By Hannes Grobe (Own work) via Wikimedia Commons
Is crowdfunding right for your project?
From my introductory essay, you can already get the sense that I'm pro-crowdfunding. But let's be honest with ourselves, in an ideal world where everyone has access to easy, no-strings attached money, no one would look for outside funding. Just like seeking out loans or investors, there are pros and cons to crowdfunding your project. Here are the two big questions you should ask yourself prior to committing.
1) Do I have the time to make this commitment?
If you are funded, do you have the flexibility in your schedule, or at the very least, the willingness to forgo sleep for the several months it will take to get your project done in a timely matter? Once you get funded, you are on the hook to produce. Your Backers aren't just backing your idea, they're backing you—financially and emotionally. There really is a bond that Backers feel towards the projects they support and they want nothing but success for you and your idea. Real delays and setbacks can be tolerated, but you harm that trust by stopping because you get too busy or lose interest. Moreover, you risk not only damaging your reputation, but you give your Backers a reason to think twice before supporting other crowdfunding projects.
I suppose the real question to ask yourself is, "Do I believe in this idea so strongly that I am compelled to see it through, no matter what?" If the answer is yes, then...
2) Do I want to develop this publicly?
Developing something out in the open for people who have already pre-ordered your idea is THE major difference between a traditional product development process and one done through Crowdfunding. It's not for everyone or every project.
Let's start by thinking about the process of how things get made. Take this fairly typical, over-simplified development process timeline. Many design consultancies have some of variation of this on their websites, minus the dollar signs.
Click for larger image.
A chart like this looks fairly innocuous until you start thinking of the pain points in the process. I have highlighted those in red. For designers, the easy stuff is in the blue region. You have an idea, then you do some sketches and a 3D rendering. But any fool can have an idea and 3D rendering. At some point you pass the rubicon of moving from a concept to proving that your concept works. It's that process of turning nothing into something that's the real trick. If we're truly honest with ourselves...
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