Effective message framing strategies for crowdfunding success: the moderating roles of creator experience and backer support

ABSTRACT

This study aims to demonstrate how entrepreneurs should frame narratives on crowdfunding platforms to launch successful entrepreneurial campaigns. Using empirical data from 701 technological gadget projects posted on a crowdfunding website, Kickstarter, and drawing on signaling theory, this paper investigates 1) how substantive signals (i.e., creator experience and backer support) affect crowdfunding success, 2) how rhetorical signals (i.e., positive and negative framing) impact crowdfunding success, and 3) how rhetorical signals moderate the effects of substantive signals on the funding success of crowdfunding campaigns. The research questions are investigated further with three experimental studies to replicate the effects of the proposed signals in research questions. Empirical and experimental results consistently show that substantive and rhetorical signals positively affect the success of crowdfunding campaigns. Results also reveal that positive framing performs better for experienced entrepreneurs, and negative framing results in better funding outcomes for novice entrepreneurs. The paper offers practical managerial insights on how novice entrepreneurs should design effective crowdfunding campaigns to compete with experienced competitors.

KEYWORDS:

• Crowdfunding
• entrepreneurs
• signaling theory
• substantive signals
• rhetorical signals
• funding success

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.