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Why Your Crowdfunding Campaign Failed (And Other Good News)

The two inevitables of life, death and taxes, have recently invited a third member to their exclusive club for jerks.

The old adage, in the teenage years of the 2000’s, should now read “death, taxes, and Kickstarter” (or Rockethub, or countless other options).

Congratulations, you’re an artist, just like a huge percentage of the population!

The difference between you and those other losers?

YOU are an artist with a killer idea.You’re gonna make the next Star Wars, or write the next 100 Bullets, or maybe you’ve got this idea for a blender that blends the shit out of stuff but also somehow reduces your carbon footprint and makes you way more attractive.

But, now for the elephant in the room: you need money, and lots of it.

Well, kiddo, you were born in a glorious time; a time where you can ask the interwebs for assistance, a magical land where you can digitally panhandle but not dress or smell like one.

That, my friends (or acquaintances, if you will), is crowdsource funding.  I’m going to go on a limb and assume that since you’re reading this you’re either familiar with the concept, inquisitive about the concept, or it’s just a really slow day on Reddit.

So you’ve grasped crowdsourcing.

Hell, maybe you’ve tried, and like thousands of others, failed.

Miserably. Horribly. Embarrassingly.  

So why, exactly, did it fail? 

If you’re part of the 56.04% of people who fail to meet their end goal (per Kickstarter), I’ve got some news for you — here are the reasons it bombed.

1. YOUR VIDEO SUCKS.

Your video was way too long, way too short, or it just flat out sucked. The thing is, if you can’t sell yourself, you can’t sell your idea. Your video needs to be engaging, informative, short enough to capture the attention span of the YouTube generation, and aesthetically pleasing.

Let’s say you have a movie project, and your Kickstarter video looks like you have never seen a movie, let alone made one.

Why would I, John Q. Money (patent pending) give you any of my hard-earned (or inherited) cash?

I wouldn’t. I’d be way more apt to pay attention to the guy who has the slick video that looks like they put a ton of care and thought into it, rather than the jerk who phoned it in. Let’s say I owned a law firm and I’m hiring, and you’re Murphy Brown status (but way more awesome and less stern). Now, you come in with your kick-ass resume but you’re wearing sweatpants with pee stains. No job for you, MB. The video IS your interview — your potential backers are your prospective employer Put on a good show.

Here are a few tips on how to do that:

  • Find a local university with a film program and find a student to create your video as a project (or, if they’re talented and worth it, for super cheap).
  • Go HERE and learn how to light a simple, yet amazing interview!
  • Have a friend with a DSLR? No? Rent one on the cheap. DSLRs have revolutionized filmmaking, allowing for high quality image at a low cost.

2. YOUR REWARDS WERE LESS “REWARD” AND MORE “PUNISHMENT.”

Unless you’re Zach Braff or any celebrity following the trend of hijacking crowdsourcing to fund pet projects (even though they’re probably sitting on piles o’ money like a dragon) there are two rules to follow:

  • Nobody knows who you are (yet).
  • Nobody is going to pay more for an unknown than a pre-established “brand.”

I’ve consulted a lot of filmmakers and other artists about this very subject.

Over the course of running campaigns myself and helping others do the same, I’ve seen the full spectrum of reward fails. The key to smaller projects (and even some larger ones) is volume. If you’re an unknown artist and you know your project is the cat’s pajamas, outside of your circle of friends and small social media ties no one knows who you are and nobody cares. They want to, but you have to help them.

Ask yourself this: was I on Scrubs? Did I write Batman: Year One? Did I design that pyramid outside the Louvre?

No, no you didn’t.

So why the hell would I, John Q. Consumer, pay for your autograph? I wouldn’t. I personally have tried the “I’m a rockstar already!” approach and failed on an epic scale. So why would I pay $30 for your DVD, or $25 for your album? I could get Skyfall on Blu Ray or a Beatles discography for those rates.  

Keep your ego in check. Don’t charge more than the guys who are already established, and remember, you are making your name  — you don’t have one yet (unless you do, and in which case, keep on keepin’ on).

Some examples of reward systems that worked:

  1. Robocop: One of my all time personal favorite campaigns.
  2. Cineskates: These guys raised $460,000 more than they asked for… I’d say that worked.

3. EVERYTHING YOU’RE DOING IS WRONG — BUT KUDOS FOR TRYING.

Your campaign is locked. You have a slick video. You have realistic rewards. So how the hell did you still screw it up?

  • Your promotion plan didn’t work. Promotion is king in crowdsourcing. “Well hey, jerk, I could share my link with all my Facebook friends and connections on LinkedIn. That’ll do it!”
  • You’re utilizing your friends in the wrong way. One major obstacle is the fact that as an artist, my friends are artists as well. So chances are, they too are running or planning on running campaigns. Involve your friends from beyond a financial gain: you need street teams; you got a social media guy? Great! Got a buddy who makes rap videos on Saturdays? Have him shoot your video! Got a friend who writes? Have her help with your pitch! Get people excited, get them involved and help them help you without having to open their wallets. They’ll thank you.
  • Your reward delivery is shoddy. Unknown to most people apparently, it costs money to ship stuff. If your rewards are all attainable goods (shirts, CDs, graphic novels, whatever) you’re gonna have to ship it. Keep that in mind when you’re coming up with your campaign total and factor that in, or you’ll end up over budget before the check clears.

“WAIT A SECOND. I THOUGHT YOU SAID THERE WAS GOOD NEWS?”

There is! Just be smart. Do your homework. Learn from others’ mistakes. Tap your resources before even launching your campaign. Think. When you’re done thinking, think again. The second time usually works better.

Seriously, it’s easy… and it’s not.

Research is your new favorite word.

Research trends, research reward structures, research everything. Be yourself, because nobody likes a bullshit artist. And if you’re a bullshit artist, then bullshit like it’s going out of style.

Keep it real, yo.

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