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Crowdfunding is drawing a considerable “buzz” after showing huge growth and investment interest this past year. In 2015 and again in 2016, we witnessed more successful and even multi-million dollar campaigns than in any prior year. Now it’s 2017, and we are excited to see more record-breaking crowdfunding campaigns. This year promises to be the biggest yet! If you are thinking about launching a crowdfunding campaign this year, read on to learn the Top 10 Tips for launching a successful crowdfunding campaign in 2017.
Top 10 Tips for Launching a
Successful Crowdfunding Campaign in 2017
- Pre-build Your Following – Over the past few years, a pre-built community has moved from being just a “nice to have” but an essential element of launching a campaign. You can do this yourself, but you may need help to generate the level of press and blogger coverage needed to hit your funding goals (and to hit your stretch goals!)
- Kickstarter Live – Remember that there are lots of ways you can talk to backers, and one new feature is Kickstarter Live. Imagine Facebook Live and you have the right idea. Any creator would be wise to plan to host at least one Kickstarter Live or Facebook Live session during the campaign.
- Realistic Expectations – have a funding amount in your head that you need to go into mass production and then lower it significantly for your public crowdfunding goal. The quicker you hit that number, the more likely people are to see your campaign as a success.
- Competitive Marketplace – If you’re unsure about certain elements of your product, talk to a few new people about the project with them not knowing it’s yours and get some honest feedback. Trust in the value that an outside party can bring to your launch, particularly when it’s your “baby” and emotions can control many of the decisions.
- Timing is Key – creators have to realize how much time it takes to build all of the digital and creative assets that you need for a successful crowdfunding campaign. Expect to spend up to 90 days just building the campaign content. You don’t want to rush in with an unrealistic launch date, only to upset your backer community with delays.
- The main campaign video, for example, is a very important element and takes time to plan and then refine. In most cases, this is the first or second thing that backers see. Crowdfunding campaign videos are much different than your typical teaser or trailer. The best campaigns bring in an experienced video production team who understand your product and will create the most exciting and engaging crowdfunding video to meet your specific needs.
- Pledge Levels – keep it simple, they’re incredibly important and your page conversions will often correspond to the simplicity and, obviously, price of the pledges. Try your best to pre- plan pledge levels, and think of new levels that you may want to add during the campaign. You want to make sure your best early-bird deals come at the beginning so that the most loyal followers get rewarded and to create traction right away.
- Remember that you can’t change pledge descriptions once the campaign has gone live!
- Choose the Right Platform – with numerous crowdfunding platforms now available, everything from reward to equity crowdfunding, a business needs to think carefully about which one is right for them. Bring in someone with expertise who can advise on the pro’s and con’s of different platforms.
- Formatting Your Campaign – As a rule of thumb, any campaign text should be easy to read, using clear formatting to separate ideas, so readers can move on to the next section if they choose. If any section gets a bit long, split it up with sub-headings – just a simple background with bold text dropped into your campaign as an image.
- Backer Communication – regular communication with your backers is essential to build trust and engagement. This includes updates, prompt response to comments. Updates can also be used to give behind the scenes looks, preview of packaging, etc. All things to show that progress is being made.
- Build a Better Backer Community – Build your backer community by creating (and maintaining) social media accounts on multiple platforms, not just Facebook! Instagram and Reddit hold huge potential for loyal backers. A few weekly posts goes a long way for backers to see what you are up to! Then, make sure that all content is consistent across your social media accounts and your website.
- You want to establish credibility in your campaign as a legitimate company with a history, even if it is short. This gives your backers a sense of confidence when making a larger contribution as well as when sharing your campaign with their friends and family.
- If you are in the United States and need help with building your campaign or your backer community – check out Ignite Agency (they do all of this for you!)
Interesting Statistics Behind the Booming Crowdfunding Industry
According to the Massolution crowdfunding report published in 2015, the global crowdfunding industry grew by 167% to reach $16.2 billion in 2014, up from $6.1 billion in 2013. The industry then raised more than double once again the following year in 2015, reaching an estimated $34.4 billion. North America took the lead position in the global crowdfunding space, growing 145% and raising a total of $9.46 billion in 2014. Business and entrepreneurship were the most popular crowdfunding category, collecting $6.7 billion in 2014, according to Massolution. Although the numbers for 2016 are still being analyzed, the numbers have continued to trend upwards and we are excited to see where 2017 will take us!
Special thanks to contributor Owen Adkins of Dynamo PR, who helped identify several of these tips using his professional knowledge, observations, and experience. Dynamo recently topped $30 Million raised for their Crowdfunding clients and is an award winning consumer technology communications company, specializing in PR, SEO, social media and digital communications.
Written By: Jordan @Crowdfunding Headlines
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