Our mission is to grow North Carolina's entrepreneurial ecosystem by democratizing access to capital for all businesses providing new economic opportunities for all.
We do this by providing education and services enabling North Carolina startups and existing businesses to get funded using a variety of online private and public offering strategies including investment crowdfunding.
About Mark Easley
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| Mark Easley |
Mark was the leader of the NC PACES Act Team which was recently honored with the 2017 WRAL Techwire Editors Choice Award for their work in getting the NC PACES investment crowdfunding law passed.
Mark's LinkedIn page
Community Affiliations
- Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED) Member
- NC Regional Internet of Things Member
- Startup advisor and mentor at local incubators and accelerators including HQ Raleigh, American Underground, The Frontier, and Groundwork Labs
- Judge at startup competitions in the Triangle
- Crowdfunding advocate
About William McGuire
Will is the Managing Editor of CrowdfundNC.com and has been an equity crowdfunding investor and advisor since 2016. His vision is to provide impact to every community globally by forging relationships between companies and those in need.
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| Will McGuire |
Will is highly engaged in the NC startup ecosystem and you'll find him at entrepreneurial events or in preferred beverage and lunch meetings around town. Working with founders and investors in the area to leverage evolving equity crowdfunding laws to provide holistic community impact is his passion.
While in college, he co-founded Legacy Event Planners creating events to raise money for charity. It's inaugural event, the Hillsborough Street Renaissance Festival shut down the street for the 1st time in 236 years (legally) for an all-day festival with over 15K attendees. The 2nd year running, the festival commenced the construction renovations for the street in Raleigh attracted over 40K people.
Since then he's leveraged a lean-startup mindset for several clients to drive revenue growth, improve operational performance and rebuild dysfunctional teams to align them on a common vision. He’s worked on multiple digital teams including leading web & UX driven projects.
Community Affiliations
- Council for Entrepreneurial Development (CED) Member
- Member of Carolina Fintech Hub
- Crowdfunding investor & advocate
Endorsements from our crowdfunding and startup partners:
“Mark Easley has been a leader and advocate for the investment crowdfunding industry since it started with the passage of the Federal JOBS Act back in 2012. He led the effort to create and pass the North Carolina PACES Act investment crowdfunding exemption law, and is a nationally known expert and leader in the investment crowdfunding community. Mark has been an excellent advisor and mentor for us on our journey to build the world’s leading real estate project funding platform for everyday investors. If you need advice on generating funding for your business using investment crowdfunding, or on how and why to invest in these offerings, Mark is the person to know in North Carolina.”
Brian Dally, Founder and CEO, www.groundfloor.us, Atlanta, Georgia.
For a good overview of Groundfloor, and Mark's comments about them, please see their Reg A+ Online Public Offering video.
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"Mark Easley is a well known investor, mentor and advisor in North Carolina, and I was interested when he suggested a strategy for raising some of our funding using investment crowdfunding. With Mark’s guidance and support, we put together a very successful crowdfunding campaign on a leading crowdfunding platform in Texas, which very quickly exceeded our fundraising goals. The additional capital was a vital component of getting our technology integrated into 100’s of well known brands. Now Mark is building a similar investment crowd funding infrastructure in North Carolina, which will allow many other companies here in NC to have similar opportunities. Mark is the #1 person in NC that entrepreneurs should contact if they’re looking for advice about investment crowdfunding."
Jim Zidar, Co-founder & CEO of Stealz Inc.
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“Mark Easley has been a valued investor and advisor for our company as we have built Wedpics into the #1 photo and video sharing app for weddings. Mark recommended that I look at investment crowdfunding as part of our fundraising efforts, and he provided advice and guidance for us on a very quick and successful fundraise campaign on a leading crowdfunding platform. As a result, we gained a number of new and valuable investors, including Barbara Corcoran of Shark Tank fame. Mark also led the effort here in North Carolina to create and pass the North Carolina PACES Act investment crowdfunding exemption law. I highly recommend Mark as an advisor to any North Carolina company that is considering using investment crowdfunding to raise money.”
Justin Miller, Co-Founder and CEO, https://wedpics.com/home , Raleigh, North Carolina
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“Mark Easley provided me with some excellent guidance on building my crowdfunding campaign and putting together an effective message that would appeal to investors. I highly recommend Mark if you need advice and guidance on your crowdfunding strategy and campaign.”
Micky McKeon, Co-Founder, MockOut, Inc., Durham, North Carolina
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“I have worked with Mark Easley for several years as part of our startup and small business mentoring program at Entredot. He is an experienced, knowledgeable and insightful advisor and mentor, and I am quite excited about the possibilities for the new investment crowdfunding infrastructure he is building in North Carolina. This new way of financing startups and small businesses could revolutionize the way many of them put together their early stage financing. I highly recommend Mark as the person to work with in North Carolina if you are considering investment crowdfunding for your startup or small business.”
Bill Warner, Co-Founder, EntreDot , Research Triangle Park, North Carolina
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“I was fortunate to have Mark Easley come on board as an investor and advisor to me and my team at https://freedom.to/. Mark always gives sound advice, and he knows more about investment crowdfunding than anybody else in North Carolina
Fred Stutzman, Founder and CEO,https://freedom.to/,Durham , North Carolina
Fred Stutzman, Founder and CEO,https://freedom.to/,
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“Mark Easley has been a trusted investor and advisor to RocketBolt since we started. He is a very experienced startup investor, and he knows more about the investment crowdfunding space than anyone in North Carolina. If you need guidance about doing an investment crowdfunding round, Mark will be a big help."
Aaron Dinin, Co-Founder and CEO, RocketBolt.com, Durham, North Carolina
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"Owning your own business is hard work. The autonomy that accompanies entrepreneurship can also beget decision fatigue. Will has the ability to help you navigate this to the clarity that awaits. Will's specific and focused questioning style helped me to define and refine my vision and goals for my business. The calming and supportive nature of his personality was a welcome addition to the small team of advisors I chose to consult with during a business transition. Will was able to pull from a wealth of business knowledge and experience to provide sound advice for steps forward in crafting the type of business model that reflects my goals, values, and ethics. He will surely prove an asset to any lucky and wise enough to add him to their team."
Jen Davidson
Owner of Capital Chips, LLC
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