Crowdfunding is the practice of soliciting small financial contributions from a large number of people over the internet. It falls under the umbrella of crowdsourcing, which is when a person or organization gathers goods or services from a large, open group of people. These goods and services can include anything from ideas, votes, and in the case of crowdfunding — money.
Crowdfunding sites have opened the door so that anyone anywhere on the planet can set up campaigns to raise money and fund their idea. People from around the globe can donate anything from a few dollars to thousands if a particular project catches their eye.
Tile, Oculus, ExplodingKittens, Popsocket, and Brooklinen are just a few examples of businesses that got their seed funding on sites like GoFundMe, Indiegogo, and Kickstarter.