Success Factors in Reward based and Equity based Crowdfunding in Finland

Master’s Thesis 
63 
study do not seem to align with Ahlers et al. (2015) research, since Juuri raised less 
funding with a much larger network than Pyynikin Käsityöläispanimo. 
In addition to having a network, it is important for entrepreneurs to have a communi-
ty. According to Belleflamme et al. (2014) a supportive community is crucial for a 
crowdfunding project to be more profitable than traditional funding. Ambronite, Au-
tolla Nepaliin and Pyynikin Käsityöläispanimo all had a network that was described 
as a community. Suoheimo from Ambronite said, “this product is a joint effort of the 
gang and it would not exist without that support”. Leppänen from Autolla Nepaliin 
also mentioned that the project was a joint effort and people supported because “they 
want to be part of the story”. For Pyynikin Käsityöläispanimo the community was not 
necessarily people interested in the business, but the individual shareholders that had 
joined in earlier crowdfunding projects. Pere described them as “a great group that 
advertises and asks retailers about the product’s availability”. All these responses 
view the network as more than just a group of people, but as individuals that are a part 
of a shared community. Thus, it is not surprising that they were all able to succeed so 
well in their crowdfunding, especially Ambronite doubling their target amount and 
Pyynikin Käsityöläispanimo with the largest raised amount out of all the interviewed 
projects.
9.2.6.2. Social Network Effect 
Entrepreneurs are able to reach a larger number of people through the networks of 
their supporters than they would on their own (Saxton and Wang, 2013). By gaining 
access to the supporters’ networks and having supporters share information with their 
unique networks, more people hear about the crowdfunding project and potentially 
fund it. All the interviewed entrepreneurs felt that this social network effect was a key 
component of their success. 
According to research, funders that are close to the entrepreneur feel obliged to con-
tribute to the funding (Agrawal et al., 2015). This was evident in the interviews as 
well. Bjors from Juuri stated that “friends shared the project with their networks” and 
Pere from Pyynikin Käsityöläispanimo mentioned that existing shareholders help in 
marketing and brand awareness by asking retailers if they stock their products. Su-

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