Armchair venture capitalists will soon have a new place to hunt for intriguing start-ups: Indiegogo, the popular crowdfunding site for developers of creative ventures like movies, games and gadgets.

Starting on Tuesday, the site will give entrepreneurs the option of offering backers an equity stake in their projects and creations. Indiegogo is the first major crowdfunding site to use a new securities rule that took effect six months ago, allowing ordinary investors to risk up to a few thousands dollars a year backing private companies.

Previously, only accredited investors — wealthy people with an annual income of more than $200,000 or a net worth of at least $1 million — were allowed to put money into such risky ventures. That created a schism: Companies like Pebble, a smartwatch maker, and Oculus, a virtual reality headset developer, raised millions on crowdfunding sites from eager early customers and used that surge to prove that buyers wanted their fledgling products.

But when those companies subsequently raised money from investors, crowdfunding backers were shut out. When Facebook acquired Oculus for $2 billion, venture capitalists and rich angel investors reaped the rewards.