is enough to get the project running. However, this is not the case, and it is not uncommon for project sponsors to use appropriate sales channels to promote their project activities, and it is not uncommon for some of the most successful projects to use other referrals to promote and promote their own projects.
No matter how good a project's campaign is, if its publicity is limited to web pages and crowdfunding project platforms, it is impossible to maximize its potential. You need to let people see your project activity so they can decide if they want to support it. Marketing is very important for crowdfunding, and marketing brings together the campaigns of the entire project.
Crowdfunding allows project sponsors to successfully get their creative ideas through the incubation phase, especially when project funding is limited. Crowdfunding requires collaboration between project sponsors, donors, and crowdfunding platforms, as crowdfunding platforms will become their place of convergence. While Indonesia may face some challenges, their gotong royong principles, as well as the government's efforts, will likely pave the way for the success of crowdfunding.
JPM compiled from
Crowdfund Insider, Update: Crowdfunding in Indonesia, by Albert Santos.