So, you’ve seen some of the crazy Kickstarter board game stats?
Now, you’re wondering how to get a piece of the pie?
How do you get in on this rapidly growing tabletop game segment?
I’m here to tell you that you’re in luck! I’ve been studying this industry since 2012 and have some killer tips to share with you today.
I’ve even interviewed some of the Kickstarter veterans who have done more than 16 crowdfunding projects and reveal their funding secrets.
Wanna know what’s cool too?
A lot of this info is free on this blog, my YouTube channel, and my podcast. You can get the links to all of these here.
1. Study the Kickstarter Masters
My first tip for you is to study what is working right now on Kickstarter. Back a few projects. See how the creators do communication. Observe how they do surveys once the campaign is completed.
The only way you’re going to get a feel for how to construct a good project is to support some yourself. Study them. Pay attention to how their video makes you feel. Look through their campaign page layout.
You can also ask questions on sites like KickstarterForum to see what the crowd thinks about some of your ideas.
Here are a few podcast episodes to get you started on this point.
- This ONE Technique Raised $403,242 on Kickstarter for a Board Game
- Kickstarter Board Game Funding Secrets
- Crash Course on Kickstarter for Board Games
- How to Kickstart a Tabletop Game with the $86k V-Commandos Project
Don’t just passively listen to these episodes. Take notes.
Listen to what’s working right now on Kickstarter. What is the mindset that these creators adopted to be successful.
You need to tap into the knowledge base that’s out there for tabletop game projects so that you can learn from their mistakes and failures.
2. Lock Down Your Logistics ASAP
I’m a big picture thinker. I’m an idea guy. But, I also know that you’ll only change the world if you take action.
All too often, I have aspiring board game creators approach me, wondering how to get their game off the ground. They want to know if they have a good idea or not, etc.
The problem with this is that ideas are difficult to communicate. It’s almost an art. You need a prototype to show people. Users have to try out your game.
It’s not fun, but you need to do the logistics part of the equation. Figure out the gameplay and then nail down what materials you need to get this thing off the ground.
Call up board game manufacturers.
Call up other people in the industry.
Spend money to acquire information and assemble a strategy.
You need to get your logistics down because this is what will inform your pricing, how much you can spend on marketing, and what types of stretch goals you can offer.
The sooner you have these numbers in an excel spreadsheet, the better. You will then be able to have fruitful conversations with others that can help you out.
3. Intelligently Invest in Marketing
Marketing yada yada yada blah blah blah.
I think a lot of “experts” out there throw out the word marketing and just expect you to know what that means.
By marketing, I’m referring to the hard assets and promotion behind the project.
The hard assets include:
- Pitch video
- Images/gifs
- Social media graphics
The promotion includes:
- Facebook ads
- Email list building
- Places to promote it
- Media outreach
- Live events and play testing
You need to break out the excel spreadsheet and start to create a budget for each of these items. How much are you going to invest into your video? What about FB ads?
Getting a bit more real about these numbers will also help determine if you can afford a larger agency to help you, or if you’ll be bootstrapping and maybe need to learn a bit more about email list building.
I haven’t seen many wildly successful projects that had no marketing. Every once in a while, it will happen. A project will grow organically based off the strength of its followers.
Maybe it goes viral on Reddit or in a board game group. Perhaps there is some big-name artist or designer attached to the game
However, more often than not, the creator has to kindle the fire before it starts to take off on Kickstarter.
This process of “priming the pump” is kinda annoying, but it’s the best possible way that you can reach regular backers and super backers on Kickstarter.
4. Think About Stretch Goals/Add-Ons
The name of the game is… how do you increase the overall pledge value for your project?
How do you get people excited about wanting to get their friends involved in your project.
Over the years, stretch goals have been the answer!
Stretch goals are ways that you can get your backers eager to hit key funding milestones. When you hit those milestones… something new will be unlocked!
Maybe it’s a wild card that changes up gameplay. It could be a new figurine for your table top game. Anything that’s easy that doesn’t complicate reward fulfillment too much.
By thinking ahead of time of what you can offer for a stretch goal, you’ll make it so that having this additional bit of value won’t break the bank. It won’t screw up your shipping and other logistics.
Along with stretch goals, you can also have add-ons in your project. You can learn more about add-ons here.
These add-ons kind of function like up-sells. They are optional for backers.
Having add-ons and stretch goals are two ways to boost the funding for your project. But, it doesn’t matter unless you do one thing…
5. How Can You Demonstrate Fun?
People buy entertainment products like card games and board games based on the perceived emotions that they’ll get when they buy them.
Simply put, gamers just wanna have fun!
A big difficulty that I see with so many board game creators is that they see great play testing results. Their friends love the game. When they bring it to an event, everyone loves the game.
People might even go so far as to say… hey, where can I get the game? I wanna play more!
That’s awesome. Killer feedback. The real challenge is… how do you give potential players online the exact same experience.
I’ve had students I’ve worked with who are unable to bring that core experience online. They aren’t able to convey the fun of the game effectively.
While the creator him or herself believes in the game and had seen the fun players have had with their own eyes, they aren’t able to convey that to others online.
Think about some ways that you can do this for your specific project. I’m talking about:
- Gameplay b-roll footage
- Testimonials and reactions
- GIFs of gameplay
- Powerful storytelling
This is the burden of being an independent board game publisher. You gotta think of how you can appeal to the masses. You almost have to put yourself in their shoes and imagine how they will experience this project they stumble on.
6. Attend Live Events (Here’s Why)
In my last point, we talked about demonstrating fun. An easy way to do that is to go to live events.
Not only is it a great opportunity for you to capture some marketing assets (like photos/videos), but it’s also killer for some early validation.
You’re looking to launch a board game on Kickstarter, but how do you know if players will actually like the game?
How do you know if they’ll actually want to keep playing it?
Well… the only way is to put it in their hands and observe their game play. It’s like a mini psychological experiment.
Once it’s in their hands, they will also have questions about how the game works, the rules, and other aspects. Write these down, because this will inform the development going forward.
Sometimes, creators like to think of the card game as a finished product, but really, it’s like silly putty. Throughout this stage, it’s being constantly molded and improved upon. Play testing is one part of that phase.
Finally, when attending live events, you also have the chance to get the contact information of the players! Grab their email. If they enjoyed the game, they’re likely to become a Kickstarter backer!
7. Get An Influencer on The Hook
Lastly, if you can get an influencer on the hook, this is as close as you’ll get to a silver bullet.
People don’t believe what you say online.
You could say that this new board game is incredible, amazing, and so much fun.
But… you’re a marketer. You’re the creator. You have a vested interest in its success.
When you put a respected or well-known player at the front of that message and the crowd hears the same thing from their ears, then they will be more likely to believe it.
Work hard to establish a relationship with one, two, or three influencers. Make sure they know that you are genuinely trying to create a kickass game. Tell them the story behind it. Peak their interest.
Having an influencer share and vouch for your project isa remarkable way to get some early traction on Kickstarter. This is one of the tactics I discussed in the Kickstarter Launch Formula.
I hope that you’ve gotten some ideas from these points. I also hope that you have a successful launch. Should you have any questions, you can reach out to me for a coaching session. I’ll examine your strategy and get into what’s best for you going forward.
