Almost every day we are asked what is the best way to run a crowdfunding campaign, or how to resurrect a failing one. Truth is there is no secret sauce or universally successful approach to running a crowdfunding campaign but there are some good principles that are found in most successful campaigns that you would do well to follow .  Starting today we will begin to publish a series of blogs called “Components of a Good Campaign”. Each will look at a key aspects of running a good crowdfunding campaign.

Whilst none of these in isolation will guarantee success  they will be good for your campaign and we recommend that  you follow them.

1. Run Your Own Campaign
Don’t let anyone else run your campaign. You will find that there are people who will offer to run your campaign for you – generally marketeers who will pretend that a professionally run marketing campaign is the solution to a successful crowdfunding campaign. Don’t be fooled. Of course marketing your campaign effectively, choosing channels and having the right messaging and copy are certainly key, and a good marketing consultant can help you put that together.

But you must have very direct management and engagement with your campaign. In crowdfunding one of your strongest assets and most potent currency is authenticity. People on the whole invest in people. If your campaign is run by a third party then inevitably an element of that authenticity is lost. Your ability to respond with transparency, clarity and honesty will be slowed and compromised by the mediation of a third party.

But perhaps the most important reason for not using a third party is that if the campaign is managed thoroughly and properly such a service would simply cost too much!

Crowdfunding is incredibly intensive and demanding. It usually requires the full time commitment of at the least one person and probably more depending on the dynamics and scale of the campaign. A full time professional is expensive and would eat up a good deal of your budget or target funding. So, if you are offered these type of services on the basis of a tiny quote or a small success fee percentage of your target then you calculate just how long you will get of that third parties time. The answer is – not enough. If you are offered 24/7 cover for the duration of the campaign you can guarantee that you are not getting a professional – maybe an intern!
So – be hands on. Ask for help? Most certainly. Employ specialist services where you need them to provide expertise that you don’t have? An emphatic yes.

But, if its your campaign, your project, and your company so lead it yourself.

Watch out for our next post in this series. Why not sign up for our newsletter or follow us on twitter to ensure you dont miss a post.