#BE30DayChallenge Week 3: Offer Great Perks at Reasonable Cost

You need to pull out all the stops and offer great perks, when  running a successful crowdfunding campaign.

In Part 1 of this series, we showed you how to cultivate donors, and in Part 2, how to create a great pitch video. In our third week,  we are shedding some light on how to offer your backers rewards.

The most popular pledge amount is $25, and the average pledge is around $70, per Kickstarter. Small amounts are where it’s at; projects without a reward of $20 or less succeed 28% of the time, while projects with a reward of $20 or less succeed 45% of the time. According to Indiegogo, $100 perks raise the most money and often make up nearly 30% of total funds raised.

Keep in mind that things can turn ugly very fast if you over promise; taking people’s money without delivering the goods–just as one startup, The Coolest Cooler, discovered. The Coolest Cooler is a “smart” cooler with a built-in, waterproof, Bluetooth speakers and a built-in device charger. The 55-quart cooler also has an LED-lit lid, wheels, a built-in blender, utensil storage, and other unique features.

At the time of its launched, The Coolest Cooler was the most popular Kickstarter of all time, raising $13 million. The initial purchase price was from $165-$225. But, due to unexpected manufacturing costs, the company started selling the cooler for $400. On top of that, the company came up with the somewhat misguided idea to charge customers–Kickstarter backers–who had not yet received their cooler, an additional $97 for “expedited delivery.” Now, The Coolest Cooler is regarded as one of Kickstarter’s “biggest disasters,” as reported by theverge.com.

Tips for Offering Perks

1. Establish Your Perks: When coming up with physical perks, you always need to think about how much it will cost you to make, and figure-in the shipping costs for both domestic and international deliveries.
2. Put a Price on Perks: When considering how to price your perks, remember that perks of lower value attract more total contributions, while high-value perks raise a higher percentage of total funds, as advised per Indiegogo. Offer perks priced at $25, $50, $100, $500, and $1000.
3. Not Too Few, Not Too Many: Frequently, many people get bogged down by offering too many perks. Be sure that you are reasonable in this regard. Also, think about how much time and money perks may take away from your project. Consider offering between five and 10.
4. Put Effort Into Each Reward: You are asking your backers to take a risk on you. That said, consider what is in it for your donors, and reward their loyalty by creating a set of compelling rewards to tie into your story.

Some Common Reward Examples

1. Offer Copies or a Physical Product: “Your campaign reward can work much like a pre-order for a book, record, app, or product,” suggests Kickstarter CEO Yancey Strickler. Also, consider mementos, such as behind-the-scenes photos, videos, booklets, or manuscripts.
2. Collaborate and Ask for Input: Allow backers to partake in your creative process and the project’s development. For a film, you could offer backers the chance to be one of the extras on your movie set. For a book, you can give backers a say on the cover designs. For a product line, you can give them a say in naming a particular item.
3. Offer Creative Experiences and Access: Give backers access to you and team members such as a phone call from the author, backstage passes, meal with a notable figure, or an invitation to the launch party.