This post is about Wyldsson and it’s also not about Wyldsson. It’s really to draw your attention to the potential of crowdfunding and the Kickstarter platform in particular, and how you can look to this ‘alternative’ funding platform the next time you are considering the design/launch of a new product. It makes perfect sense and is relatively risk free.
Let’s look at Wyldsson’s recent success on Kickstarter. They looked to raise €5,000 to bring to market their design for a snack tube for trail mix. They raised over €10,000, over double their estimate. You can check out their funding story on Kickstarter here and it’s a great case study to look at. It’s not rocket science and I’m sure the team over at Wyldsson will attest to that.
I’ve written about two other Irish projects that successfully launched on Kickstarter. Back in 2014, Rob O’Reilly was looking for €15,000 for his plug and play acoustic guitar. 73 backers pledged €22,884 to help bring this project to life.
In 2015, the team at Scribia raised a massive €66,458 for their innovative stylus design. 450 backers pledged €66,458 to help bring this project to life.
There are more failures than successes on Kickstarter but there is no financial loss unless you incur marketing costs in the production of a video to promote your project. Kickstarter and other funding platforms are proving to be accessible and great testing beds for new ideas. It’s simple really – if you have an interesting product and can showcase it in an intelligent and meaningful way, then the Kickstarter community and those from your own community that are informed of the fundraising, will vote with their wallets and take a stake in the project.
319 Wyldsson backers pledged €10,165 to help bring this project to life.
73 Expressiv backers pledged €22,884 to help bring this project to life.
450 Scribia backers pledged €66,458 to help bring this project to life.
Of course, good customer service is an important aspect and shouldn’t be left to an afterthought. I pledged to both the Wyldsson and Scribia projects and both kept in constant contact during the fundraising process and afterwards.
The moment of truth is when the product arrives and Wyldsson was excellent. The packaging and branding is top class and it’s also a fantastic product. The guys from Scribia haven’t dropped a product yet but it’s coming.
So, if the bank is not an option and you’ve no cash in hand, then check out the Kickstarter platform. If your idea is a good one and you tell a good story, then you’re on the right path. Good luck!
