Communicating During Societal Crises: How Entrepreneurs’ Interactions with Backers Affect Fundraising via Crowdfunding

Aaron F. McKenny, Greg Fisher, Jeremy C. Short, David J. Ketchen and Thomas H. Allison

Entrepreneurship Theory and Practice, 2025, vol. 49, issue 3, 782-816

Abstract: We investigate how entrepreneurs communicate with crowdfunding backers during the onset of a societal crisis via a content analysis of campaigns active during the COVID-19 pandemic and a vignette experiment. While effective communication with stakeholders is critical for acquiring resources during societal crises, little is known about what communication strategies entrepreneurs use during these crises or their influence on fundraising. Notably, we find that entrepreneurs’ crisis communication strategies differ along three key dimensions: timing (proactive vs. reactive), target (entrepreneur vs. other), and nature (utilitarian vs. personal), and that proactively addressing other stakeholders’ personal concerns attracts more funding than alternative approaches.

Keywords: crisis; communication; content analysis; crowdfunding; stakeholder management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:entthe:v:49:y:2025:i:3:p:782-816

DOI: 10.1177/10422587241288124

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