What does 2022 have in store for crowdfunding? To find out, we dug into the data and tapped our fellow Indiegogo team members to see what trends had gained momentum in the second half of 2021 and were likely to continue growing. We discovered the categories, countries, and behaviors we think will dominate 2022. Below you’ll find five predictions and trends in crowdfunding to watch in 2022.
There will be more interactions between backers
Indiegogo’s community is getting more tightly knit! With commenting features becoming more advanced on Indiegogo, backers are engaging with each other on campaign pages and turning every campaign page into a place where they can chat with each other about the projects they love. Commenting and community interaction will grow from 2021 levels as users better understand community interactions and how to connect.
“There’s no more true sense of community than when Indiegogo users unite around a common passion, idea, or experience. We know that backers love to see their ideas incorporated into the end product, and that entrepreneurs benefit immensely from hearing directly from their community,” says Angela Keck, Indiegogo’s community manager. Angela worked closely with our Product team in launching our Open Comments feature this year. “In 2022, we’ll continue to build even more features that enable backers, entrepreneurs, and all Indiegogo users to engage in conversation, share insights and information, and of course help entrepreneurs bring their projects to life.”
Backers will look for more sustainable and climate-friendly solutions to everyday challenges
2021 was a BIG year for energy and green tech projects on Indiegogo. It was the fourth highest category in terms of funds raised, bringing in more than $19M USD collectively. And for many green tech projects, 2021 was only the beginning. Some of 2021’s top green tech and energy projects are still funding on our platform in InDemand. Generark Solar Generator can hold seven days of power and is a reliable and affordable backup power source for any household. FROST SUMMITS is an IoT smart solar charger and pocket-sized power bank pack made especially for extreme outdoors conditions. ElecHive is a small, powerful generator that can provide 2,200W of power output, just like a standard wall socket. GoSun launched their 10th campaign, raising funds for Chillest, a solar cooler that doesn’t need ice to help reduce water waste. With interest in green tech showing no signs of slowing down, we predict that 2022 is going to be another blockbuster year for the category.. There are already a number of incredible sustainable campaigns planning for a 2022 release. Keep your eye out for them by checking out our green tech collection, which we always update with our latest campaigns.
“2021 marked green tech’s debut in crowdfunding. We expanded our Energy and Green Tech category to such great effect that Forbes called Indiegogo an industry leader in green tech and sustainability,” says Stacy Bradford, our Senior Hardware Manager. Stacy led the initiative for category expansion into green crowdfunding campaigns and co-hosted our Earth Day Virtual Hangouts conference with climate and circular economy changemakers. “For 2022, we’re looking to build on this by redoubling our efforts around the category. We’ll be working to reinforce our industry leadership by expanding our community of mindful backers who are looking for innovative and sustainable solutions to ideas that matter to them.”
Indie artists will find their audiences
Creative projects, on average, are continuing to see more success on Indiegogo. Despite the fact that we saw a slight decrease in the number of creative projects in 2021, the funds raised by creative projects grew both overall and per project when compared to the previous year. For just a sampling of the creative projects that were featured on Indiegogo in 2021, you can check out LUNAR: The Jewish-Asian Film Project Season 2 and learn how one of their lead creators spends a typical day in her life, get a glimpse of how the filmmaker behind Portraits of a Family adapted the true story of a Filipino-Canadian family, check out the female auteurs who are making waves in the male-dominated horror film industry, and take a peek at the Star Trek Voyager Documentary that became our most funded creative project in 2021. We expect 2022 to be another fruitful year for creative projects on our platform.
“Indiegogo is a place where backers can discover new music, art, and film projects from artists that would normally struggle to find a wide reach,” says Andrew Tarvis, Business Intelligence Manager at Indiegogo who partners cross-functionally with various teams to monitor and track the performance data of campaigners, backers, and categories within the platform. “We’re excited to see that creative projects are gaining more traction on the platform and look forward to seeing this trend continue in the coming year.”
“Indiegogo started as a place for creatives to connect with those passionate about their work,” adds Nalin Chuapetcharasopon, Sr. Manager of Campaign Strategy at Indiegogo who hosted a series of Instagram Lives with creators and advocated for underrepresented campaigners in our Fellowship Program this year. “We’re thrilled to see the creator economy, one of the fastest growing segments of small businesses, continue to thrive on our platform. We’re proud to be a place where creatives can connect with their fans.” You can check out all of our most recent creative offerings here.
Backers will start traveling again
With vaccines becoming more widespread, we predict that travel and outdoor gear will be big in 2022. Historically travel and outdoors has been one of the most popular categories on Indiegogo and, looking ahead, we’re gearing up for a big year for gear. 2021 saw the return of some of our community’s favorite travel campaigners as well as the debut of some innovative newcomers. Nomad Lane, which makes sleek and functional travel bags, launched their second Indiegogo campaign in 2021 for the Origami Tote and its creator shared why she chose to design the bag she wished already existed. Crowd favorite PAKT launched their adaptable Anywhere Travel Bag Collection in September. Campo Designs showcased their convertible canopy shelter which, as its Marketing Director Belinda Encarnacion explained, was created to maximize versatility. You can explore other exciting travel and outdoor campaigns here.
“According to the Outdoor Industry Association, outdoor recreation sees $887 billion in consumer spending each year. This coupled with the post-COVID-19 climate has supercharged interest in outdoor recreation activities and the products and services associated with it from hiking equipment to camping services,” says Nalin. “We’re excited to support entrepreneurs of this growing segment by helping them take their products to market on Indiegogo.”
Hardware and tech crowdfunding is poised to grow in popularity in Japan
Since launching in Japan in 2020, Japanese Indiegogo projects have increased funds raised 4x year-over-year and that’s a trend we expect to continue. Indiegogo prides itself on being a global platform and we love that we’re able to welcome new campaigns from a diverse set of countries for backers from all over the world. And with localized support and outreach, we are now able to connect Japanese campaigns with Japanese backers. We also partnered with Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) to give entrepreneurs in Japan additional support for launching successful crowdfunding campaigns. In 2021 Indieogo partnered with smaller and enterprise campaigners alike and helped enterprise companies find new audiences and test small runs of new products.
“The year 2022 will be an interesting year to watch Japan’s hardware startups. Japanese startups raised almost $7B USD in 2021, and it will increase to $10B USD annually in a few years according to Forbes Japan. Almost all the nation’s entrepreneurs we know are planning to challenge the global market. We are excited to support them to connect with consumers with a lot of appetites to experience innovative hardware technology,” says Nobuko Oshima, our Business Development and Partnership Lead who worked to launch and grow Indiegogo’s presence in Japan. Noteworthy campaigns in 2021 included ZEROOTIME, a full skeleton tourbillon men’s watch, SMARTCOBY, an extremely portable and convenient power bank, and Off-Ear headphones, a launch from Sony designed to be comfortably worn while running. As for what’s next, you won’t want to miss MOONRAKERS, a vegan leather coat from Toray coming soon in 2022. To see more, check out our Made in Japan collection.
WATCH our special Year in Review video where we take a look back at the Top 10 Crowdfunding Campaigns of 2021, along with a few honorable mentions. Did your favorites make the list?
Want to take a look back at 2021? Check out the rest of our Year in Review and read about the top campaigns from 2021. Plus, coming soon on the blog: key takeaways from 2021 and why we dubbed 2021 the Year of the Backer!
