Successful crowdfunding tips for authors
September 18, 2013
I mentioned earlier my interest in the trend of indie authors resorting to crowdfunding for their writing projects. In fact, I’m trying it myself and will report back with findings. There are some obvious attractions of crowdfunding for authors:
- It’s an extra source of promotion about your work, which costs nothing to setup. (Some work is required, but relatively little compared with, say, writing a novel!)
- It’s a way of verifying interest in a project before spending all the time completing it.
- If funding is achieved, it’s better than a literary advance – the amount is guaranteed, and you can fund yourself through the initial writing process.
- Funding rewards usually involve giving donors a copy of your book – so you will automatically have books in the hands of several readers the day it is published.
I call it front-loaded promotion.
Point 1 alone makes it a “no-brainer”, however the “if” in point 3 is a mighty big word. Approximately 60% of campaigns fail to meet their funding targets.
I’ve found some information on my way to launching my own campaign that might be useful to others going the same route. Here’s what I’ve discovered about how to maximize your chances of a successful campaign:
Which crowdfunding site to use
There are a few to choose from: kickstarter.com, indiegogo.com, rockethub.com, pozible.com, fundit.ie. Kickstarter is the one to choose. It’s the most popular, attracting most visitors, and has a better success rate for funding publishing projects than the next most popular (indiegogo). There are also more hashtags and retweeters available for kickstarter projects. However only US/UK residents can currently receive funds from Kickstarter. Since that excludes me, I went with the next most popular – indiegogo – which can make payments to anyone via a PayPal account.
Which project to launch
This is the question. You might have a clear idea what you want funded, but will funders find it appealing? Think of it as a product you are selling – the same rules apply. Authors are at a disadvantage here, especially ones without a track record. How will funders know what the book will be like? Do you know what is about yet – can you explain it to them simply? How do they even know you can write? Put up some samples, or links to previous work to build interest and confidence in your credentials to write. For graphic novels, illustrations are great way to instantly see what the story and style will be like.
If you have a number of possible projects in mind, pick the most suitable for crowdfunding. Not all publishing projects are easy to sell – first times books from unknown authors especially so. If you have other, similar books, or others in the series, consider pitching the next in the series.
Most of all, it has to be something people can relate to, and get enthused about. Try to engage people’s emotions. Fun is great way of attracting interest. Many of the successful publishing projects are quirky, humorous tales, or personal stories that special interest groups can immediately relate to.
In many ways, it is like pitching to an agent or publisher. You should apply the same level of thought and rigor. The big differences are pitching in multimedia and you can offer bribes (er, I mean “rewards”) for acceptance*. More on these later.
(* Although I have heard of some agents receiving sweets in the mail with manuscript submissions)
How much funding to ask for
You set a funding target. You have a choice on some crowdfunding sites of whether to accept any money that is contributed, or to only receive funding if the target is reached. The contribution amount can be determined by the donor, but to attract contributions you set up “rewards” or “perks” that you deliver to the donor. If being able to deliver the rewards at the agreed time is dependent on hitting the funding target, you should consider the latter option.
Most of the writing projects are in $1000 – $10000 target range. Of course, the lower you look for, the more likely you are to successfully hit the funding target, but don’t pick a target so low it adversely affects your own ability to deliver on the rewards. Most publishing projects aim for the middle of that range (which is still fairly attractive in comparison with the industry norm royalty advances.)
Best rewards to offer
So you’ve got a project that interests funders – now to really hook them. Rewards should also engage funders emotionally. We’re more likely to open our wallets for something that will make us feel positive, i.e special. Sure, you can offer an ebook or a printed copy of the final book as a “reward”, but it’s not really, is it? Anyone can buy a book once it’s published. That doesn’t make an advance-funder feel special. A reward implies something that the funder receives especially for jumping on-board early and backing the project. Look around at most publishing projects and you’ll see that signed copies and mentions in the credits are the lower-end rewards most funders expect to see, but that’s only the start.
The higher the reward, the more special (approaching unique) it needs to be. Such rewards might cost you more in terms of time and/or money to deliver. Offer something unique to your proposition – something only your project can. Something that will make a funder think “ooh, I have to have that.” I my case – a book about genetics – I came across DNA art and figured I could print that as part of the jacket cover as a reward. Rewards unique to your project can become a selling hook – something intriguing to fit in a tweet or a press release headline. You’ll need to get creative as the stakes rise. Get your thinking cap on!
My final point on rewards is that scarcity also creates interest. Funders are more likely to buy rewards that not everyone can have. Consider limiting the amount of even one or two of the lower level rewards – these are more likely sell out first and so create a scarcity buzz.
How to present the project
This is the important bit: what the potential funder sees on the campaign page. You only get one chance to make a first impression. Take the time to get it right before launch.
1. The Proposition
Quite simply, tell the funder:
- Who you are
- What you will be doing
- Why you are doing it
- What you need to do it
- What they will get out of it
- When they will get it
2. Media
A lot of words explaining the campaign proposition are probably not going to entice most viewers. Images and Videos are the best way to attract that first attention, even though you do need to cover all the details in a text description too. Writers especially need to ensure they include a good textual pitch also, to prove they are good writers!
Video is the best visual hook. Whether to do a campaign video or just images is up to you. Campaigns with video usually attract more attention. It is also a good way to present yourself and let the funders get to know you, what you’re like, whether you seem trustworthy, passionate, etc. Remember that most communication is visual, not verbal. If you’re not comfortable with video of yourself or think you’re not suitable to sell your own projects then don’t sabotage your own pitch! Get a friend to do a funny pitch, or just build a montage of images, do a voiceover, sketch some cartoons, whatever you think is best – just keep it entertaining.
3. Be open about the risks
Tell the viewer what will happen is the funding isn’t met. Tell them what the risks and challenges are in delivering the rewards even if funding is met. Be open and honest about this. Remember, you are asking a stranger for money up-front, with only a promise to deliver on it. They need to know what the chances are you won’t deliver. Be honest in how you present the project and the risks and they are more likely to trust you and contribute money.
4. A team of one
Having a team on-board the project is an advantage because funders will see less risk if there’s many people behind the delivery. Put a small bio and picture of each team member on the campaign page so people can relate to the team members.
Standalone Indie authors are definitely at a disadvantage here. In most cases, only the one author can deliver on the promised book, so the perceived risks of the project not being delivered are higher. It’s hard to avoid that fact, unless you can include an illustrator or the book can be co-authored.
Getting the word out
So once you have your campaign page all ready and are about to hit the launch button – don’t. If you have experience of self-publishing a book you will know that nothing will happen. You need to work pro-actively to sell your crowdfunded project as if (and harder) than you would promote to sell your book. It’s beyond the scope of this post to cover it, but engage the usual channels – tell friends and family, use social media, bloggers, etc. If you have a list of readers for your previous work, you are at an advantage over first-time writers. Many fan readers will pay up-front to get a sequel ASAP.
Finally, remember that you have a limited time from campaign launch to meet the funding target, so make sure all your marketing ducks are in a row, ready to go, before you hit that launch button.
Here are some more links with tips to help you out:
Dollar for dollar raised, Kickstarter dominates Indiegogo SIX times over.
How to Use Kickstarter to fund your publishing project.
Hacking Kickstarter: How to Raise $100,000 in 10 Days
In spite of all this, don’t expect success. Ironically, even the Indie Publishing Guide couldn’t fund itself on Kickstarter.
My new motto is plan for the best, prepare for the worst: that way, whatever the outcome, you’ll never be disappointed.
Good Luck!
(Oh, and please drop a few coppers into my crowdfunding page – go on, you know you want to prove me wrong!)
Entry Filed under: Indie-Publishing