crowdfunding campaign tools and resources
DESCRIPTION
Free or inexpensive tools to make your Kickstarter, Indiegogo or any other crowdfunding campaign efficient and more predictable. The slides were prepared for my presentation in Denver in June, 2013.TRANSCRIPT
Campaign ToolsCampaign Tools
Online Course “Money from the Crowd – Your Guide to Social Fundraising”
Elena Mikhaylovawww.CrowdfundProductions.com
Tools will not do the job for you
But they will help you save time and money
And make your campaign more efficient
Campaign StagesCampaign Stages
Planning
Preparation
Execution
Post Campaign
PlanningPlanning
What – your productWhen – season, the length of the campaignWho – your target groupsHow – your promotional channels
Your team, budget, organizational structure
Planning toolsPlanning tools
Choose your crowdfunding platform
Directories of crowdfunding sites:
• www.Crowdsourcing.org
• www.CrowdsUnite.com
• www.CrowdfundInsider.com
• www.Coolintl.com/comprehensive-directory-of-crowdfunding-platforms
• www.Opennessandtransparency.net/Crowd_Funding
• www.Crowdcrux.com has several lists for niche platforms
Planning toolsPlanning tools
Research similar projects
• Projects posted on CF portal
• www.Kicktraq.com – Analytics
• www.KickbackMachine.com – Kickstarter successful and unsuccessful projects: compare, filter by categories and goals
• www.ThingsWeStart.com (cancelled in March, 2013) – projects by location and category
Planning toolsPlanning tools
Places to ask questions
• LinkedIn groups – the largest one, Crowdsourcing and Crowdfunding, has almost 20,000 members
• www.CrowdfundingForum.com
• www.KickstarterForum.com
• Meetup Groups
Planning ToolsPlanning Tools
Places to read about crowdfunding
• Google Alerts
• www.Crowdsourcing.org
• www.Crowdcrux.com
• www.CrowdfundInsider.com
• www.theCrowdCafe.com
PreparationPreparation
Build your crowd
Find media
Create Content
Decide on the Perks
Preparation toolsPreparation toolsBuild your online crowd
• www.Klout.com to find influencers
• www.SocialBro.com to find people on Twitter by keywords, locations, # of followers
• Google Analytics, YouTube Analytics, Facebook Insights to understand your connections
• Newsletter signup tool for Facebook fan pages
• www.SocialMention.com, www.Commun.it, www.Twellow.com, www.Topsy.com
Preparation toolsPreparation toolsCreate your media plan• Google search “top **** blogs, websites,
forums” – international/national/local
• www.Technorati.com – blog directories by categories
• www.USNPL.com – directory of newspapers, TV and radio stations by cities/states
• www.Alexa.com website traffic rating, demographics of the audience
Preparation toolsPreparation tools
Have your content ready PRIOR to launch on crowdfunding portal
• Keyword search tool on Google Adwords
• www.Fiverr.com -design, writing, online research
• Stock Photos - iStockPhoto, Shutterstock, 123RF, BigStock, Getty Images
• www.Lunapic.com for picture editing
• WindowsMovieMaker,
www.OneTrueMedia.com for video editing
Preparation toolsPreparation toolsCreate your online HUB
Wordpress:
• Connect with all your social accounts
• Google Analytics
• NewStatPress widget
• Fundraising widgets
Preparation toolsPreparation toolsE-mail campaign
• www.Rapportive.com for Gmail – rich profiles and latest tweets of your connections
• E-mail tracking – SpyPig, WhoReadMe or Yesware for Gmail
• Bulk e-mail campaigns - Constant Contact, MailChimp, i-Contact, Campaigner, AWeber: free webinars, social media integration, analytical tools, A/B test, tracking tools, segmentation
Preparation toolsPreparation tools
Test the waters
• Kickstarter pre-launch
• www.Prefundia.com – post your pre-launch project, monitor interest level for your perks
If you have a significant number of foreign connections, try to use translators’ networks for free or almost free translation of your content:
www.lingotek.com or www.akuna.com
ExecutionExecution
Monitoring
Promotion
Engagement
Execution toolsExecution tools
Monitoring:
• Social networks – Facebook Insights, YouTube Analytics, SocialMention, Commun.it, Klout
• Media, blogs – Google Alerts
• E-mail – campaign providers
• Website traffic – Google Analytics, onsite widgets
• On Page Campaign Link – www.Bitly.com
• Mapping your connections – www.Batchgeo.com
Execution toolsExecution tools
Engagement
• www.Hootsuite.com to schedule your posts on Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus, Linkedin, Foursquare or Wordpress
• www.Postlink.com to schedule your messages or videos and monitor your reputation across 14 social media
• www.BoomerangGmail.com to schedule e-mail blasts, reminders and respond tracking
Execution toolsExecution tools
MediaTo Get in Google News:• Fiverr.com – press release distribution
• PRLog – free press release distribution
• www.Crowdsourcing.org
Execution toolsExecution tools
@KickstarterNews@KickstartAdvice@TeamCrowdfund@CrowdReporter@OccupyCrowdfund@KSStandard@JustKickstarted
@CrowdfundingEye@CrowdfundingDjo@Ayudos@BestKickstarter@CrowdfundingPro@CrowdfundBuzz
Twitter accounts to promote your campaign
Find more accounts in “30 people to promote your Kickstarter or Indiegogo campaign on Twitter” post on
www.CrowdCrux.com
Execution toolsExecution tools
Communicate with your connections through live Q and A sessions and
progress reports• Google Hangouts• www.UStream.com • www.LiveStream.com
Post campaignPost campaign
Analysis
Communicationswith backers and media
Perks fulfillment
Pre-orders, business?
Post campaignPost campaign
Perks fulfillment• www.BackerKit.com – from $99 – handle
all shipments, incl. international
• www.Teelaunch.com – print and ship T-shirts
Post campaignPost campaign
Pre-orders
• www.Outgrow.me
• www.TinyLightBulbs.com
• www.Swish.com
Additional ResourcesAdditional Resources
IndieGoGo blog:
“Tool Time: E-Sources for
Crowdfunding Campaigners”
Questions?Questions?
Online Course “Money from the Crowd Online Course “Money from the Crowd – Your Guide to Social Fundraising”– Your Guide to Social Fundraising”
• Four Hours of Recorded Information • Optional Homework • One Hour Online Group Consultation (Max. 10 people
per group) • Downloadable Action Plan • $25 Discount on a Personal Readiness Assessment or
Strategic Planning Consultation Price: $49 without Homework $65 including Homework
Register on www.CrowdfundProductions.com