Crowdfunding as an Internet Tool Used for Establishing Relationships With the Customer - A Concept Paper

Purpose: As a conceptual paper, this article presents the idea of crowdfunding activities, crowdfunding being not only a modern tool of fundraising but also an interesting form of establishing relationships with stakeholders. The primary aim of the article is to show the role of crowdfunding in the process of creating relationships with customers. Design/methodology/approach: The article has been divided into two parts. The first part focuses on the definition of crowdfunding as a form of raising funds and provides examples of selected campaigns. The second part presents the process of establishing relationships during crowdfunding campaigns. The author applied a qualitative approach to meet the research objectives. Moreover, the concept formulation was done through a systematic literature review. Findings: The emotional involvement of consumers in a crowdfunding campaign constitutes a significant element in relation building and may be developed at any stage of the conducted campaign. Specific characteristics support building relations with consumers (openness, involvement, curiosity, willingness to share information, emotional connection, spontaneity, familiarity with other consumers). A major argument is the fact that during such campaigns relations are built on trust, openness and involvement. Research limitations/implications: The model was completely built based on the literature. Thus, as a further step of this research the author strongly suggests conducting research with a quantitative approach. Furthermore, the author stresses that the presented concept requires empirical verification and such research is planned in the future. Originality/value: This article analyzes crowdfunding activity in view of building relationships with customers. Thus, the author of the article shares the new knowledge and suggests the process of building relationships with customers by critically illustrating the created conceptual model.