5 ways to successfully fund your project on Kickstarter | RAJA

So, you woke up this morning and finally had the bright idea for the project that will revolutionise the world. Your reflex? You probably went to a crowdfunding platform, like Kickstarter, to get that ingenious project funded.

But of the 433,000 projects that have been hosted on Kickstarter since the platform’s launch, many of

them

never made it past the “bright idea” stage. This is one of the things that a SimpliSafe study has revealed, which has gathered data from the platform from 2009 to 2019 to draw out the trends and best practices to apply.

So, whatever your project, we have put together some tips here to help you make a success out of your crowdfunding project from start to finish.

If you don’t have time to read the whole article right now, download it in PDF format and take your time to prepare your Kickstarter project:

don’t think too big in terms of financial goals…

If

there is

one thing to remember about the way Kickstarter works, it is this: if you don’t reach your financial goals, the platform won’t allow you to recoup the funds promised by your donors. So be careful not to bite off more than you can chew.

The SimpliSafe study showed that 63% of Kickstarter projects didn’t reach the goals they had set themselves.

There are other figures that support this fact

• The larger the budgets requested, the less likely it is that projects will be completed.
• The average successful project usually has 50% fewer financial targets than the average failed project.
• The average goal of a successful project is only $6100 (compared to an average of $13700 for those that fail)

in short

, make

sure you size up the budget you want to achieve, but also give your potential donors enough time to meet the financial goal of your project

… but make sure you cover your production costs

The

second pitfall to avoid is that of seeing too little in terms of budget.

If your project is to raise significant funds, your chances of success are quite low. However, some successful projects that have raised millions of dollars have not even managed to cover their production costs.

This is notably the case of the second most successful project to have raised funds on Kickstarter: The Coolest Cooler. With $13.3 million raised in 2014, the project was enough to make inventors and entrepreneurs dream.
However, 5 years later, The Coolest Cooler has still not delivered any of its products to its donors, because of the lack of well-covered production costs.

Therefore, make sure you carefully calculate the funds needed to really deliver the promised counterparty

for

your donors

keep

your project description short and simple

Beyond the simple financial aspects, one of the elements of success in a project funding campaign lies in the description you give.

The SimpliSafe study reveals that successful campaigns use an average of only 465 words in their description.

Put your heart into it, and tell a story about your project. Don’t hesitate to create a feeling of necessity around your future product or service: it must respond to a problem of your targets, help them to achieve a goal that has not been solved up to now.

The

last element to add to your project file: a quality video. Projects that include one in their description have a 105% greater chance of reaching their goal. You might as well invest a little time beforehand to maximise your chances of success!

Stay in touch with your donors throughout the project

• Update your supporters on the progress of the donations
• Encourage them to share the project with their friends and family
• Keep telling the engaging story you’ve built around your product

think engagement, animation, and get your supporters excited in advance.

Think about the delivery of your product from the start

By launching this project, you may have created a prototype of your project, or at least have a general idea of what it will look like once it is designed.

So start thinking about how to deliver your product and any rewards you have offered to your donors at the beginning of your crowdfunding campaign. Start thinking about how to prepare the perfect package, in short.

Think in particular about :

• The materials (packaging, cushioning) you will need to ensure that your product reaches your donors intact
• The shipping method to choose according to the value and location of your donors

Such thinking will enable you to fund both your project and its delivery to your donors

To do this, we advise you to consult a valuable resource: the packaging guide, which will provide you with good practices for preparing your packages.