You know, after I typed that I knew I was wrong.  I started this campaign very prematurely.  In fact, I don't have much..well..I don't have a portfolio to display.  The thought was that I was going to target friends and family, and that they could see me progress as I posted updates.  But, a few days in, that isn't going to work.  I don't have a good FaceBook presence, which seems to stifle these things a lot.  I am seeking comments, and views, and getting absolutely nothing.  So, I am content to let it fail and restart with a different focus.  I looked into Kickstarter, but it didn't appear formation of the business is an allowable campaign.  So, maybe when I restart it in a month, I will include formation and a better camera.  In the meantime, going to offer the service for free to some potential donors to build a portfolio. 

The reason I said to look wider is because you can very quickly tap out family and friends. That's not going to be enough to start a business on.

I didn't know that about Kickstarter - formation of a business not allowed - and that's something I'll double check because that's somewhat where my campaign will be heading. Mine's kind of a grey area because it's not funding for formation as such, but for the first product which will start the ball rolling. I'm going to specifically target the campaign as something about "getting back on one's feet" so that clause may be important to which site I try.

But back to what you were saying: yeah, everything I've read about online campaigns says you should have something to show, a prototype or project that you can work on during the campaign so you can post updates and show how you will put everything together later, good rewards (maybe stuff you don't have to ship as that eats into your fundraising), and a base you can tap into.

Really taking a look at other campaigns is a good way to get some idea of what to do and how to do it. It's really helped me a lot.

By the way, one suggestion would be that you could have different services as rewards. You could do a small puppet for $X, a larger puppet for $XX, and maybe a custom-made puppet for $XXX. You could even do something a bit different, like a hand-drawn framed puppet design, posters, kits, you name it. The idea is that the rewards double as something someone will actually want to buy - that way it's less of a donation, and more of a payment. This way you get more than just family and friends donating, and you have more of a chance of tapping into a wider audience. It means you have more chance of actually succeeding with the campaign, plus you have real work lined up once it finishes which helps you build business.

Don't just rely on Facebook either. You need to get out there a bit more.

(My 2 cents... seeing as how I haven't even done my campaign yet)

From what I can tell, Kickstarter is project focus.  You have to make something creative.  So, filing the papers for a business didn't seem to fit in, but filing those papers ad releasing a scripted video might.  As for the rewards, my focus is custom puppet videos.  So my perks were setup essentially as pre-orders with the highest ($100) including a puppet that would be mailed.  I have done two unsuccessful campaigns before this.  The first was to have a $4,000 mascot created.  I received a lot of shares from family and friends, but no contributions.  Got a lot of "help this out" and "great dream" but no substance.  The second was a fundraising one, feed 1,000 Haiti children at $3 a meal.  No interest, no shares, no response.  I thought that was real interesting.  Going to build a monster puppet this weekend, and work on putting together a better intro video.  Though rare, maybe I can salvage the campaign that is already there. 

You may not have done a campaign yet, but you seem to have a very solid grasp about them.  That will help you tremendously.  And, I don't want to speak out of turn, but I think you have a great community here that would be willing to help. 

Well I would say that the most important thing would be to make sure you do post the link to the campaign when you do mention it some place... seems you didn't do that here.   Might be best though to start a new thread about it.

LOL...yeah, I didn't post it because I wasn't fully comfortable on whether I should or not.  But I did remember this thread and wanted to pose the marketing question.  I will probably post a thread with the link once I redo the video.  The minimum you can ask for on Indiegogo is $500, I only need $400 so I really thought friends and family would help there. 

From what I can tell, Kickstarter is project focus.  You have to make something creative.  So, filing the papers for a business didn't seem to fit in, but filing those papers ad releasing a scripted video might.

That makes sense, but as I say you could tread a thin line. I see a lot of indie computer games being up on Kickstarter, from new companies. There's no reason to think that you can't just say "I'm funding X project, which is my first one with my new company". And then as part of your itemised list of things the money goes towards you put some into filing papers; which is a necessary part of creating X project.

As for the rewards, my focus is custom puppet videos.  So my perks were setup essentially as pre-orders with the highest ($100) including a puppet that would be mailed.  I have done two unsuccessful campaigns before this.  The first was to have a $4,000 mascot created.  I received a lot of shares from family and friends, but no contributions.  Got a lot of "help this out" and "great dream" but no substance.  The second was a fundraising one, feed 1,000 Haiti children at $3 a meal.  No interest, no shares, no response.  I thought that was real interesting.  Going to build a monster puppet this weekend, and work on putting together a better intro video.  Though rare, maybe I can salvage the campaign that is already there. 

I like the idea of custom videos, because they can work for e-cards, corporate stuff, engagement messages... a whole load of different things. My biggest concern with it is probably what you've worked out already: if your price is high no one will bother. For my campaign I'm putting my lowest reward at $5 which is essentially 'you get a credit in the work'. I think this sort of low bid appeals to most people because they don't mind avoiding their morning cup of coffee at Starbucks; but don't feel as though they have to commit to anything in the long run. If you add $5-10 to each reward level it means more people will buy in. The highest level is really going to be for 'angels' - people with loads of dough who are majorly into your concept. You either have to offer something really special or something easily wanted by your customers but that they want to make sure no one else gets.

I think somewhere here someone mentioned (possibly Andrew) that making a reward unique/limited edition is key. You want to make people feel life if they don't grab it and grab it now, someone else will get it.

Personally I think maybe why no one is interested is in the way you present it. There's nothing exciting to back. Everyone has their own pet project, and very few people are going to go "hey, a puppet business. Sure, I'll give you some money to register your papers and make it official". On the other hand "hey, a puppet business. Sure, I'll give you money to make a web series. I've already seen your pilot and it was super cool". ... See what I mean? There's something to be said for making it less abstract. People aren't really going to donate if they don't really know what the money will be used for (business registration sounds practical to us, but the long-term goals of "what you actually do every day" aren't easily discerned from 'submitting papers'), whereas if you have a creative project on hand that they can see they'll be more inclined to get enthused. Just my personal opinion, I know it doesn't excite me. The times when I've donated to campaigns have been times I've been: excited by the creator whose work I already like and have bought; excited by the project whose designs/music/whatever I really really really liked.

The other issue is that people don't know you. Family and friends do, which is why they'll donate, but if you're going outside of that circle then people aren't going to donate to *you* (unless you know, you're famous or something) but to your *concept*. So make the concept really smashing.

I'm going to PM you some other thoughts as well. You'll see why.

You may not have done a campaign yet, but you seem to have a very solid grasp about them.  That will help you tremendously.  And, I don't want to speak out of turn, but I think you have a great community here that would be willing to help. 

Thanks. I am not quite sure if I'm talking out of my a** or not. I've never been good at marketing, let alone online fundraising, and though I've been getting a lot of help and advice of late I think the only way to know if it works is to try it and see what happens. I probably won't get around to doing it this year for various reasons, but it's still on the simmer in the back of my head.

.... Ok, slight tangent. TygerHawks and I were discussing some things via PM and we've decided to add some of it here. I think it benefits everyone to read it because a lot of it has to do with how to make the campaign successful. (Tyger, I've slightly modified it) This is mostly based on stuff I've gathered from looking at other campaigns, so take it with a large grain of salt - I haven't done a campaign myself yet and am crap at marketing.

This is TygerHawk's current campaign. Note it's going to be updated and changed.
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/puppet-video-company/x/599963

In discussion some key things popped up:

1. Having lots of media (videos, photos, sketches, etc) is important. It not only engages the audience more, but it shows off your talents and gives potential donors some idea of what the finished product will be. Have pics or videos of the rewards, people want to know the quality of what they're getting.

2. Professionalism is important, especially if you are trying to get money for starting a business.

3. Having different rewards helps. Some people may not want X reward, but still want to donate. Having different things to meet different tastes will help broaden the number of donors you can get. People will have a tendency to donate more if they're enticed by a good reward they really want. If they see nothing in the higher tiers they want, they'll just go for the lowest one (usually the 'thank you' reward) which means you get less money and they are less enthused about the project they're funding.

4. Making everything 'custom' in terms of rewards dilutes the uniqueness of said reward. It's much more special if you have limited editions or if the custom stuff is in higher tiers - making it more valuable in the eyes of the donor. Also, there's no reason to think you can't be more creative about rewards. You could offer posters, music, free or discounted items, free advertising. Heck, some people even do studio tours as a reward.

5. Choice of language helps. Make your info inviting, exciting, personable, funny, fun. There's nothing to get excited about if you're asking people to give you money so you can file a piece of paper; whereas if you're offering a specific project people can touch or see themselves, it's more personal and they're more likely to be engaged enough to donate. -- In addition, explain why you're different to everyone else. There are campaigns by the hundreds, you need to explain why someone should give their spare change to you and not the homeless guy on the street, or that cool product they saw on another campaign. -- Also, it helps to get someone to read over your language. Explaining what you plan on doing, or what your business is about, can make total sense in your own head but not so much when you write it down. Come up with two simple sentences that explain who you are and what you do. If you can't do that, your campaign will seem muddled and without focus.

6. Have lots of updates. People want to see you working on the very project you're trying to raise money for. They want to see dedication, but more importantly, they want to know you're not just going to run off with the money and take a holiday. Updates remind people you exist, they show off your talents, they give content to new and passing potential donors, and they give something for current donors to pass around to their friends. *And* make sure your updates, media, etc doesn't end up on a different page/tab on the campaign. It should be front and centre where everyone can see it. People are lazy and won't hunt around for extra info.

7. Try to avoid saying that you have all your resources already and just need a little bit of cash for X. First, it sounds like you have all the money you need and it will make it seem like someone else's campaign is more worthy (as it has less money).

8. Get feedback. Get it from people who planned to donate but didn't. Get it from people who did donate. Get it from everyone. The more feedback you get, the more likely you'll be able to figure out whether your campaign failed/succeeded based on which factors. Global financial crisis, or bad marketing on your part? Aiming it towards the wrong group of people, or is it that your idea doesn't live up to expectations? Get feedback and find out.

As a comparison, these are campaigns that I've bookmarked as a reference. They're all for computer games, but you get the idea.


(this one is a bit different because the game designers are really well known and liked so they got a huge amount of money almost instantly)


http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/secrets-of-raetikon
http://www.indiegogo.com/projects/between-me-and-the-night

  Note it's going to be updated and changed.

Just want to add, the main text has changed since I sent the link to Na.  The video will be changing sometime this week.  Discovering problems with my current setup and kicking myself for not getting a better camera when I bought the new computer.  Excuse #2 is that it is hard to concentrate when 1) Mother In-Law is visiting 2) Daughter wants to be in every shot and 3) Mother In-Law is visiting :D

Looking pretty good Tyger.  One quick comment.  Drop the word "honestly" and variations of it. You repeat it several times in places and I think it is not needed just state the honest fact instead.  What do you think Na?

Thanks Shawn, those are gone.  Also took out a "most likely" since I would buy a camera.  Asking for money is an interesting thing.  I have sent this to some friends seeking proofreading and input, and have not heard anything back.  It seems like a lot of people are asking for money these days which results in pepole's guard being up. 

Looking pretty good Tyger.  One quick comment.  Drop the word "honestly" and variations of it. You repeat it several times in places and I think it is not needed just state the honest fact instead.  What do you think Na?

I probably agree. I only scanned the new text before, but yeah 'honestly' could go.

Thanks Shawn, those are gone.  Also took out a "most likely" since I would buy a camera.  Asking for money is an interesting thing.  I have sent this to some friends seeking proofreading and input, and have not heard anything back.  It seems like a lot of people are asking for money these days which results in pepole's guard being up. 

I think it's probably better if you explicitly commit yourself to some stretch goals. "Most likely" says to me "I haven't quite decided if I'll just pocket the money or use it for my business". Also, you state in the pitch that the money is going towards ensuring you are separating the personal from the business. So if you're doing that, there's no "most likely" about where the money will end up: either sitting waiting to be used in the business account (or earning interest if that's possible) or actually being used on business expenses.

This feeds into people having their guard up. They're trusting you to follow through on what you state you'll do; don't give mixed signals towards that trust.

This is what I'm saying about language. It may seem innocent in your mind when you write it, but people have a tendency to read things into it.