Getting your project funded is tough in any cycle of the economy. You’ll have to shake a lot of hands, show up at a lot of meetings and attend a lot of conferences & meetups to expand your network. This is for those technical types who might be having the next Google or Facebook as their project.
What avenues are available for creative types like a painter who is looking to raise money for that great modern art exhibition or the photographer who would like to capture the breeding pattern of the migratory bird on film? Except for Kickstarter, there’s virtually nothing. Let’s take a look at this revolutionary web app that helps creative types and people who adore creativity to come together.
Overview
Kickstarter helps aspiring entrepreneurs start their own business or get funds for their project. And for those who are strapped with money, Kickstarter acts as an avenue to invest your hard earned money in projects that suit your tastes and area of interest. A majority of businesses or projects listed at Kickstarter are creative in nature in fields such as art and design projects, fashion and photography projects, and writing & publishing projects-among others.
Overview
For those with deep pockets, the investment you make is not reminiscent of a seed or angel round, where the startup will allot you an agreed percentage of shares in return for money. Whereas in Kickstarter, creators of projects list what the investor will get in return for the money. Unlike seed or angel investment, where you’ll have to wait for years to see a reasonable return of interest, Kickstarter investments help you get instant gratification. This may be in a smaller scale and with tangible & intangible rewards, but the money pledged is far less than the early stage venture capital.
How it Works
Kickstarter is not about investment or lending. You do not get a stake in the project and the project creators retain 100% ownership and control over their work even after your investment. Instead, creators will offer products and/or experiences that are unique to each project.
A Sample Proposal
For instance, let us look at a proposal submitted by a videographer aspiring to create a video on the journey of Space Shuttle titled Grand Finale. The project will take shape if there are enough backers to shell out a budget of $2000. The minimum pledged amount can be as low as $1 and the ceiling being the entire project budget.
Rewards offered to the backers are listed in seven tiers based on the amount pledged. Backers who have pledged $1 will get their name listed on the project website while the top tier backers who have pledged $500 and above get a credit on the wall label/catalog entry for the work whenever it is shown, a limited edition 8×10 and 11×14 prints, an invitation to the “Grand Finale” completion party, a moon shot glass and your name on the supporters page for the project on their website.
The proposal page also has a detailed description of the project accompanied by images or a video. A brief bio of the creator(s) is also available for the investors to check the credibility of the person leading the project. You can follow projects that interest you in a single click to get updates and see the progress of the pledges that come in.
Creating a Proposal
Following a project or creating one requires you to create a Kickstarter account. If you are not inclined to sign up through the simple Kickstarter form, you can use your existing Facebook account to do so. Facebook signup happens via OAuth and you do not have to submit login credentials.
Dashboard
After signing up, Kickstarter asks you to submit an email address and off you go to the dashboard. The dashboard design is minimal and shifts your focus to the most important aspects of Kickstarter – backing projects and creating project proposals.
Instead of a Terms & Conditions page full of legal mumbo jumbo and fine print, Kickstarter takes you to a page that clearly explains how it all works. They make it clear before hand that unless your proposal gets funded, you will not be getting any of the pledged and they back their reasoning with a good explanation.
You are also informed that you cannot secure the funding if you are outside USA and this limitation is due the restriction of Amazon Payments, Kickstarter’s payment processor. May be they should consider using PayPal for people from other geographic locations. Also, you cannot create proposals to collect funds for charity or hire web developers.
Creating a Proposal
If you are still game, you are taken to the proposal page where you get to explain in 1500 words each in the What You would like to do and What Rewards would you offer sections. Then you can submit information and links from where people can learn more about you. From the drop down you can select the project category and the amount you plan to raise. Once that is done, the proposal is submitted to the Kickstarter team for review and if everything is legitimate, your proposal will show up in the app for funding.
Final Thoughts
As they say themselves, Kickstarter is indeed a new form of commerce and patronage. Their idea to garner support and funding by offering people with great rewards is very viable. After all, who does not love limited editions, custom made personal gifts, one-of-a-kinds, and fun experiences like parties, screenings, balloon rides etc.?
But Kickstarter’s principle of all or nothing is a bit of concern. If a project does not get the full backing, the entire proposal gets scrapped and the creators will not get any of the already pledged money. While Kickstarter’s argument that under funded projects cannot succeed, they might consider special or niche projects on a case by case basis for partial funding rather than summarily rejecting them.
Getting a proposal fully funded also rests on the unique rewards that come with the support. So, the response would be great if the creators of the project take sometime in creating unique rewards and experiences for the backers. If you are a creative professional looking forward to get that awesome but niche project funded, do not let this opportunity go!