SBA's SBDC and SLCC to host Utah Crowdfunding Summit 2017 on May 4

The Salt Lake Region Small Business Development Center (SBDC) and the Salt Lake Community College Miller Business Resource Center (MBRC) have announced the third annual Utah Crowdfunding Summit to be held May 4 at the school's Miller Campus. The summit will run from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.  

Scheduled panel discussions and speakers include Zach Smith and Thomas Alvord, founders of one of the country’s top crowdfunding marketing firms. The pair has helped more than 200 clients raise in excess of $112 million on Kickstarter and Indiegogo in the past three years. Bryson Hill will talk about his experience as CEO of the world’s first company to simultaneously and successfully run rewards-based and regulated crowdfunding campaigns, netting more than $1.2 million between the two campaigns so far. Lunchtime keynote speaker Rodney Sampson of Tech Square Labs and Opportunity Hub will share his insights on leveraging crowdfunding for underserved and underrepresented communities. 

“We get to bring some of the world’s foremost minds in all aspects of crowdfunding together for one day,” said Bryce Hansen, assistant director at the Salt Lake Region SBDC and chair for the event. “This is a great opportunity for people in Utah to learn the secrets of crowdfunding and to make connections with like-minded entrepreneurs and experts.”

The conference cost, with lunch included, is $59 until May 3 and $79 the day of the summit. More information is available at www.utahcrowdfundingsummit.com.

As part of the summit, SBDC clients will be able to submit a technology or product online to compete in the Crowdfund Hero Competition. The top six crowd-voted companies will go on to pitch live at the summit and winners will receive cash awards and other in-kind donations.

The Utah SBDC is a program of the U.S. Small Business Administration and is funded by the SBA and state of Utah. It is hosted at 15 colleges and universities throughout Utah and provides business advising, mentoring and services to small-business owners at no charge.

The MBRC at SLCC offers a wide range of services and support to businesses and organizations within the community and has community and industry partnerships that provide assistance to the center.