This article was written by Chris & Michelle Miller. They are currently running The Angel Guardian Kickstarter campaign.
My husband and I recently self-published the book, Where Have All the Storks Gone? A His and Hers Guide to Infertility, about our experience trying to start a family. Other than not having a publisher, we launched the book the traditional way.
We hired a professional editor to review the book copy, and another editor for proofreading. A graphic designer created our cover and a different designer formatted the book for print and electronic distribution. We found a local publicist to help us with marketing, sending out copies of the books more than six months in advance for reviews and trying to garner media coverage. We started a blog, launched a website and created social media pages. We hosted a launch party and book signing at a local bookstore.
It was a lot of fun, but a lot of work. We’re in the hole by a lot of money and probably will be for years – or forever.
While we were marketing our infertility book, we began writing a children’s book. This time, we thought we’d try a different approach. We’d seen, and backed, so many successful crowdfunding campaigns, that we figured this might be the right way to go to get our illustrated book printed. And maybe it wouldn’t require the out-of-pocket money, third parties and tremendous effort we’d spent with Storks to get the ball rolling.
Here’s what we learned in our research:
1. Successful Campaigns Require An Unbelievable Amount of Preparation.
I’ve researched more than 200 Crowdfunding campaigns in the last two weeks. I’ve read more than 200 descriptions, watched more than 180 videos, and backed a handful of projects to see the process unfurl. What have I learned?
The owners of the most successful campaigns spent a lot of time preparing and marketing their launch – often years in advance. Linda Liukas, author of Hello Ruby, a children’s book and workbook that teaches programming fundamentals, had been talking at conferences, collecting email addresses and networking for more than three years before her launch. Why is it so important to have everything lined up in advance?
The first 24 hours of a campaign often determine its success. So you can’t wait to launch your marketing after the clock has started ticking. Everyone must already know about your campaign in advance to spread the word quickly and effectively.
So much for my thought that crowdfundng would be easier than the “traditional way.”
2. If At First You Don’t Succeed…
Did you hear about the Coolest campaign on Kickstarter? My husband and I watched the video and thought, who really needs a blender in their cooler? It seemed like overkill. But there were a lot of cool features, and it was being offered at a significant discount off retail, so we backed it. Along with 62,641 other people.
Did Ryan Grepper just come up with the right product at the right time, create a cool prototype, put it in on Kickstarter, and build a million dollar brand overnight? Nope. He failed to meet his $125,000 original goal with Kickstarter round one. He learned a lot of lessons with that first campaign, including the fact that nobody wants to buy a cooler in the winter. Those failures ultimately led to product changes, a better prototype, a new video and a very successful campaign.
3. Choose Your Crowdfunding Site Carefully.
Sometimes Kickstarter or Indiegogo, the two most popular crowdfunding sites, aren’t right for a particular project. If that’s the case, there are hundreds of other options out there. Tina Hambly launched a Kickstarter campaign to start Valentina Shoes for Girls. What did she learn? Men and high tech (common Kickstarter followers) weren’t a perfect match for girls’ shoes. But MoolaHoop, a site that helps women start small businesses, was the perfect platform. Her campaign was successful and a new brand was born.
4. Keep the Message Simple and Deliver it Personally.
With so many campaigns running at a given time, on so many platforms, concise messaging is critical. Nobody has time to read a book about your campaign. There’s a perfect balance somewhere in between too much and too little information.
It’s not enough to have a cool product. Successful campaigns typically have a great personality to match.
5. Don’t Overpromise. Do Over-Deliver.
Several high profile crowdfunding campaigns have funded but failed to deliver. Really digging into the details of costs, lining up manufacturers, and understanding fulfillment are key to delivering what you’ve promised. If you can over-deliver, all the better.
Only time will tell if crowdfunding is the right medium for our illustrated children’s book. Our Kickstarter campaign for The Angel Guardian hardcover book and angel doll launched on October 16th. If you have young children, check it out and let this little angel make bedtime more fun for everyone.
For those of you who are planning your own campaign, or just investing in them, this is what I’ve learned leading up to our Kickstarter. I’m sure I will have accumulated many more lessons by the time we’re through…
