I have an acquaintance who is in the throes of of a failing Kickstarter right now. When I asked him why he set the pledged goal he did, he said "Well we could have gotten x a lot more easily but then we'd only have x when we needed y, so we figured "screw it", go for y (which was about double the amount of x.)
He forgot a crucial fact of Kickstarters: some money is better than no money, so set a goal you know you can make pretty easily, because it's that, or potentially nothing.
And if it's one thing I've consistently noticed about Kickstarters, it's that successful Kickstarters become more successful by being successful. If you asked for $20,000, and you've already gotten it, your Kickstarter automatically looks more appealing to every new person who visits it because it's already succeeded. Versus visiting a Kickstarter that is 25%, 50% or more short of its goal. Psychologically, people have to ask themselves if they want to bet on a losing horse, despite there being no risk to them if it does fail. I'm sure this doesn't describe everyone, and my experience is pretty much limited to video game Kickstarters. But generally it's much easier to get buy in when you've already succeeded than when you haven't.
You can certainly shoot yourself in the foot with too low a pledged goal because you meet it quickly and then interest peters out. But I think that has more to do with the interest and hype your project generates. I would say each Kickstarter gets rewarded on its relative merits, but we know that's not true. Still, I think most Kickstarters earn what they should have earned. If a Kickstarter doesn't make it, or doesn't explode in funding after being successful, it's probably because it was never going to.
The only other advice I'd give, which I don't know how it applies to your project specifically, is: have something concrete to show. Whether it's something people can look at, download, play, interact with, proof of concept is incredibly important. If a video game Kickstarter has a funny video, and some concept art, and it looks nice and professional, it still has less of a chance of getting my pledge vs. a project that really just has something tangible like a demo, gameplay footage that isn't a mock up, something that tells me a project already has legs rather than starting from Square One. It kind of gives the impression this project is going to happen with or without help. Which for me at least, makes me open my wallet. Again, my experience with Kickstarter is wholly in entertainment, I don't know what academic or research Kickstarters look like. Also, always explain why you need funding. If you've got something you already make or made, people naturally want to know why they should now pay for it. In your case, you need money for upkeep, which can be a harder sell than a product or a game. Web comics and podcasts have received funding, which is essentially the same thing, so it is doable. For you, trying to condense down all your outfit does into a nice Kickstarter package might be tough. Maybe show off the finds you've made on the Kickstarter page as proof of what you're about.
Oh last piece of advice. Do not go ape shit with physical merchandise rewards. They're attractive to get people to pledge, but everyone routinely over looks how much it costs to do that stuff. Especially if you have to contract out someone to do it. Even like, caps and jackets or buttons and stuff can eat away at your funds. So watch out for that temptation.
Good luck!
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Topic: crowd funding advice (Read 1242 times)