5 Tips for Reaching Your Crowdfunding Goal
Trying to raise funds on Kickstarter, Indiegogo, Seed & Spark, or other crowdfunding sites? Here are five tips to help you reach your goal.
Crowdfunding isn’t a new topic here. We’ve talked about cool Kickstarter campaigns for videographers and photographers, as well as some tips on ways not to crowdfund projects. In this quick guide, we’re offering some tips that have stemmed from readers reaching out to us with questions. Here are five ways to successfully crowdfund a project.
1. Prove the Value of Your Project
The only way you will reach your goal is to convince viewers that you have a project or product worth investing in. Just because you think — this will be fun — isn’t going to cut it. Everything comes down to the final product. The more information you can share, the better. Show off your research, the need for your project, how you are different from the competition, or how your campaign is unlike any other.
2. Set Realistic Goals
If your first approach to a fundraising campaign is to make every single dollar you need in the campaign, you are setting yourself up for failure. Before you even create a crowdfunding page, you should do your due diligence in research and preparation. Create a budget that covers costs to complete your project.
Speaking from my experience, my campaign succeeded because I had already done a ton of work. I had planned to raise the funds to create a documentary film, and I was already filming before raising a single dollar. I filmed a proof of concept mini-doc for the campaign. I had already filmed days worth of footage, and the money raised would help me continue shooting.
My budget included the costs for additional equipment needed, and the cost of services for other artists, musicians, and crew to work on the project. Finally, I took into account the cost for festival submissions, distribution, and delivery. I set the budget as low as possible so that I could at least make the feature-length film; any additional money raised would go on to help fund other needs. The money we raised wound up being less than 1/3 of the entire cost — but I was able to complete the film.
3. Make Your Video Quick to the Point
There are countless crowdfunding videos, but all the most successful videos are quick to the point. In your video, be sure to explain your concept right away — otherwise you risk losing your audience’s attention. Get your message across fast, but be sure to be as clear and concise as you can. Note that I said quick to the point, but it doesn’t necessarily mean you have to have a short video. Sure, shorter is better — but if you need to spend more time explaining some intricate details or a production timeline, the more info you share, the better.
4. License Your Music
While on the topic of videos, be sure to license your music tracks. That is emphasized a lot on this site, but getting a copyright takedown for a fundraising video is a good way to not only miss your goal — but to lose money in fines. You can get great royalty free tracks right here on PremiumBeat that are perfect for crowdfunding videos. You can also check out other places like Shutterstock Music or any of the other options available. I’d much rather emphasize that you license music, no matter where you end up getting your tracks from.
5. Big Prizes and Gifts Will Cancel out the Money You Raise
This is one of the biggest mistakes so many campaigns make. Offering extraordinary prizes will do nothing but hurt you in the long run. Sure, it may be cool to have a hoodie or t-shirt — but these types of items cost a lot to make. That’s not even the worst part. After you’ve spent a ton making the prizes, you will have to individually ship them to all your contributors. Shipping may cost more than you even raised in the first place! There is nothing wrong with offering hand written thank you notes, stickers, or credits. Don’t hurt your campaign with frivolous fluff.
Have you run a successful campaign? Any other tips to offer? Sound off in the comments below.
