9个聪明绝顶的创业融资故事

    6. 在Facebook上分享自己的热情。

    比尔•甘迪的爱好是分享阿勒格尼市的历史照片，此外他也是Facebook小组“土生土长的匹兹堡北方人”的成员。阿勒格尼市位于匹兹堡的北方。

    这个小组的成员非常喜欢他的照片，因为他们可以从中领略到阿勒格尼市昔日的辉煌。当他提议开设一个美术馆来展示这些照片时，匹兹堡市议会的议长达琳•哈里斯给他发来信息，希望与他合作。之后他成立了非营利性机构——阿勒格尼历史美术馆。正式开放之初，这家美术馆就举办了多场活动。其中之一是，匹兹堡钢人队老板丹•鲁尼接受邀请，来美术馆签名售书。甘迪在邮件中表示，他在不到一个月时间便为美术馆筹集了超过12,000美元。

    7. 将每一次派对当成推介会。

    在一家酒吧举行的欢送会上，阿历克斯•拉帕波特开始向陌生人讲述自己打算创作具有教育意义的嘻哈音乐的想法。大多数人都礼貌性地报以微笑，然后走开。

    但一位哥伦比亚大学商学院学生很感兴趣，他帮助拉帕波特起草了一份商业计划书，参加哥伦比亚商学院的“离谱商业计划竞赛”。最后，Flocabulary的商业模式成为社会价值类冠军，获得了5,000美元奖金，并受到许多投资者的关注。

    这就是拉帕波特和布莱克•哈里森在布鲁克林创立教育初创公司Flocabulary的经过。拉帕波特在邮件中表示，如今，全世界有超过20,000家学校采用了该公司的在线教育课程。

    8. 给我投资吧。今天是我的生日。

    2008年，年近五旬的辛西娅•克西刚刚经历了离婚，生活发生了巨变。但她并没有沉湎于伤心的往事，而是决定追求自己的梦想——保护孩子的受教育权利。她邀请所有认识的人参加自己的50岁生日庆典，并请求每一位宾客用100美元来代替礼物。

    克西向参加派对的宾客表示，她将用他们的礼物作为种子基金，在洛杉矶创建一家非营利性机构：不可阻挡基金会。她在电子邮件中估计，通过自己的努力，约有6,000名学生得到了上学机会，有超过50栋校舍得以建成。

    9. 在大街上寻找投资。

    弗雷德里克•赫特森因非法交易大麻被判四年监禁，在此期间，他的家人经历了无法与身陷囹圄的亲人保持联系带来的痛楚。

    刑满释放之后，赫特森告诉他的家人和朋友，他将在拉斯维加斯创建一家名为Pigeonly的机构，帮助服刑者与至爱亲朋保持联系。他在电子邮件中表示，他向街头好友募集种子基金，一笔笔200美元或500美元的捐赠，最终累积至80,000美元。如今，Pigeonly已经成长为一家拥有13名员工的机构。（财富中文网）

    译者：刘进龙/汪皓

    审校：任文科

    6. Share your passion on Facebook.

    Bill Gandy’s hobby is sharing historic photos of Allegheny City, a community on the north side of Pittsburgh, and he also belongs to a Facebook group Born & Raised on Northside of Pgh.

    Members of his Facebook group appreciated the reminders of Allegheny City in its glory days. When he suggested opening a gallery to showcase the photos, the Pittsburgh City Council President Darlene Harris messaged him and offered to partner with him. Thus he launced the nonprofit Allengeny City Historic Gallery. Among the initial events planned for fter it opens? A book signing by Steelers owner Dan Rooney. Gandy has raised more than $12,000 in funds for the gallery in less than a month, he shares via email.

    7. Think of every party as a pitch fest.

    During a going-away party at a bar, Alex Rappaport began telling strangers about his idea to make educational hip-hop songs. Most people smiled politely and moved on.

    But a Columbia Business School MBA student was interested and helped Rappaport put together a pitch for its Outrageous Business Plan competition. The Flocabulary business model was a winner in the social value category, earning $5,000 and the attention of a range of investors.

    That’s how the Rappaport and Blake Harrison came to co-found Flocabulary, an education startup based in Brooklyn. Today, its online learning program is used in more than 20,000 schools around the world, Rappaport claims by email.

    8. Fund my business. It’s my birthday.

    In 2008, as Cynthia Kersey neared 50, she found her life changing dramatically as she went through a divorce. Instead of wallowing in heartbreak, she tackled her dream idea, securing a child’s right to an education. She invited everyone she knew to her 50th-birthday celebration and asked each guest to bring, in lieu of gifts, $100.

    Kersey announced to the partygoers that she would use the gifts as seed money to open her Los Angeles nonprofit, The Unstoppable Foundation. Because of her efforts, 6,000 children have attended school and more than 50 schoolhouses have been built, she estimates in an email.

    9. Find the money in the streets.

    While Frederick Hutson served a four-year sentence for marijuana trafficking, his family experienced firsthand the difficulty of staying in contact with someone behind bars.

    Upon his release, Hutson informed his family and friends that he would create Las Vegas-based Pigeonly to help keep inmates connected with their loved ones. He went to his street friends to raise the seed capital, collecting money in increments of $200 and $500 and ultimately raising $80,000, he claims via email. Today Pigeonly has grown to employ 13 people.