The first step to successful crowdfunding is –Ideation! Crowdfunding is no easy feat and
now that you are planning a campaign to fund your cause, make sure to check out our
FAQs page, How It Works page, and Ebook to learn everything you need to know to have
a successful campaign!
Still have more questions? Reach out to our Crowdfunding Champion for advice and to
sort all of your doubts. We will respond promptly with advice specific to your campaign!
If this is your first campaign, research some similar campaigns to gain inspiration to
write your story and type of perks to offer.
Constantly refer to our Crowdfunding questionnaire if you are looking for help. Remember to
be your own critic as well as your own mentor.
Setting it up
We recommend running your campaign for no less than 30 days. It takes time to engage
your audience and gain insights about your contributors. If needed, you can utilize our
flexible deadline to extend your campaign, but don't let your campaign drag on for too long
As most crowd funders come from within your social media outlets, email lists, friends and
family, make sure to set your goal with your network in mind. Break your campaign down
into pieces based off of the size of your network. For example, if you have a smaller network,
try structuring your campaign into more attainable pieces suitable for your audience.
Invite team members to join you in your mission. With teams, you can divide your goals and
efforts while strengthening each part of the campaign. Create a healthy competition
amongst the teams as an extra mean of motivation.
Setting it up
Get creative with your perks. Think outside of the box and add a personal touch to your
perks. While basic perks such as organization t-shirts are great incentives, rewards that are
more unique can engage your crowd well.
Creating a campaign is just the beginning; running the campaign is all the hard work! It
can be time consuming to maintain a campaign, so make sure you are prepared to spend
a couple of hours every day promoting and tweaking it to perfection. Don't be afraid to
make any big changes to your content if you believe what you currently have posted does
not reflect your campaign progress!
Make sure your contributors get all the information they need to make their decision about
supporting your mission. This includes: the specifics of your crowdfunding goal, what is it
you are trying to accomplish, and where will the funds be used.
Project Description
Your title should be impactful and memorable, portraying the essence of your campaign.
Tell your story in a clear and concise manner while showing your energy and enthusiasm!
Make sure your readers remain engaged throughout the entirety of your story. The average
campaign's total word count is 609; you don't want to make your text excessively long as
people will just begin to lose attention and interest.
The vital information about your campaign should be put across first. People want to know why
this campaign is important to you and what it is that you are crowdfunding for. Don't make
them hunt for this information; serve it on a silver platter.
If you can break down your project and provide a clear budget, contributors will be more
confident about your capability to manage your campaign.
Display professionalism, motivation and creativity throughout your media outlets. Use images
or videos to introduce yourself and your mission - this is a great way to connect with your
contributors.
Media content (such as pictures/videos/infographics) are becoming increasingly
popular as a substitute for large amounts of text. It has been proven that this medium
of content attracts more attention, which in turn increases the likelihood of gaining
support.
Project Description
If you can break down your project and provide a clear budget, contributors will be more
confident about your capability to manage your campaign.
Display professionalism, motivation and creativity throughout your media outlets. Use images
or videos to introduce yourself and your mission - this is a great way to connect with your
contributors.
Media content (such as pictures/videos/infographics) are becoming increasingly
popular as a substitute for large amounts of text. It has been proven that this medium
of content attracts more attention, which in turn increases the likelihood of gaining
support.
Perks
Don't offer too many or too few perks. On average, 8 to 10 perks is enough. Make sure to
offer different denominations, starting from as little as $10. Make your perks interesting so
you can engage your contributors
We can't emphasize enough on creativity of perks. Let them be unique and diverse, spend
some time thinking about the perks you want to offer and make sure they align with your
campaign's story and your organization. For example, if your campaign is about providing
kids educational opportunities, one perk can be having a handwritten thank you card with a
$10 donation.
Perks are not restricted to just goods; you can also offer experiences or services to your
contributors. Offer to spend some time with them, walk them through your organization and
introduce them with people behind the scenes. Make your contributors feel special and part
of your crowdfunding mission
We do allow people to share their Twitter handle for a Twitter shout out. You can customize
what information you require to fulfill the perk. Such perks are easier to fulfill and come at
no cost to you! With a shout out or public mention, you can also attract the social network of
your contributors.
Perks
Perks are not restricted to just goods; you can also offer experiences or services to your
contributors. Offer to spend some time with them, walk them through your organization and
introduce them with people behind the scenes. Make your contributors feel special and part
of your crowdfunding mission
We do allow people to share their Twitter handle for a Twitter shout out. You can customize
what information you require to fulfill the perk. Such perks are easier to fulfill and come at
no cost to you! With a shout out or public mention, you can also attract the social network of
your contributors.
Videos
People want to hear your ideas, one way to
connect with them directly is to star in your
video and have a pitch and ask.
Express yourself with a heartfelt message!
Don't look animated and serious: make your
audience laugh and try to ignite their
feelings.
Keep your video 2 to 3 minutes long, if possible. Just long enough to get your message
across. Using regional languages is helpful if you have a global audience but be sure to add
subtitles for supporters who aren't familiar with that language!
Your video can also be placed within the story. Utilize this functionality if you have more
than one video to share.
If you can make a video professionally, do it by all means. But don't get disheartened if
you cannot. There are a lot of softwares you can use to edit videos taken with phones or
laptops. (Tip – If you are using your phone to record, utilize natural light to shoot your
video)
Try to include a video along with your campaign launch. While you can definitely add more
than one video later on as the campaign progresses, it is crucial to have a video supplement
the text description from the beginning. That is when the video is most supportive as most
people either chose to watch the video OR read the content.
Videos
If you can make a video professionally, do it by all means. But don't get disheartened if
you cannot. There are a lot of softwares you can use to edit videos taken with phones or
laptops. (Tip – If you are using your phone to record, utilize natural light to shoot your
video)
Try to include a video along with your campaign launch. While you can definitely add more
than one video later on as the campaign progresses, it is crucial to have a video supplement
the text description from the beginning. That is when the video is most supportive as most
people either chose to watch the video OR read the content.
Launching the campaign
The first couple of days post launch are crucial. Once your campaign is
off to a great start, all you need to do is maintain the momentum. You
can achieve this by continuing to post on your social media and
updating the campaign progress to your supporters.
We highly recommend informing all your supporters about your launch date and sharing the
campaign with them, so that your campaign has a catalyst to start off well - even if the
initial crowd is just family and friends!
If you plan your campaign in advance, you get the opportunity to build your network.
Whichever social media platform you are comfortable with, be it Facebook, LinkedIn, Twitter,
Instagram or just building on your email lists and blogs, dedicate time to these efforts and
grow your network before the launch.
Treat your crowdfunding campaign as a product launch and create a buzz around it.
Generate excitement around it with an online teaser, webinar or by holding a local event.
Your aim is to spread the word and create anticipation for your campaign.
Don't be afraid to preview and tease your campaign before it officially takes off. Building a
mystery behind a launch attracts attention more often than not.
Social media
Keep a stack of images that you want to share on your social media outlets once your
campaign is live. Make sure these images are different from the ones you have shared on
your campaign.
Not all your Social Media posts should ask people to contribute. Maintain diversity in your
posts but make sure to include a link to your crowdfunding campaign at the end of the
post.
Post regularly! People who know you and have liked your individual or organization
page are interested in what you are doing. They support your mission and want to hear
from you.
We recommend planning your social media posts in advance. Spend some to put together
some ideas and strategy around your social media sharing. Keep a calendar to schedule your
posts and updates.
PR and Promotion
Reach out to build a network of media and bloggers. Write a press release for the campaign
or send a brief to bloggers who will be interested in sharing your story. Remember, it's for a
commendable cause and most people will oblige. Get as much coverage as possible from
various channels.
Focus your PR to specific journalist and publications whose readers you believe will be
interested in your campaign. There are many non-profit and social good publications you
can target. Start early and build connections.
Quality over quantity. That rule applies to journalists as well. Reach out to the journalists that
have replied back and given you attention to build a consistent relationship with to boost
your PR. It is more effective to consistently target 5 journalists rather than mass emailing the
entirety of a publication.
Don't forget to send an image with your PR. Images capture attention and increase the
likelihood of your article to be picked up.
Creativity
Let your creativity flow! Let each element of your campaign and everything associated
with it be imaginative and engaging.
It is a tough job to keep people engaged throughout your campaign but nonetheless an
important one. Try to stay motivated even if progress slow down and you have patchy
contributions coming in. Maintain communication with your contributors and target
audience at this time.
Come up with innovative ideas to maintain engagement. You can post a thank you post on
social media each day tagging a contributor or tweeting to them. Keep adding videos to
your campaign as updates.
Keep adding Team Members. You can phase out adding team members at different stages
of your campaign to make sure your campaign doesn't lose momentum at any point of
time.
Post Campaigns
Perks-Delivery
Be sure to prepare your perks before the campaign begins so that you can send them out on
time. Its imperative that you honor the commitment you made to your contributors to build
up their trust and loyalty. Don't forget x% of contributors are repeat contributors; they will
are the ones who will support your next campaign.
Incase you cannot fulfill the perks on time, reach out to your contributors and acknowledge
the delay. Communication is key. Anytime that you lose contact with your contributors,
especially over a delay, then you will lose supporters and brand loyalty.
Stay Connected with your supporters
You can get the emails of your contributors from your campaign dashboard,
make sure you use the details to stay connected with them about your
project and organization even after your campaign is over.
These are the people who believe in your cause and will be interested in supporting
you for life. Build the relationship.
Keep your supporters updated at least weekly with your campaign's progress and what you
can do so far with the funds received.
Use your updates to get your supporters to bring in people from their own networks to.
Post Campaigns
Stay Connected with your supporters
You can get the emails of your contributors from your campaign dashboard,
make sure you use the details to stay connected with them about your
project and organization even after your campaign is over.
These are the people who believe in your cause and will be interested in supporting
you for life. Build the relationship.
Keep your supporters updated at least weekly with your campaign's progress and what you
can do so far with the funds received.
Use your updates to get your supporters to bring in people from their own networks to.
