Trunkster launched on November 18, 2014 taking Kickstarter by storm with their revolutionary take on luggage. Their mission is to simplify the way we travel by changing an item that has stayed the same for years, and they’re doing great so far.
With 32 days left of their campaign they have raised over 970% of their original goal. I asked one of the project’s creators, Jesse Potash, for some advice and insights on their crowdfunding success:
1. First can you tell us a little about yourself and the story behind this project?
Trunkster was conceptualized by me and my partner, Gaston Blanchet. We had been traveling around the world living out of our suitcases and were constantly complaining about the lack of innovative luggage options. We had both settled for mediocre, inexpensive bags, and after several years on the road, were very aware of the struggles of conventional luggage.
We realized there was no great luggage for the modern, millennial traveler, so we started sketching and before we knew it, what started as a whimsical idea, morphed into a full-fledged company. The idea was to create an iconic suitcase that matched our minimalist lifestyles and most importantly eliminated zippers.
2. What made you choose Kickstarter instead of another crowdfunding platform?
We had both been very involved in the crowdfunding space, Gaston running his own Kickstarter campaign previously, and me founding a crowdfunding platform specifically for authors. We always had an affinity for Kickstarter, and agreed early on that we would use the platform to launch the product.
3. According to Kicktraq, your campaign blew through your $50,000 goal and raised $86,498 on the first day. Were you expecting that big of a response?
We had been preparing for many months and had done our best to do outreach and build excitement in advance. With that said, we were absolutely blown away by the response and could have never anticipated reaching our goal in under an hour.
4. What steps did you take to prepare for success before launching Trunkster on Kickstarter?
We built media lists, engaged influencers, performed market research, and established connections with the press. We also did extensive research about other successful campaigns and analyzed their strategies. We then designed a strategy unique to our product.
5. How have you been maintaining momentum so far and what are your plans to continue it throughout your 60 day campaign?
Our most effective tool for promotion and maintaining momentum so far has been Twitter. The press we’ve received has mostly been organic but we are continuing press outreach as well.
6. If you could start over, would you do anything differently? What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned from running your project so far?
We really wanted to launch in September but faced serious delays with the prototype development. In retrospect, we would have tried to plan that part better, but it was definitely a learning experience. Nonetheless, the biggest lesson we learned was from our lead designer who always says, “There’s no good time to launch a bad product and no bad time to launch a good product.”
Conclusion
Trunkster is a good example of how a lot of work, preparation, and some expertise can really put a Kickstarter campaign on the fast track to success. Clearly the thought of modern, zipperless, worry-free luggage has a lot of people excited (considering the great start this project had), but it takes a lot of dedication to keep up a steady momentum of pledges throughout a 60 day campaign.
Jesse shared some useful wisdom in pointing out the importance of thorough planning, preparation, and keeping up with promotion efforts throughout the course of their successful crowdfunding campaign. It’s now up to you! What will you do with that information!
