Crowdfunding Marketing:
10 Tips for Successful Crowdfunding Marketing

Key Points in Brief

• Crowdfunding Marketing encompasses various activities to raise financial resources for a project
• Above all, crowdfunding is more about building a community than selling a product!
• Kickstarter, Indiegogo, GoFundMe, Fundable are the largest crowdfunding platforms worldwide; they have emerged in recent years and achieved incredible results!

We Help You Raise Successful Crowdfunding Funding

Crowdfunding marketing encompasses various activities to secure financial resources for a project by asking a large number of people to pre-purchase your product to meet the project’s financial goals. This approach, which focuses exclusively on online social media and crowdfunding platforms, allows you to collect funds in a very short time.

In the early days of crowdfunding, launching a campaign was itself a novelty. Gaining press coverage was easy. Thus it was also simple to get people interested in a new campaign. The growth of the crowdfunding industry was seen as a blessing: today there are numerous projects, with new ones added daily. However, it’s also a curse: with so many good projects, standing out from the crowd has become very difficult.

What Advantages Does Crowdfunding Offer?

Traditionally, when you wanted to finance a business, you had to present your business plan, market research, prototypes, and then your idea to wealthy individuals, banks, angel investors, and venture capital firms. In contrast, crowdfunding marketing enables you to tap into a broad pool of investors with ease. But there are also other positive aspects of using crowdfunding marketing:

• Investor Audience & Reach: You have access to thousands of ‘investors’ who can easily view and share your crowdfunding campaign on their social media platforms! The best secret weapon for a successful crowdfunding campaign is the social media customer experience – you can share and promote your campaign via social media, email newsletters, and other online marketing strategies! As you communicate project progress, you drive traffic to your website!
• Building Trust: Crowdfunding marketing allows you to present your idea to many people who can help build confidence in your plans while also optimizing them if issues arise. When potential investors begin interacting and asking questions, you quickly see what needs fixing, clarifying, or removing!
• Efficiency: One of the best things about online crowdfunding is centralizing your fundraising activities in one place. By creating a single profile to send to all potential investors, you eliminate the need to follow up individually! You no longer spend time drafting separate letters and emails for each person! As ‘time is money,’ this lets you optimize efforts in one place and free up time to work on your project instead of financing concerns.

Crowdfunding Marketing

Before planning your entire launch around a crowdfunding campaign, you must ensure you have a solid crowdfunding marketing strategy, otherwise your campaign could fail miserably.

Kickstarter, Indiegogo, GoFundMe, Fundable are the largest crowdfunding platforms worldwide; they have emerged in recent years and achieved incredible results! However, crafting a crowdfunding marketing strategy has become much more difficult than it was years ago when these platforms weren’t as popular. Competition is much stronger, and you must be at the top of your game to succeed.

Let’s learn more about why and how you can use crowdfunding marketing effectively to strengthen your business!

Crowdfunding Marketing Strategies

A successful crowdfunding marketing strategy involves many well-thought-out steps. Below are some strategies to follow and consider when building your campaign:

Building Your Audience

First and foremost, crowdfunding is more about building a community than selling a product!

Dreams can certainly be shared and adopted by others. Before investing a lot of time, think about your target audience. Regardless of which product or service you sell, the success of your campaign depends on how well you connect with your audience’s aspirations and goals.

The Qwerkywriter typewriter can be connected to your computer with or without a cable and offers one of the most delightful typing experiences imaginable. Qwerkywriter raised over $130,000 on Kickstarter in 2014.

If you were planning to bring the Qwerkywriter typewriter to market, you’d first ask who would use such a product:

• Writers
• Freelancers
• Students
• And the like

After considering who your target audience will be, start building a community sooner rather than later! The further you are from your campaign launch, the better. People want to support a popular and respected project.

But where do you start? Never underestimate the power of people you already know! Previous customers, family, friends, colleagues, and acquaintances form a strong foundation for your campaign community. People know people, and when your initial following shares on their social media, they can open important new doors for you! Build your network and find ways, through crowdfunding marketing, to connect and expand your first contacts!

Timing: Your Make-Or-Break

Timing is everything in this business. When you put together your crowdfunding marketing strategy, you first need to think about pre-promotion, launch, weekly follow-ups, and the campaign wrap-up.

Pre-Promotion (2–4 Weeks)

• Create a media push! Let everyone know you’re about to launch! A great way to build hype is to host a private event before the launch. For example, Restore Cryotherapy Salt Lake City held an exclusive one-day event where attendees could try their cryotherapy service for free!
• Publish your launch date across all personal social media accounts like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram! Word of mouth is crucial—people need to know when and where they can access your business/product! Set up Facebook ads to collect email sign-ups! Facebook is one of the best platforms to use before you launch. Target your ads to your audience and aim for a healthy number of email sign-ups. This will be invaluable when releasing content later!
• Send press releases to local media outlets! This helps you spread the word about your campaign!
• Run promotions to boost early sales! Restore Cryotherapy, for example, offered a 20% discount on all memberships after opening.

Launch Week

Get the word out and let everyone know your project is live thanks to your polished crowdfunding marketing strategy!

• Announce your launch on all your personal social media accounts like Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Instagram.
• Share videos, live streams, and photos to kick off the hype.
• Provide outstanding customer service. You want people interacting with you to have a great experience and encourage them to share your product and services. That’s a solid crowdfunding marketing strategy.
• Run short-term promotions to boost initial sales. Plan giveaways and involve like-minded businesses to donate gift cards and other products to sweeten the deal.

Follow-Ups & Ongoing Updates

As part of your crowdfunding marketing strategy, send weekly updates on campaign progress, special announcements, new rewards you’ve added, or when a major milestone is reached! It’s also important to publish a weekly update before backers start worrying because they haven’t heard about a campaign they supported. No updates reflect poorly on your project.

• Create updated content! This could be an update on your campaign’s performance, new developments or successes, or a simple thank-you to those who have already backed. Show your human side and connect with your supporters.
• Add limited-time rewards to attract new backers or encourage loyal supporters to pledge again. Use ‘FOMO’ words like ‘limited time only,’ ‘special rewards,’ and ‘exclusive edition.’

Connect with your community and get featured on as many local and online media platforms as possible. If you’re launching an outdoor product to help someone camp, it doesn’t make sense to release it in January when nobody typically camps. No strategy can overcome that. Consider how to use holidays, months, and seasons to promote your products and services, and shape your crowdfunding marketing strategy accordingly.

We Help You Raise Successful Crowdfunding Funding

Project Wrap-Up

The countdown for your project enters its final weeks until your campaign ends on all your social media accounts. Post something new every day that week! Use phrases that create a sense of ‘FOMO’ and words like ‘only three days left to reach the goal’ or ‘just €200 from my goal.’ In addition to a well-planned timeline, think creatively about launching your product or service in a meaningful season!

Thoughtful Content: Your Messaging as Part of the Crowdfunding Marketing Strategy

As with any online marketing, content plays a major role in the success of your crowdfunding marketing strategy. Craft your content based on your audience’s interests, questions, and voice. Create clear, creative, and memorable descriptions, content pieces, newsletters, emails, and captions. One of the best ways to produce high-quality content that helps your crowdfunding marketing concept is to create an engaging blog:

• Provide the latest updates on your project’s progress. People love seeing progress in something they’ve invested in.
• Include product reviews, testimonials, demo videos, and other helpful content to help people understand the quality and benefits of your products/services.
• Create a Q&A post that answers common questions customers might have. Connect with your audience by telling a story or sharing the ‘why’ behind your project launch.
• Give your audience reasons to contribute to your project. Content should answer any questions potential backers may have.
• Guest posts from individuals significant to your audience – well-known influencers are important! By offering your customers useful and meaningful resources, you’ll drive more people to your website and crowdfunding platform.

Video

The video is the cornerstone of your crowdfunding marketing campaign. It can be used across platforms, making it extremely cost-effective and advantageous. Whether you produce your video yourself or work with a professional team, make sure your script explains the following points:

• Who you are: Tell potential backers about yourself and your experience.
• Your product’s story: Describe how you developed your idea, the current status of your product or business, why your product matters to you, and why it will matter to your audience.
• Why you need support: Explain why you are raising funds through crowdfunding and how those funds will be used. Be sure to make a direct ask for support.
• Include an overview of your most compelling rewards, or those you believe will be most attractive to backers.
• Keep short attention spans in mind – your video should be no longer than two to three minutes and should hit your key points quickly.

Here is an example of a well-made crowdfunding marketing video from a project that raised over $90 million:

Social Media: Your Secret Weapon in Crowdfunding Marketing

Social media is a key weapon in your crowdfunding marketing arsenal. When planning a crowdfunding campaign, focus your efforts on the platforms that deliver the greatest success. To choose the right channels, consider:

• On which social platform does your audience interact, share, and communicate?
• Which platform do you feel most comfortable using?
• Which individuals have the greatest influence in your community, and how can you collaborate with them on content?
• We recommend Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest (especially for products), and Twitter. For deeper engagement, explore collaborative platforms like LinkedIn groups.

Even a hundred followers can make a real difference, so the more, the better! Implement these strategies:

Schedules matter! Start social media activities and crowdfunding marketing initiatives months before your campaign launch.

• Connect and communicate with your community. Show genuine gratitude to your fans and followers because it’s all about big wins!
• Write engaging posts that prompt your community to participate. Also, keep your backers updated regularly!
• Create a unique hashtag and use it in all your social media posts. This organizes posts in one place where people can easily find information about your campaign. Encourage supporters to use the hashtag too.
• Set up campaign-specific social media pages. A Facebook page and Instagram account dedicated to your campaign are great places to interact and share updates. Each includes analytics to measure performance.

Boost posts! If you have the marketing budget, increase your reach on Facebook and Instagram by boosting posts. This helps you reach people interested in your campaign. Post-campaign updates, behind-the-scenes glimpses, and success stories – heartwarming and inspiring posts remind your audience why they backed your project.

Rewards: The Motivation

Offer meaningful rewards that people want. To build your audience before your campaign, think about what you can give away. Because of your crowdfunding marketing strategy, those who accept your gift will feel grateful. When it’s time to launch, people will be more inclined to spread the word about a company that gives back and creates a feeling of ‘warmth’! There are many ways to offer rewards and giveaways in your campaigns. Think creatively about promoting your product or service!

Website: Your Online Presence

Before launching your campaign page on a platform, it makes sense to build a website. Until your campaign page goes live, this site should serve as your ‘command center’ for crowdfunding marketing. Landing pages and your website can channel traffic toward specific actions.

With a website for your campaign, you can easily share key information about your company or product! After your campaign ends, you can expand the use of these pages for ongoing marketing. Use the site as the central hub for your brand or product. To learn about effective landing pages, read our article here.

Just like your marketing strategy, those who accept your gifts will feel grateful. When you launch, they’ll be more likely to share your company that gives back and creates warmth!

There are many reward and giveaway ideas for your campaigns. Think creatively about promoting your product or service!

The bag maker KNOMO chose crowdfunding to fund its high-tech #LiveFree backpack. In return for their investment, backers could choose one of the backpack models. The campaign reached its funding goal within two days, but the company accepted funds until the campaign’s end. After hitting their goal, the team asked backers to advise on color options.

Post-launch technological improvements should follow a scientific, data-driven approach similar to marketing. It’s crucial to develop the marketplace in close collaboration with users. Operators must monitor platform behavior and customer responses. For example, if many users fail to complete registration, the operator must identify the root cause and fix it.

The beer brand BrewDog was an early adopter of crowdfunding and crowdfunding marketing strategies, launching its own equity crowdfunding program, Equity For Punks (EFP), in 2009. More than 56,000 backers worldwide receive discounts and perks in return for their investment.

Emails & Newsletters: Your Communication in Crowdfunding Marketing

Email marketing brings a lot of energy to crowdfunding marketing! People love updates on products they’ve purchased!

Effective email marketing can build your content, events, newsletters, promotions, and subscriber list! Email marketing is the most cost-effective communication method for crowdfunding. All you need is an email marketing service like MailChimp, HubSpot, or Autopilot HQ.

Examples of Successful Kickstarter Campaigns: What They Did Right

Let’s look at some examples of very successful projects and the factors that led to their success.

Divinity: Original Sin is a video game set in the fictional universe of Divinity. Larian Studios, its developers, launched a Kickstarter campaign from March 27, 2013, to April 26, 2013, to fund the game they truly wanted to make. They raised $944,282 from 19,541 backers, producing a game that received widespread acclaim.

It gets even more interesting – one year later, the same developers returned to Kickstarter for Divinity: Original Sin 2, raising $2,032,434 from 42,713 backers – more than double the previous pledge amount.

What Made These Campaigns Extraordinary?

Take a closer look at their checklist: these campaigns got everything right. The developers kept backers fully informed about goals, vision, and timelines, providing tons of material, including sneak previews, to spark user interest. A well-edited video featuring the Larian Studios founder showcased early footage, discussed exciting game features, and explored what new features could be added with Kickstarter’s support. A dash of social-media-driven incentives boosted engagement even more.

Two main factors drove even higher funding. First, a unique reward system offered special in-game features for reaching collective pledge milestones. For example, at $800,000, they planned to add new features and backstory for all companions, encouraging social sharing and collective pledging.

Second, they offered a wide variety of reward tiers, spanning dozens of pledge levels up to $10,000. Each tier included a unique mix of tangible and intangible items related to the Divinity game series.

Divinity is a prime example of successful crowdfunding marketing based on community rewards and other incentives.

Conclusion and Summary

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