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on May 12
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #16This concludes our Kickstarter project
Post CommentHappy Saturday Everyone!
I’m very excited to announce that this Kickstarter project, as I defined it, is complete! About two weeks ago the e-book appeared in all the online book stores (Amazon, iBooks, ect.) and yesterday I put the finishing touches on the case studies.
Those of you who backed at the $25 level or higher will be receiving a link to them very soon. I think they are even better than I originally envisioned. They are short, to the point, and give you actionable information that you can use to run a the best campaign possible. So check your mail!
Looking forward
While this may be the end of this Kickstarter project, it is not the end of A Kickstarter’s Guide. I’ve received a lot of great feed back and it appears the book is really starting to help. I’ve learned so much during this process that I’m already planning the 2nd edition of the guide. I also have more interviews lined up as well as a new framework for Kickstarter that I’m finding to be very useful when helping explain how Kickstarter works.
To Free or Not to Free (continued)
A couple of months ago a website offered to publish the book and pay me royalties for it. I wasn’t sure if it was the right move because I wanted to release the book for free. You encouraged me to stick with my artistic vision and do the project as I planned. So, I turned down the offer and released it for free. It has been going well but recently I have reconsidered my decision not to charge for the book.
Over the past few months, based on various conversations, I have come to the conclusion that if I want people to read it and value the information then I should charge something for it. It doesn’t need to be a lot but enough that people will pay attention to it. This will also help me continue to develop the new material.
When I think about all the free content that is out there now it’s a bit overwhelming. Being completely honest most of the free material that I download I almost never read. For example, in 2006 someone sent me Seth Godin’s free e-book Idea Virus. It wasn’t until 2010 when I bought the book that I actually read it.
My plan is to release a majority of the material for free on the blog. That way people can get the information for free and if they want the convenience of it being compiled and formatted they will have to pay. I think that’s a fair trade-off.
Could you do me a HUGE favor?
Now that the book is out I was wondering if you could review it on Amazon.com. There are several other books about Kickstarter and one way to stand out is to have more reviews. You can be completely honest. If you think the is only 2 or 3 stars than you should rate it so. I won’t be mad. :)
Thank you SO much for all your support and encouragement. More coming soon!
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on April 7
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #15What did you think of A Kickstarter's Guide?
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on February 8
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #2A quick note to the backers
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on February 8
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #20Canceling StreetXSW
Post CommentI know it's only been a week since last update, but I wanted to let all of you know that I’ve decided to cancel my latest Kickstarter campaign. Despite a strong reception I realize very quickly that the project would not have enough momentum to go all the way. I also realize I need to take the project further along before launching.
Obviously this is a bit this disappointing for me but I’ve learned a lot process. If you’re interested in reading about why I think the project failed, check out my post Studying Failure. If you’re interested in learning more about where StreetXSW is going, please check out www.StreetXSW.com.
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on February 8
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #1End of the campaign but not StreetXSW
Post CommentI wanted to offer an explanation as to why I decided to cancel the campaign for StreetXSW. Despite a strong response, and getting featured by the Kickstarter staff, I realized very soon that the project was not doing what I had hoped. People loved the video and concept but where not clear on what exactly the campaign was for. Some people were also reacting negatively to the rewards.
I could try to address these issues by adding more rewards, modifying the video or the project description but I didn’t feel that would correct the underlying problem of the campaign. I was trying to use Kickstarter to help me finish a project that still needed a lot of work.
Ideally I should have launched a few months ago in order to get the project off the ground or I could have launched at the end to help finish the project. Launching in the middle created confusion and the project failed to get the traction it needed. For a more detailed analysis of why I think this project won’t work check out my Studying Failure post.
StreetXSW is not dead
Through this experience I realized that I have to take the project a lot further before launching again on Kickstarter. So I will continue to work on this on my own and relaunch sometime in the summer. I plan to go to SXSW, shoot the festival and create something very special from the images I capture.
Obviously this is a bit disappointing but I’m very motivated to do this project and make it the best I possibly can. If you would like more information about the project or to follow along, please check out www.streetxsw.com.
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on February 8
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #14Studying failure
Post CommentI’m updating again to let you know that I have decided to cancel my campaign for StreetXSW. After spending some time analyzing what went wrong, I thought it would be interesting for you to hear why I think the project failed.
Despite a strong response I realized very quickly that the project was not going as I had hoped. It wasn’t attracting enough backers and I was getting some negative feedback about the rewards. I could make some adjustments to the rewards or the project description but I feel like this would not fix the underling issue of not having a prototype.
What I learned
Generally speaking project creators on Kickstarter are trying to do one of two things. Get funding for an idea they would like to do, or get funding to help complete a project they have been working on. It turns out that knowing what kind of project you are working on is very important because they operate in different ways.
A Kickstarter campaign that is raising funds to start an idea should set a lower goal ($10,000 or less) and probably will not get over funded. A campaign that is trying to finish an idea can set higher goals and has a better chance of getting over funded.
An easier way to think about the difference is by asking “does it have a prototype.” If you are starting an idea you are asking your backers to help build the prototype. If you are finishing an idea you have a prototype and you are asking backers to help bring it to market. This doesn’t just apply to design products but also to artistic projects. For example a movie that needs funding to be completed is a project with a prototype.
There are of course exceptions to the rule. If you have a “fan base” and proven track record, than a campaign to build a prototype can have a higher goal and might get over funded.
Where I went wrong
The mistake I made was not knowing which type of project I was launching. I intended to launch a campaign to help finish my idea but did not have a prototype. The result is that I ended up in the middle of the two types of projects and that is what people were responding to.
I am not giving up on the project. I think it’s a great idea and based on the feedback I got, other people think so too. I will just have to take the project further, and build a prototype before I attempt a relaunch.
Taking my own advice
This experience was interesting because I talk about having a prototype in A Kickstarter’s Guide. Maybe I should have read my own book before launching! However, when writing the book I’m not sure I realized just how important the prototype is. It just goes to show that even a two time Kickstarter such as myself doesn’t always get it right.
The good news is that I have a lot of new material that will make the case studies even better. I’ve already started outlining what I will write about. Hopefully I will have them in your hands sooner than I thought.
In closing I want to leave you with my summary of A Kickstarter’s Guide which pretty much says it all.
Great Kickstarter projects are successful because they connect and resonate with a specific audience. They use compelling storytelling combined with interesting or wacky ideas to attract backers. They are authentic while effectively communicating goals, passion, credibility and purpose. The more time spent thinking about these elements BEFORE the project is launched the easier the campaign becomes.
If you want to do a Kickstarter project because you think the Internet will find and love your project, stop right now. The Internet does not care about you. However, if you can reach out to the right people, in the right way, before time runs out, you just might get lucky.
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on February 3
Nelson de Witt
commented on a projectThanks Efrain!
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on February 1
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #13Idea and story, the Kickstarter building blocks
Post CommentIn A Kickstarter’s Guide I argue that the two fundamental building blocks to any Kickstarter project are your idea and your story. Doing those to the best of your ability increases the chances of your project being successfully funded.
Since I wrote the book, I decided to take my own advice and create a project that had both elements. For the past several months I’ve been working on my new project called StreetXSW.
It is a photojournalism project that looks at how, in our over-connected world, our desire to stay connected can sometimes hurt our experience of life.
I spent a lot of time thinking about the idea this project represented and also the best way to tell the story of this project. Creating something that is clear, concise and emotionally compelling is extremely difficult. But I’m proud to say this project is some of the best work that I’ve ever done.
I hope that you will check it out and help spread the word. As with any Kickstarter project it only works if people share and talk about the project.
If you share the project please use the short link as it will help me track the progress of the campaign.
What about those case studies?
I know I still owe some of you case studies. Don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten. Since there was a hard deadline for StreetXSW I had to focus all my attention on it. I think I needed to take a step back from the Kickstarter’s Guide anyway. I spent almost two months working on it non-stop.
My plan is to resume work on the case studies as soon as the SXSW festival wraps up. I’m hoping to have them done by early April. I think they will be even more useful because I will have be drawing on my experiences from yet another campaign.
I also need to publish the book and get it onto online book stores. Things got so busy that I just didn’t have time to dedicate to publishing.
As always thanks for your support,
Nelson -
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on February 1
Nelson de Witt
Posted project update #19How do you make a living?
Post CommentSince I left my job five years ago this has been one of the toughest questions for me to answer. Most of my previous projects failed to get traction or did not go as planned. That is until I found Kickstarter.
Identifying Nelson was the first time that any of my projects really caught on. It was thanks to your support that we hit our goal and were able to start our film.
My experience with this project triggered something in my head. It was as if everything I had been learning and experimenting with finally clicked. I understood that Kickstarter was a powerful platform which could help my projects achieve a level of success that I had, previously, not been able to.
However, before I was going to launch a big project on the site I wanted to learn as much as I could about the way it worked. Over the summer I wrote a guide to Kickstarter. I studied the very best projects, interviewed the people behind them and recounted everything that I learned. The e-book has gotten some great feedback and helped other people get their projects successfully funded.
After the book was finished I decided to take everything that I learned about Kickstarter, entrepreneurship, marketing, film making, and storytelling, and combine them into a project that would not only push me creatively but also make financial sense. That project is called StreetXSW.
It is a photojournalism project that looks at how, in our over-connected world, our desire to stay connected can sometimes hurt our experience of life.
In many ways I see this project as the culmination of everything that I’ve learned over the past couple years. I’ve put everything I have into making this project meaningful and relevant. I have to say I think it’s some of the best work I’ve ever done.
Once again I am asking for your help. While I understand not all of you will be interested in being part of StreetXSW project I hope that you will share it with your networks. Kickstarter projects are only successful if people share the project with others.
Check it out and let me know what you think. When you do share please try to use the link below as it will help me track the progress of the campaign.
A Special Thanks
I just want to take a second to thank John for everything that he has done. I know that sometimes the enormity of my story overshadows the work he has done in telling it.
Besides working together on Identifying Nelson John has helped me with my writing, storytelling and video production. Our collaboration has been one of the most rewarding things to come out of this whole process.
Looking Forward
I say this a lot, but it’s true, storytelling is hard! John and I are still plugging away with Identifying Nelson/Buscando A Roberto. We have the opening scene, which you saw, and the ending in a very good place. Now we are trying to flesh out the middle and bring everything together. We look forward to releasing the first third of the movie in the coming months.
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on February 1
Nelson de Witt launched a project
StreetXSW: Capturing the moments you missed (Canceled) by Nelson de Witt
A photojournalism project exploring how our desire to be connected can sometimes hurt our experience of life.
Funding Canceled (02/08/2012)
Nelson de Witt
Boston, MA
Separated from my family during El Salvador's civil war, by death and adoption, I was reunited with them when I was 16. A third time Kickstarter, I work to share my family's story and to do projects that are meaningful, relevant and push me creatively.
