Last time we looked at how to set up the structure of your project. In this section of the crowdfunding series, we're going to look at how to tell your story.
If you want to you know why Kickstarter has been so successful, look no further than how they help people tell their stories. Kickstarter has created a step-by-step guide that helps organize story elements that is so easy to use, that it takes most of the guesswork out of how to talk about your project. You make a video, upload some images and text, and boom: instant crowdfunding project.
Understanding the purpose and placement of the individual elements of their format will help you fine tune your story and stand out from the crowd.
I like to think that Kickstarter's storytelling format shares a lot in common with the way you would layout a book. You have a cover, content, and footnotes. For crowdfunding, that book format translates to this:
Cover = Project image, Title, and Short Blurb
(The 0:05 second pitch)
Content = Video
(The 5:00 minute pitch)
Footnotes = Copy and Images
(The 10:00 minute question and answer session)
The Cover: Project Image, Title and Short Blurb
Everyone likes to say they don't judge a book by its cover, but as designers, we know better. First impressions are critical. A lot of snap judgements will be made about your project by its Project Image, Title and Short Blurb, but the goal should be the same no matter what your project is: Get people to click.
Your Project Image is the first thing your potential backers will see when finding your project. Like a good app icon, it has to visually summarize the point of your project and get people excited to learn more.
Click for larger image.
Your Project Image is seen in two modes: Project mode and Search mode. The goal in both modes is to make people interested enough that they want to click your Project Image to get more information about your project. In Project Mode, your Project Image will be seen as the image that covers up your video, waiting for someone to push play. In Search mode it will be a much smaller image amongst a sea of other projects. Your Project Image has to work in both modes, but focus on getting the Search mode right. If your Project Image reads well in the smaller format, it will work even better in a larger format.
Like naming anything, giving your project a title is a totally subjective act. What works for one person, will not work for another. That being said, the more successful projects tend to have titles that are short and memorable.
Your Short Blurb is the elevator pitch for your project. They're only viewable in Search mode and are limited to small amounts of text. This is a good constraint to have because the best blurbs (and best elevator pitches for that matter) explain why someone would want to back your project in just one sentence.
Lets use an example from an actual Kickstarter project: Frank Chimero's The Shape of Design.
Click for larger image.