Flute Goddess photo by Susan Friedman

Dear Friends,

As grants for the arts quickly diminish, I wanted to introduce to you analternative way to raise funds for creative projects by using Kickstarter.com.

Click here to view my proposal and make a pledge create my Music Video in 3D:  http://kck.st/kw7FPD

Seven Keys to Running a Successful Kickstarter Campaign:

1)  Have good idea combined with a well written pitch.  This is a given, I suppose, but I have seen a few unsuccessful proposals that were too convoluted to make sense.  Short and to the point seem to work best.

2)  Produce a solid, well presented video which is clear and concise.  Again, this is probably obvious.  I can not express enough the importance of the video, where it is filmed, how it is filmed, with what camera and how it is edited.  This is your pitch.  Have fun with it while also making it informative about your goal.

4)  You might want to consider building a team of people to help collectively work on your project.  Like presenting a concert, it’s all about getting the word out and the more people you have rooting for you, the better.  I have seen that the most successful projects have a collaborative component.  The power to get the word out seems to increase exponentially with every person involved in promoting it.  I did not have a team, and in hindsight, I would have put one in place before starting the campaign.

5)  Work through as many details as possible before going live with a project.  Put together a roll-out plan to spread the word in different phases using creative strategies.  Don’t expect to just sit back and wait for the money to roll in.  You will have to put in considerable hours coming up with different ways to promote and help spread the word about your project.

6)  Review articles and testimonials from people who have used Kickstarter.  Compare successful and unsuccessful campaigns to determine what works and what doesn’t.  I enjoyed this process as there are a lot of interesting and creative ventures out there that never would have stood a chance for funding prior to this new platform called Kickstarter.