When I was setting up my Kickstarter campaign, I worried a lot about rewards. I googled it a lot and I remember having many discussions with my collaborator aka boyfriend about rewards. So I thought it’d be helpful to post about this. As conscious artists & creators, what we are creating does not exactly exist in physical rewards. Does a t-shirt, a mug, or a coupon really compare to the community and elevated levels of consciousness and awareness you create in your project? I hope not.
Your project’s vision is so compelling and community-oriented that it in and of itself is the reward.
Of course, psychologically, people do act based on incentives. However, when people are given external rewards for things they initially just did out of the joy of their heart, they actually stop liking it (if you’re a nerd, google “intrinsic motivation” or “intrinsic reward”). So yes you need rewards if you are trying to persuade people on the fence or who don’t care too much about your project. But if your project resonates with people and in and of itself is valuable for people, rewards aren’t even necessary. Rewards are simply extra icing on the cake. Not necessary, but delectable. So do not worry about your rewards excessively; it is the project that really matters. Is your vision that matters. It is your vision that will draw people in.
if you still are interested in the rewards we used, click the photo to the right
I mean, I truly believe the rewards didn’t matter much but you can download them to the right and edit the template for your campaign if you’d like:)
and more importantly learn to create and communicate a vision people will support with my step-by-step guide on how we raised $18K
To read my beastly step-by-step guide explaining how we crowdfunded $18K with no following or fanbase, click to view this awesomely detailed post I wrote 🙂
a little backstory
It was a chilly January 2018 day in the current dimension when 30-year-old unnecessarily educated Justina, queer artist child of black Panamanian immigrants, learned she had three months until her cushy job would let her go. Stunned that her comfortable safety net had broken, she stared at the email for 60 seconds before she resumed binge-watching Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee. Two weeks later, she had a nervous break down. BUT. Finally, she will play. She will create. And hopefully never work again. Oh, and now she has a journal. More on her/me here.
my money journal: crowdfunding edition
This, my money journal, is a reflection on my successes & failures to make money doing what I actually love. I want to share it with you cuz… I bet you’re on this journey too. In the first series of my money journal, I’m sharing my first big success as an artist. At the end of 2016, I was listening to my boyfriend’s song Black Man in America when a vision for a dance film struck me. Five Black men seated at a white table with guns. Don’t worry. It is nuanced. By January 2017, I was storyboarding. By June, my boyfriend was on board, we determined we needed $16,000 to bring it to life, and we launched our crowdfunding campaign. With no fan base and no real fundraising experience. On August 6th, we filmed. I was freaking out. I had opened a credit card just for this project, was $4,000 in debt and owed our cast and crew $7,000 more. I was all in. By August 20th, 400 backers had given a total of $18,000 for Black Man in America to come to life, exceeding our goal. In this crowdfunding series of my money journal, I’m going to share how we did it, because – imagine what you could do with $5K ,$10K, $20K to bring your visions to life. It’s our tiiiiiiiiime. (Shine bright, shine far…)
