Wanna know what sucks?
When you launch your crowdfunding campaign and…
Crickets! No one’s checking it out. No one’s backing it.
Maybe you had an initial surge of activity, but now that’s all died down.
It’s scary, embarrassing, and nerve racking.
Thankfully, there are many steps that you can take to promote your crowdfunding campaign, get more traffic, and rope in more backers.
You can use some of the ways below to unlock your fundraising potential!
1. Facebook Advertising
This is a hot topic! Right now, Facebook advertising is highly profitable for ecommerce companies.
You can use Facebook ads to reach the exact audience that is interested in your product, cause, or initiative.
There are also many powerful techniques in the Facebook playbook, like:
- Lookalike Audiences
- Retargeting Pixel
- Custom Audiences
That you can use to supercharge your results.
2. CrowdfundingPR
CrowdfundingPR is a partner website that you can use to submit a free or enhanced press release for your crowdfunding campaign. Along with news outlets, you’ll also have your project shared with social media followers.
There are also many other websites like PRWeb that you can also use to publish a press release online.
3. The Gadget Flow
In full disclosure, The Gadget Flow is a sponsor of my podcast. They offer a number of options to share your campaign with their community of more than 25 million people (per month).
This website first started as a community where early adopters could discover cool, new products. They curate selections that their users might like.
4. KickstarterForum
Kickstarter Forum is the online forum that accompanies this blog.
With more than 7,000 members, this community stands as one of the top places in the industry where creators can get together, ask questions, and promote their campaign.
5. Email Marketing
Email marketing is the holy grail of ecommerce and crowdfunding.
If you want a visitor to make a buying decision, get them on your email list.
Before launching your campaign, I’d recommend building up a pre-launch email list of leads that are interested in your product.
You can use a tool like LeadPages to make a simply landing page that will collect their email address.
6. PR and Influencer Outreach
As more and more crowdfunding campaigns are launched every single day, it’s becoming harder to stand out from the crowd.
When you get into a media publication, you’ll instantly stand out to potential backers as a credible project that’s worth looking into.
You can use influencers to convince visitors to take a few seconds to watch your video and learn about your product. We always trust recommended companies more than random companies in our Facebook feed.
7. Facebook Promotion Companies
A bunch of companies have emerged to help you with paid Facebook ads. While I don’t specifically endorse any of these, I wanted to create a list to get you started.
Some of these include:
8. Facebook Groups
A quick search on Facebook yields a ton of groups that are related to crowdfunding, Kickstarter, and Indiegogo.
These groups are a great opportunity to get questions answered, learn a little bit about crowdfunding, and see what other cool campaigns are launching.
You can join one of these groups, network with members, or share your project. Just don’t spam!
9. LinkedIn Groups
LinkedIn is another venue that you can use to get the word out about your campaign.
I also think it’s a great resource for learning about marketing and meeting other users. Don’t shy away from making new business connections.
10. Google+ Groups
Google+ has certainly decreased in popularity over the years, but I still use it for the group functionality. It only takes a few seconds to join a group and see whether or not it’s active.
As always, I recommend engaging in a group rather than just blasting your link. Relationships are the key to crowdfunding success, not just visibility.
11. Kicktraq Banner Ads
Aside from niche-specific ads, like on Board Game Geek, Kicktraq is a great way to get in front of visitors interested in crowdfunding and Kicktstarter.
Their website is extremely popular and is used to showcase news and analytics regarding new projects.
12. Krowdster
This database and software is one option for gaining access to a list of influencers, backers, and potential supporters of your campaign.
You can also use their software to build up a list of followers on Twitter.
13. Social Media
No doubt, you’ve already seen how a crowdfunding campaign can gain thousands of backers from social media.
The word that everyone throws around is “virality.”
“That campaign went viral!”
While it’s true that some campaigns go viral, the vast majority use social media as a way to build up an audience of interested followers BEFORE launching their campaign.
If you haven’t engaged in those type of pre-launch activities, you can also pay social media influencers to share your project with their following.
14. Live Streams
Recently, live streaming has grown into a powerful way to connect with social media followers.
The fact that an event is “live” will command far greater attention on platforms like Facebook. This is true not only from a psychological standpoint, but also in terms of the platform’s algorithm.
You can also use live streaming on platforms like Kickstarter to build a relationship with your existing followers and gain new ones.
15. In-Person Events
In-person events are another way that you can generate leads and get more backers for your crowdfunding campaign.
The great thing about live events is that you can answer any questions or objections that come up right away. You can also get a read on how excited people actually are by reading their body language.
This strategy was referenced in a previous episode of the podcast, “Smart Kickstarter Marketing Techniques That Just Plain Work.”
16. Friends and Family
Most people will announce the project to their friends and family, but not many actually follow up with that request.
Make sure that you’re keeping a list of all of the people you’ve told the project about, which ones have responded, and which ones have indicated an interest in supporting it, but for whatever reason, haven’t yet.
You can’t just expect people to take action on their own. They need a bit of coaxing towards the finish line.
Don’t forget to also ask your core network to share it with their network.
17. Crowdfunding Forum
Crowdfunding Forum is another resource that we’ve put together to help you with your campaign.
You can use it to connect with other entrepreneurs. You can also share your project with crowdfunding enthusiasts.
Learning should always be a part of the launch plan, so don’t forget to read other user’s posts to gain a feel for what the fundraising process will be like.
18. Paid Reviews and Demos
Public relations is a major part of every successful Kickstarter and Indiegogo campaign.
A review of your product on a major blog can do wonders for your brand. If it’s positive, it will certainly drive backers your way.
You can also reach out to influencers on platforms like Instagram and YouTube.
19. Referral Programs
More and more, I’ve seen crowdfunders use Indiegogo’s referral tool to incentivize influencers to share their project.
One way to get people excited about sharing your campaign on social media or with their friends is to give them a reason to.
A referral program is a great way to set up a win-win situation where you’ll get more traffic and they’ll be rewarded for their efforts.
20. Reddit
There are many communities on reddit that function as online forums where you can discuss topics or share your project.
For example, there is the r/Kickstarter and r/Crowdfunding sub-reddit. You should also interact in subreddits that are specific to your industry.
21. Podcasts
Lastly, there are a growing number of podcasts on iTunes that you can tap into to share your story.
A lot of these shows are niche-specific, mine included!
Since a podcast listener is usually tuning in to a 30 – 60 minute long show, these are highly engaged individuals.
Over that span of time, they can get to know more about you, your product, and what you’re raising money for.
Don’t be afraid to reach out to some of the hosts of these podcasts and pitch your story to them.
