How to succeed on kickstarter - post # 2 - nuts and bolts of creating the perfect campaign

This is the second post in this series, if you havn't read the first, check it out here

Across the next few posts, I’ll be sharing a step-by-step guide to launching a Kickstarter campaign, based on my own experience. I didn’t come up with all of these ideas by myself; I received a ton of help from Whately. He had recently completed his campaign, and he gave me some great tips on how to run a successful one.

Read, read, read

Read everything you can get your hands on about how to launch an amazing campaign. Check out people's blogs, which can offer helpful tips and warn you about common pitfalls. Read Kickstarter's How To page. This provides invaluable insight into how to craft a successful campaign and how to create an application that's more likely to be accepted. It contains some really great info about the success rates of different lengths of campaigns, the optimum length for a promotional video, and tons of other useful stuff. Since Kickstarter operates on a commission basis, it's in the company's best interests to help you to run a successful campaign, and that's why they’ve taken the time to create a great overview.  Read it!

Conduct thorough research

Before starting my campaign, I spent weeks on the site just looking at other folks' campaigns. I paid attention to which strategies and techniques seemed to be working and which ones didn’t seem to be working quite as well. It's worth spending time on this phase of the project. Also, try to be a sport. Pledge on a few projects you think are neat or worthwhile, as it helps to create good karma. It makes you look a little hypocritical if you're trying to raise money, yet your profile says you’ve never helped out anyone else.

Compose a strong application

It's essential that you submit a strong application, otherwise your campaign will not be approved. You may be tempted to put this off until just before you are ready to launch. I would strongly advise you against leaving it until the last minute, because there may be something in your pitch that doesn't mesh with the Kickstarter rules and regulations. If, for example, you say you're aiming to start up a business or to raise a portion of the funds you'll need in order to complete the process, your application may be rejected.

If your application is rejected, don't lose hope. First, make sure you understand why you've been rejected. Then, redraft your proposal and resubmit it. If you've submitted your application early, then you'll have plenty of time to rework it; however, having to do this under time pressure can be an incredibly stressful experience. Try to have your application approved before you make your video. If you make the video first and there is something in it that doesn't pass muster with Kickstarter, it will be a hassle to fix.

In my next post I'll talk about creating the perfect campaign video!

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How to succeed on kickstarter (or at least some tips to point you in the right directions)

Over five years ago, I launched my first Kickstarter campaign, and raised $156,000 to launch Forage Kitchen, and I've been meaning to write about it ever since. Now that the business is open and running seems like a good time to relay my real experience creating and running a campaign in the hopes it will help someone out there to jump over mistakes I made and see what worked for me. If you’re creating a campaign for a product pre-sale, a lot of this won’t apply, but more so for community based projects

I’m sure you’ve all witnessed the meteoric ascent of million dollar projects succeeding. Perhaps, with rose-colored glasses, and stars in your eyes, you imagined yourself achieving the same success for your project. The truth is, while Kickstarter is an amazing platform for product pre-sales, it's only a fairly good platform for everything else.

After my campaign, a lot of people got in touch with me and asked for my advice. Wanting to be optimistic and supportive, I told everyone that I was certain they could do it, and to go for it! Unfortunately, a number of those people haven't had that much success with it, so I have started to be a bit more conservative in my responses.

Before you even think about launching a Kickstarter campaign, here are some things to think about:

First, it's important to understand that Kickstarter is a platform where people whose support you already have will be able to voice that support with their dollars. Rather than expecting to win people over with your campaign, you must build your audience elsewhere and then lead them to your Kickstarter campaign. The good folks at Kickstarter have made this clear in their supporting materials, and I feel it's extremely important.

Unless people are already aware of the product or service you offer, it will be difficult to find support for your campaign. It's highly unlikely that people will find out about your project from the site itself. My campaign was featured for several weeks on the Popular Projects section on the front page, and it was mentioned twice in the Kickstarter newsletter. Neither of these initiatives helped me to gain very much in the way of pledges.

What I found to be the most effective strategy was to reach out to the people in my e-mail database and in my networks on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media. At the time I started my campaign, I had an e-mail list comprising over 40,000 locals, and a social media reach of a further 15,000.  I'm not saying it's impossible to  succeed without this scale of reach, but it is a factor worth considering when you’re setting your goals. It isn't easy raising money via Kickstarter. I’ve come to think of it as a tool that's more suited to promotion rather than to fundraising.

Think very carefully and objectively about the people whose support you're counting on. Why will they want to support you? Is there a clear and specific need for what you do in your community? Will you be addressing a social issue that affects a great number of people? Are you offering a reward that people truly require or desire? Have you spoken to a lot of people about your idea, and have they expressed their interest in supporting it? Do you have a long list of media contacts who will help to promote your campaign? Is there a huge niche community eagerly anticipating this kind of product, film, space or event? If the answer to one or more of these questions is no, I would advise you to think twice about setting a high Kickstarter goal. The month I spent promoting my Kickstarter campaign was, by far, the most stressful month of my entire life. There are easier ways to raise money. I’m glad I did it, but I never will do it again.

If this rant hasn’t dissuaded you, I can understand that. When I was in your position, nothing would have convinced me that I shouldn't try it. If that's the case, you may be interested in next week's post. I'll be sharing a blow-by-blow account of how I went about it, what I did wrong, and what I did right. Launching a successful Kickstarter campaign requires a fair amount of preparation and support, and I'll be happy to tell you about how it worked for me.

In my next post I’ll give a step by step on what I did for my campaign…

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Iso
Partner: Forage Kitchen

Why everyone should get an intern

Anyone who’s doing or making something that excites them should have an intern. We think of internship as something that’s done mainly at large companies. You might intern at Apple because you think it’ll look good on your resume, or with a view to working there in the long run. But I think internship can be so much more than that.

I was talking to an artist friend last night about why she should consider getting an intern and how to go about finding one. She expressed reluctance, as she feels that she didn’t deserve to have someone helping her out (which is definitely not true). After talking with her, it occurred to me that there might be other people out there who feel the way she does, so I thought I would share my take on it. I’ve been running my business for almost nine years, and I’ve had interns since the first year, back when my project was just me and a URL.

Interning with someone who is spending time doing something they truly love—whether making sculpture (like the friend I just mentioned), operating a small food business, or running a printmaking studio in your basement where you make greeting cards to sell on Etsy—can be an incredibly valuable experience benefiting both parties. The business owner receives free help, and, in exchange, the intern gets to see what is possible.

When you take on an intern, you’re giving them a gift—you’re showing them how you live your life and that there’s another way to do things than the way they’ve been taught. They’ll see that you can have an idea for something that doesn’t yet exist, and, through sheer will, make this thing into a reality.

Now I’ll share with you some things I’ve learned along the way.

Where to find people

Craigslist is a good place to start. If you want to take a more targeted approach, reach out to local schools. Many colleges have intern messaging boards where you can post ads (usually for free). If you have any kind of e-mail subscriber list or a social media presence, this is even better, because you can reach out to a network of people who are already interested in what you’re doing.

When you’re writing the ad, keep in mind that it’s essentially a sales pitch. You’re asking someone to work for free, so you should let them know exactly what they’ll get out of it, and what they’ll be doing. Be as specific as you possibly can, so there are no misunderstandings about what the job entails. Most importantly, tell them why you’re interesting enough that they would want to spend their precious time working for you.

Interviews

If you’re not used to interviewing people, it may feel strange, but it’s always a good idea to sit down with them and have a chat, so you can see if it’s a good fit. Here are some examples of the questions you might want to ask them:-

Why do they want to work for you?

What do they hope to get out of the internship?

Will they be receiving academic credit for the internship? If yes, this serves as a guarantee for you, because it means they will be far more committed.

What are their plans for the coming months? Are they able to commit to the full term?

In my experience, the last question is of the highest importance. It’s fairly common for interns to work for a week or two and then become busy with other things, such as a new job or something else in their lives. Either way, this is going to happen—after all, you’re not paying them. But having a frank conversation about the importance of committing for the specified duration, and being clear about what is expected of them (2 days per week, 6 hours per day, for example) will help to measurably reduce this.

The most important question to ask yourself is: Do you like them? You’ll be spending a fair amount of time with this person, so it’s essential that you get along with them. This is especially important if your business is a one-person show.

Structure

My preference is not to impose too much structure. I don’t appreciate being told what to do, so I assume that other people don’t, either. On the other hand, an intern is going to require some guidance. Before you post the job, spend some time thinking about exactly what they’ll be doing for you. Think broadly as well as specifically. Imagine their first day with you—what will they spend their time doing? You might want to set them a few small tasks that are easy to understand, then have them come back for a new set of tasks when they’re done. As you get to know each other, you’ll see what they excel at and what they can do independently, but, in the beginning, they will want to be managed. I’ve learned the hard way that if you give broad, far-reaching, independent projects to interns, they won’t feel like they’re getting anything out of it. Then one day, they just won’t show up. They are interning for you in order to learn from you, so you must help them to do that.

That’s all there is to it, really. Post your ad, even if you think no one will respond. It doesn’t hurt to try. In all likelihood, you’ll receive more responses than you can handle. Don’t overthink it—just give it a try. You’ve got nothing to lose. As well as the help, it’s energizing to be with someone who is excited enough about what you do that they would want to help you out for free. It can really invigorate your project, as new people will contribute new energy and fresh ideas that you didn’t even know you were missing.

Now go out and get an intern!