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I am in the process of readying for a Kickstarter Campaign.

I am starting off with a collection of Goblins (20 - 40 Goblins, 20 in the basic goal, and then 2 sets of 4 and 2 sets of 6 for the Stretch Goals).

I had posted some images of the WIP Goblins (3 of the 6 Warriors).

The Goblins are intended to be the first in a series of Fantasy Miniatures that are a bit more basic, and not so over the top with filigree and braids, and Celtic knots, etc., and are intended to be pretty Middle-earth themed (starting with the Mid Third Age, at least if they were to be compared with Middle-earth, they would fit roughly in the period post-Kin Strife during the Wars with the Wainriders and Balchoth).

The masters will be produced via a high-resolution 3D printing (.025mm resolution), and then the production miniatures will be white-metal castings (probably produced by Reaper, since I still have contacts there).

But....

I am wondering what all I should produce to get a KS going to raise about $20K to produce all 40 of the Goblins (It might be a bit more than this depending upon how the test prints of the masters go, but that is a rough estimate).

Do I need artwork, or digital renderings of the final products?

Do I need a printed sample of the final product?

What sort of time frame do people usually look at for a miniature KS?

Has anyone looked at what the failure rate of KS's are?

MB

You want images of the latest stage of each mini - if that's a final product then even better, but failing that a 3d render or artwork.

People like to see what they are buying.

Timeframe should be reaslistic; we're patient enough and you're better planning it to be a month out and shipping early than being optimistic and slipping a month. How long do you think it'll take you to ship everything once the money clears, allowing a bit of leeway for the unexpected (huge order numbers, supplier mix up, couriers going bust).

What seems to have caused problems for a few I've been in have been the huge volume of orders; they expected to get say $5,000 and ended off taking $50,000 which means they needed more staff, more storage spaces, longer lead times on production, and so on.

People like pretty pictures, but also seeing how art relates to render/sculpt relates to final product

so try and get at least one item as far along in the process as you can, that way you can show that your sculptor will actually stick to the concept art and your caster will actuall deliver a product that looks like the sculpt/print

As to time frame be realistic and work out how long it will take to get stuff done (do you have a sculptor in mind, when are they free etc), then add 6 months. People are happy if you can deliver early or on time, people get more and more unhappy as you get later and later (and especially for a new business some will start saying you've run off with the cash)

What happens if it all goes great and you get 1000 backers, can you get everything done for all of them in your predicted time frame? If not offer a limited number of pledges for shipment wave 1, then more for shipment wave 2 in another 3 months or whatever

20 (different) Goblins as a start seems a bit ambitious to start with (especially if you've got to fund it all from the KS), I'd suggest splitting this into smaller group(s), maybe 4 lots of 5? Especially with new companies many backers won't jump in until you fund so the sooner you can the better

(big companies with money in the bank use artificially low targets as the can afford to cover any short fall but this is a dumb idea for startups in case they only just fund and have to make do with the target amount)

Be prepared to talk to your backers every day during the KS in the comments (it really helps), and then do regular updates even if you have nothing much to say (I prefer once a week, but at minimum once a month) and stay active if the comments stay active

Some useful questions you might want to ask yourself about your KS can be found here

http://forum.reapermini.com/index.php?/topic/58691-kickstarter-interviews/?hl=bryan

overall in 2014 about 40% of KS projects overall funded (not sure how mini gaming compares with the average)



Automatically Appended Next Post:
Oh and that most scary of things Taxes

talk to a professional so that you know what you have to pay when the money arrives (and when)

and what the implications of missing your delivery date and thus having lots of assets/stock in hand when the tax year rolls over

I've seen both of these kick projects when the project creator was not on top of things

Keep the kickstarter as simple as possible, when it gets complicated that's when problems arise, from my experience.

 OrlandotheTechnicoloured wrote:
People like pretty pictures, but also seeing how art relates to render/sculpt relates to final product

So... If I am not a very good 2D artist (I don't know what it is, but I can produce anatomy like Michelangelo when working in 3D, but my prior rivalry of Raphael seems to have become rusty), should I hire a 2D artist to do some artwork?

I might be able to turn the 3D WIP into a completed 2D final product in Photoshop. I assume this will be adequate?

so try and get at least one item as far along in the process as you can, that way you can show that your sculptor will actually stick to the concept art and your caster will actuall deliver a product that looks like the sculpt/print

As to time frame be realistic and work out how long it will take to get stuff done (do you have a sculptor in mind, when are they free etc), then add 6 months. People are happy if you can deliver early or on time, people get more and more unhappy as you get later and later (and especially for a new business some will start saying you've run off with the cash)

So far, this is all just one person (myself), but the casting will be contracted out. But looking at the time frame, I may be a bit too optimistic if what you say is the case,

What happens if it all goes great and you get 1000 backers, can you get everything done for all of them in your predicted time frame? If not offer a limited number of pledges for shipment wave 1, then more for shipment wave 2 in another 3 months or whatever

20 (different) Goblins as a start seems a bit ambitious to start with (especially if you've got to fund it all from the KS), I'd suggest splitting this into smaller group(s), maybe 4 lots of 5? Especially with new companies many backers won't jump in until you fund so the sooner you can the better

Well, the breakdown (that I planned for the initial goal):

6 Goblin Warriors (Mixed armor, and separate weapons)
6 Goblin Archers (Mixed Armor, lighter than the Warriors)
4 Goblin Warriors with 2-handed weapons (4 separate weapons, again, mixed armor)
3 or 4 Goblin Command Figures

So I should break the original plan for all of these at once into separate KS's for each group?

Be prepared to talk to your backers every day during the KS in the comments (it really helps), and then do regular updates even if you have nothing much to say (I prefer once a week, but at minimum once a month) and stay active if the comments stay active

Some useful questions you might want to ask yourself about your KS can be found here

http://forum.reapermini.com/index.php?/topic/58691-kickstarter-interviews/?hl=bryan

overall in 2014 about 40% of KS projects overall funded (not sure how mini gaming compares with the average)

Very helpful link, thank you

Automatically Appended Next Post:
Oh and that most scary of things Taxes

talk to a professional so that you know what you have to pay when the money arrives (and when)

and what the implications of missing your delivery date and thus having lots of assets/stock in hand when the tax year rolls over

I've seen both of these kick projects when the project creator was not on top of things

Already got this handled... My father is a tax lawyer, and even though now retired, the basics haven't changed much.

I learned long ago to put taxes into a withholding account to give to the IRS immediately.

But that was good advice nonetheless. It is something that could have tripped me up were I not minimally familiar with tax laws.

MB

Ahh,

If you've got good 3D renders you won't need 2D concept art, (I was just thinking of the 'normal' progression 2d art to 3d render or traditional sculpt to final cast)

As to your minis I'd sugest having the potential of all of them in the same KS via stretch goals


6 Goblin Warriors (Mixed armor, and separate weapons): Initial funding target $3000 (to pick a random number)

6 Goblin Archers (Mixed Armor, lighter than the Warriors)
Stretch goal 1 $6000

4 Goblin Warriors with 2-handed weapons (4 separate weapons, again, mixed armor) Stretch goal 2 $10000

3 or 4 Goblin Command Figures Stretch goal 3 $14000

so as small a target as possible to actually fund which then means people are more likely to back (or add more cash) as they know something will get made

If your KS goes well everything gets funded,

if it does less well some of the goblins get made, and once you've sent them out you can run a second KS (assuming people like what they got) for the rest

(and offer the figures funded in KS1 as paid add-ons which will help you sell more)

Based on the Kickstarters I've looked at over the years, the Number One thing that can lead to a successful campaign: before you post it, proofread your pitch... then have at least three other people proofread it (preferably people you don't associate with daily).

Wall of text...punctuation...misspellings...rambling stream of consciousness... These will kill a project before it launches.

Also, check out Johnny Borg Castings current My Dog Ate My KS Funds blog posts. He's been doing an excellent job of breaking down the costs associated with a KS Campaign.

 Carlson793 wrote:
Based on the Kickstarters I've looked at over the years, the Number One thing that can lead to a successful campaign: before you post it, proofread your pitch... then have at least three other people proofread it (preferably people you don't associate with daily).

Wall of text...punctuation...misspellings...rambling stream of consciousness... These will kill a project before it launches.

Also, check out Johnny Borg Castings current My Dog Ate My KS Funds blog posts. He's been doing an excellent job of breaking down the costs associated with a KS Campaign.

Good suggestion.

I am a compulsive proofreader (and something of a grammar Nazi), but getting others to proof it (for style as well as content) is a good idea.

And thanks for the links.

I am hoping that if this is successful, I can convince Tom Meier to run one for Thunderbolt Mountain to finish off (or create) new lines himself.

It will have been 20 - 30 years since I last sculpted a mini that was produced. I want to be able to produce more of them, even if I am slow as Christmas.

MB

 OrlandotheTechnicoloured wrote:

Be prepared to talk to your backers every day during the KS in the comments (it really helps), and then do regular updates even if you have nothing much to say (I prefer once a week, but at minimum once a month) and stay active if the comments stay active

A thousand times this. Set a regular update schedule and stick to it. If things are just ticking along and there's nothing really to add, then post to say that. Nothing is more aggravating as a backer than an apparent communications blackout, especially if the project is running late. You can either develop a reputation as a conscientious creator who appreciates their fans and wants to keep them informed, or as a negligent one who loses all interest in talking to the backers once the money is in. It's your choice. Happy backers will spread the word about how awesome you are, and recommend your products to their friends, while unhappy ones will actively push people away from your business.