The Stimulus Program
APPLICATION REVIEW
June 1- June 25th
PROGRAM TIMING
July 5th - July 30th
STAGE
Pre-Seed/Seed
Active fundraise not required
WHO
Companies expanding the Creator economy
This is not an accelerator. This is stimulus.
We think accelerators are terrific. In fact, we’ve been involved in a quite a few of them. But accelerators require an established ecosystem and a race track to accelerate around. The reality is, the Creator economy is still nascent. There is no standard ten steps to build a successful Creator economy startup, partially because this ecosystem is unlike any other before it. Creators represent not just one customer segment but a broad spectrum of them. Platforms present unique opportunities along with unique power dynamics. All of it changes at record pace.
Stimulus is simply intended to help exceptional founders along the way by providing the following:
Applied creator economy expertise (on your schedule)
Need to get in front of Creators to validate a product idea? Reaching out to platforms for partnerships? Revising your creator acquisition strategy? Whatever it is, between our decades of experience and Collective network, we’ll figure out a way to get it done.
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We’re not trying to get in your way, that why we’re as hands-on or hands-off as you want. Heads down and just want a 15-min check in to ask for intros? Cool with us. Need a 3-hour workshop to figure out a new go to market? Let’s get to work.
The right network
We’ve gathered folks who have been building in the Creator economy for quite some time and are committed to helping you succeed. With our Collective consisting of Creators, managers, agents, platforms, MCNs, founders, operators, and investors, we work with you to understand which introductions will provide the most impact and get to work.
Practical Offerings
No need to reinvent the wheel, thats why we’re constantly trying to assemble (or create) tools and content created for founders in the space. Examples include complimentary access and training for influence.co’s pro platform to help companies recruit Creators. More offerings coming soon.
$25k on your terms
Hopefully you see the value of Stimulus isn’t in the investment (and we know its not a lot). That said, we want to be long term partners, and we want to be founder friendly. Thats why we invest $25k uncapped to convert your current or next round.
Program authorship
Nothing is set in stone and we don’t have all the answers. We see the founders we work with not just as participants but co-authors of this program. We’ll be working with you to add, subtract, and adjust the Stimulus program as we go to serve you and future founders as best as possible.
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How does the application process work?All applicants submit a Typeform that should take no more than 5 minutes to fill out. Applicants progressing to the next stage will be asked to submit a brief 2-3 minute video pitch. The final 10 applicants will then present live in front of our selection committee (composed of investors from the ecosystem) with final selections determined the week of June 28th.
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Who is this for?Early stage founders expanding the Creator economy. We're casting the net intentionally broad here. In general, Creators should be customer segment or core user. If you're reading this response, your company in all likelihood qualifies.
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Is this program remote?It is! Though we're based in LA so if you ever want to meet up IRL we're down for that too.