Crowdfunding is an essential skill for community groups, artists, creative professionals and for anyone who wants to make things happen. I have learned how to run a great crowdfunding campaign in 2 key ways – by paying attention to what other people do (badly, and well!) and by trying things out myself.
If you are crowdfunding for the first time, it can feel pretty stressful – there are lots of things to think about before you launch. However, it doesn’t need to be this way. Here’s a set of resources I have made to help make your life a little easier! You can work through them step-by-step to get prepared for your own successful crowdfunding campaign.
#1: What is crowdfunding?
If you are new to crowdfunding, then this introduction will give you an easy to understand overview of the basics. Importantly, it also explains the different types of crowdfunding platforms you can use and how matched crowdfunding works.
– What is crowdfunding? (slides) – Rachel Dobbs
#2: Planning a crowdfunding campaign
Firstly, this guide gives you a very quick overview to the different steps involved in planning your own crowdfunding campaign. Then there are some prompts to get you started thinking about who else wants you project to happen and how they might benefit from it.
– Planning a crowdfunding campaign (slides) – Rachel Dobbs
#3: Understanding margins in crowdfunding
If you want to use your crowdfunding campaign as a way to raise money, then you’re going to need to pay close attention to margins (aka the profit made on each of your pledges or rewards). This guide explains why thinking about margins is important to help you decide on the price of the rewards you offer.
– Understanding margins in crowdfunding (slides) – Rachel Dobbs
#4: Designing crowdfunding campaign rewards
Many people get a bit stuck when designing rewards for their crowdfunding projects. This guide discusses the different qualities your rewards should have – from how they involve backers in your project, to what backers might find valuable.
– Designing crowdfunding rewards (slides) – Rachel Dobbs
#5: Building your crowd
Building your crowd is probably the most important activity you’ll do when you are planning your crowdfunding campaign. However, people sometimes leave this until after they have launched their campaign, which is a big mistake! This guide helps you to think about who is already in ‘your crowd’, and then how to extend this to help you be more successful in raising the money you need to make your projects happen.
– Building your crowd (slides) – Rachel Dobbs
If you find these resources useful, let me know via Instagram – @RachelDobbs1. All of the resources I produce are available to download for FREE, but if you’d like to contribute to my future projects, say thank you or just do something nice for a fellow creative practitioner, feel free to donate by clicking the button below…