Part of a cultural phenomenon known as crowdfunding, Kickstarter.com is the most successful of the social funding services that connect innovators to grassroots supporters. Here’s how to play the game.
• Write up a script that describes yourself and your project. Hint: Kickstarters like to hear of some expertise.
• Target a funding goal and a deadline to reach it. Hint: Modest requests (under $10,000) with a looming deadline (less than a month) achieve the most success.
• Devise a reward to offer supporters in exchange for their donation. Hint: Kickstarters like something tangible, like the finished product.
• Make a video that presents your pitch and asks for support. Hint: You don’t have to go multi-media, but a slick video increases your chance of success.
• Submit your project proposal to kickstarter.com, which promises a quick review to insure it meets guidelines spelled out on the website. Hint: Kickstarter entertains only commercial projects, no causes or crusades. You can’t use it to pay tuition.
• Once accepted on Kickstarter, email the news to everyone you know with the link to your kickstarter project page. Hint: The more Facebook likes and Twitter mentions, the better your chances of success.
• To support a project, go to kickstarter.com and click the green “Back This Project” button on any project page. Your credit card gets charged when and if the project reaches its funding goal. Hint: Scan the reward options, which often grow interesting at higher levels.