Has Anyone Here Done Any Crowdfunding?

I haven't done any crowdfunding campaigns myself...but I'm definitely interested in the industry, vis a vis publishing especially, as a web developer.

It's a hard slog, there is no doubt about it. I think when you do a campaign you have to really be ready for it: you can't let life derail you! It's got to be a daily pursuit for the full life of your campaign, I think.

This is also another reason I might say your goal is too low: If you have to work very hard to earn the crowdfunded $, and then also have to produce the work of art, I'm not sure $3500 takes all the expenses into account.

If I were you I would jump right back on that social media train. And you've got to think pretty far outside the box to make this a success, too. Extreme hard work and marketing is mandatory, I think.

You might try buying some traffic to the page, if you can afford it (takes money to make money!) One idea that might be outside what you've thought of so far: Reddit exposure and Reddit advertising. You've got to get where the comic/zombie/apocalypse fans are, and try to reach them with every trick up your sleeve.

Best of luck Ace!

For whatever it is worth, I saw a site with tips for doing kick-starter stuff some time ago. I'll try to find the link if I can dig it up, although I don't have it handy right now. However, two points I do remember. . . .

(1) Nothing is popular like popularity! It was suggested that you get a whole bunch of your friends and family to get the process started. That way it gives the impression that everybody else thinks the idea is a winner, which makes it easier for others to join in on the funding.

(2) People will fund somebody that they like, so you are kind of selling people on you as much as selling them on your project.

My small press publisher of my webcomic Kickstarter'd the omnibus edition, and it was wildly successful--so let me say right now, DO NOT GET CARRIED AWAY. They would have added all kinds of bells and whistles in the heat of the moment, and I kept refusing on the grounds that we'd have to deliver that and it was going to be hard enough already.

Kickstarter euphoria and scope creep is a real problem if you do well.

Here are some sites that might be helpful when trying to set up crowd funding. . . .

http://www.kicktraq.com/

http://sidekick.epfl.ch/

Ace Masters said:

Warp9, RedWombat,

Thanks for the responses.

I already have a bunch of friends and family posting (or saying they have or will . . . never can be truly sure).

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If I remember right, the idea was to get started off with a significant portion of the total goal, I believe that they suggested trying to get to about 20 or 30 percent of your goal. That really gives people the impression that your project is "on the move," and a "winner." Of course getting that much initial money is easier said than done.

Ace Masters said:

I don't have too much of a problem selling myself, I do it all the time. However, it is a contradiction for me as my personal credo is that it is about the work, not the author.

To me, the work I produce it more important than me.

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I would personally hope that people could focus on the work rather then the producer, although I am also aware that some people get caught up on irrelevant issues. It was basically a matter just passing along the thought that apparently a lot of people are more interested in funding a person rather than the particular work. Which, though unfortunate, may be an issue if you want to get the most funding possible.

Again though, I can certainly resonate with the idea of keeping the focus on the work itself.

On that note, I'd like to see your kickstarter site do a bit more to really communicate your vision and your passion for your comic.

interesting, thanks for the tips. I'm doing a kickstarter campaign at the moment, and it's pretty exhausting. but hey, sleeping is overrated anyway