An Introduction to FightPaper Pt 2 - What is FightPaper?

So I've talked a bit about why I started another company, but I had yet to really dig into what this startup is. So here we go...

FightPaper is a sponsorship platform for athletes who fight for a cause.

I like to call it a "fan-raising platform." Fans–both individual and corporate—sponsor athletes with performance-based pledges (the better they do, the more they earn), and the athletes in turn pledge at least 10% of what they earn to a cause.

Our most recent campaign ended on April 18th, where an MMA (mixed martial arts) fighter earned $1,270 (of a potential $1,570), giving half to a pit bull rescue: http://www.fightpaper.co/robsullivan

History of the platform thus far.

I built an alpha release myself which launched in May last year. We followed that with a beta that went live in October, and that version is still live now.

Statistics to date: 15 campaigns completed / $8,531 pledged / $5,021 converted / $529.67 average max total pledges per campaign / 127 pledges / $67.17 average max pledge per sponsor (our research shows this to be a significant number)

This was all basically to prove the concept; we are in development of the proper "Version 1" now. Our initial user base has been MMA fighters, mainly because I know many and the need there is tangible. But ultimately this is a platform for all athletes. The "fight" in the name is the "fight for a cause." It may prove to be a bit of a challenge to separate the branding from MMA with the fact that "fight" is in our name, but we'll do what we can.

Next steps.

I'll be "using my startup to fund my startup" at the end of June. We're building just enough of the new version so that I can run a campaign around a 185 mile bike ride from Gerorgetown to Cumberland where people can sponsor me per mile. All funds raised will go towards the V1 development costs (we're setting a goal of about $15k). I hope to not only raise funds, but also produce an exemplary case study for the platform. I'll talk plenty about this campaign in future blog posts, I'm sure.

So you're a crowdfunding platform. Aren't there enough of those?

Maybe. But the market is HUGE, and our platform is unique in that athletes share the funds with a cause. This replaces the physical "rewards" of traditional crowdfunding sites, and allows for the opportunity to partner with causes, who help promote the campaign. It lends an aspect of PR to the process, and allows our users to build their personal brand in addition to raising money. It's also a bit more "sticky" than other platforms in that each campaign is based around a specific competition. And because FightPaper is performance-based, athletes have additional motivation and fans can rest assured that they aren't just throwing money blindly at simple ambition.

Finally, I think there is a large amount of value in connecting athletes, causes, fan sponsors and corporate sponsors. Those 4 parties can work together to spread the word and raise money.

So far, I'm confident that we're on to something special.