Carl Dylan used 2012 to stick a couple of feathers in his hat.
He and his band played SXSW. They hired a booking agent. They opened for the Beach Boys in front of 55,000 people!
Now, with his second Kickstarter project, Carl Dylan and his band are positioning themselves for a successful follow up to all of this in 2013.
Given all this, you might expect Carl to be professional and to have a few pieces of sage advice.
And you’d be right…
View Carl Dylan’s Kickstarter
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A CLEAR CALL TO ACTION
I’ll do my part, you do yours… Collaboration. Carl understands this.
In both the video and the project description, Carl delivers a clear call to action.
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USE FLEX GOAL TO MINIMIZE RISK
In a phone interview, Carl mentioned that one of his biggest uncertainties is what is the bare minimum to make this project happen?
He figured out the answer to that question but knows full well that he wants to do waaaaaayyyyyy more than that.
In order to do waaaaaayyyyyy more, you need to make waaaaaayyyyyy more.
So, there are two competing objectives: 1) fund what you need, versus 2) fund what you want.
Use the flex goal skillfully and you can accomplish both.
Notice that Carl set his goal at or near his minimum, $15,000, but from the very beginning, makes it clear that they are truly shooting for $25,000.
Being clear and transparent right up front is key in this strategy. Carl does this in both his project description and video.
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EXPECT TO WORK
The real gold to be found in Carl’s Kickstarter lies in what he had to say about actually pulling off your Kickstarter. (Note that I am paraphrasing as there was NO WAY I could transpose our phone conversation in real time. I am assuming that I’ll be close and that Carl will correct me if I am way off!)
Carl on pre-launch: Do a lot of the work beforehand. Kickstarter is like Sunday game day. You can’t just show up to the stadium to be the starter and expect things to go well. I have put in twice as much prep as the project will take… Make sure of your content and that people are prepped for the project.
Carl on reaching your Circle of Influence: Successful Kickstarters are spending 25-30 hours per week. You have to be really diligent. I will do 1 prelaunch email 1 week prior, 2 emails over the course of the campaign, and probably another 1 in the last 3 days or so. On Facebook, use the MESSAGING feature. People want to get a personal message. I will go to my personal Facebook Friends list and type out personal messages.
Carl on researching other successful Kickstarters: The biggest thing is not to focus on only the most successfully funded projects ever (tech companies or Amanda Palmer). Yes, there are things to take from those that are valuable… But the biggest thing to know is that I’m going to work really, really hard to make something successful. Kickstarter gives a platform to digitally reach out. Don’t miss the step of tangible interaction.
THE TAKEAWAY
As you can see, Carl executes skillful strategy in delivering a clear Call To Action and incorporating flex goals.
You can use these techniques to solidify your Kickstarter.
But the gold in them thare hills is what Carl has to say about engaging your circle of influence.
- Prepare beforehand
- Treat it like a full time job
- Reach out for tangible interaction
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