The previous few months have been among the largest and most eventful at BackerKit.
March was a very notable month of extremes on BackerKit through which we hosted each one of many largest creators and campaigns in crowdfunding historical past in addition to the largest cohort of enamel pin creators launching and operating over 120 campaigns on the identical time.
These unprecedented breakout campaigns and occasions proved BackerKit was constructed for creators of every type and sizes to not solely launch a few of their finest and most memorable campaigns but but in addition construct their inventive audiences, community, and future with every new venture.
These breakout moments led to new damaged information, key milestones, and much more pioneering options since our final product replace in January.
Right here’s a fast abstract:
- Pintopia 2024: BackerKit’s annual collaborative crowdfunding occasion for enamel pin designs, Pintopia ran between March 28 to April 18 of this yr and featured over 120+ pin creators who collectively generated almost $1m in whole funding – over 14x greater than the inaugural Pintopia in 2023.
- Cross-Collab Campaigns: We launched model new options for Pintopia, concurrently examined by Pintopia creators and their hundreds of backers, which has led to extra explorations round a extra collaborative method and our latest characteristic beta – Cross-Collab Campaigns. 100+ creators have already utilized to participate in our beta, which remains to be open for submissions. See particulars under.
- Brandon Sanderson / Phrases of Radiance: In early March, the most important crowdfunding creator Brandon Sanderson launched his large marketing campaign Phrases of Radiance Leatherbound on BackerKit. It raised a whopping $23,756,818 in funding with the assist of 102,089 backers – making it the #2 Most funded crowdfunding venture of all time. Learn our full case research of this meteoric venture and the quite a few damaged information it left in its wake.
Realizing we’d be internet hosting the best quantity of initiatives, creators, and backers ever on BackerKit, we took it as the right alternative to develop and take a look at new capabilities at scale, together with these new crowdfunding options you’ll solely discover on BackerKit:
Lastly, we’re excited to announce Comictopia 2024 launching this July!
We’ll be diving into all of those and extra on this product replace. Please be at liberty to click on on any hyperlink above to leap straight to that part.
However for many who wish to begin from the highest, let’s start with one of the thrilling product developments and explorations but…
Pintopia: A case for Collaborative Crowdfunding 🤝
Crowdfunding has primarily been a solo endeavor: 1 creator launches 1 venture and runs it alone.
However is that the solely approach?
We at BackerKit have been testing one other approach – a extra collaborative approach – that modifications the foundations of crowdfunding and has helped creators broaden their fanbase, funding potential, and artistic community. Some creators say it may be far more enjoyable.
This new approach is constructed on the assumption that collaboration could be transformative.
A perception shaped from having labored carefully with creators for over a decade and seeing firsthand how they usually realized finest from each other, how open they had been to sharing the instruments of the commerce, and the way keen they had been to companion as much as launch greater and higher campaigns.
We needed to make these moments between creators occur extra usually and with extra intention.
So we launched Pintopia as our pilot in communal and collaborative crowdfunding.
And in contrast to different crowdfunding occasions that solely collect creators to launch initiatives round a central theme or class, Pintopia went additional to design a collaborative crowdfunding expertise round particular person, companion, and communal funding objectives.
Pintopia communal crowdfunding objectives: Backers who pledged to 5 (5) or extra initiatives earned the Gold Pintopia 2024 pin.
These objectives empowered creators to companion creatively on cross-collab reward designs and cross-promote one another’s initiatives, which then inspired their backers to find and pledge to a number of campaigns, which then unlocked much more rewards for backers to take pleasure in.
Larger and higher, collectively
Pintopia 2023’s intimate cohort of 20 creators proved the idea of collaborative crowdfunding, with all initiatives efficiently funding and elevating over $68.5k and supported by 2.6k pledges.
For Pintopia 2, we needed to go even greater – and the outcomes stunned even us. In comparison with Pintopia 1, this yr’s Pintopia 2 generated:
- Over 6x extra initiatives: 121 pin initiatives launched
- Over 14x extra funding: almost $1m in whole funding ($973,492)
- Almost 9x extra pledges: 23,140 pledges
However past these funding milestones, Pintopia creators shared the intangible profit they valued simply as a lot, if no more – the power to expertise the curler coaster experience of crowdfunding, collectively.
Pintopia proved how extra creators, extra initiatives, and extra backers – all working in the direction of shared objectives – can generate greater, higher, and funner campaigns.
Along with shared objectives, we additionally launched two new impactful options that helped drive discovery, demand, and among the highest shares of pledges throughout Pintopia throughout the 120+ concurrent initiatives: Cross-Collab Campaigns and the Pintopia Aptitude Board.
And a type of options – Cross-Collab Campaigns – is amongst our latest options now out there in beta to qualifying creators who apply right here. Study extra under.
Introducing Cross-Collab Campaigns ✨
Introducing Cross-Collab Campaigns: Crowdfunding campaigns the place two (2) creators launch two (2) separate initiatives concurrently, every with its personal unbiased idea and funding objective, however collaborate on an incentive (eg. an unique cross-collab reward) in addition to venture experiences (eg. collaborative livestreams) to cross-promote each initiatives throughout their mixed backer viewers. Backers should again each initiatives to earn the coveted cross-collab reward.
Every Cross-Collab Marketing campaign creator thus far has earned:
- Extra followers. Get instantaneous publicity together with your companion’s backer viewers and vice versa. One Cross-Collab pair noticed as much as 80% of their mixed backers pledging to each initiatives.
- Extra funds. Cross-promotion amongst Cross-Collab creators may also help increase funding. One creator gained an additional 33% in whole funds raised from their companion’s backer viewers.
- And approach extra enjoyable. That is your likelihood to companion with a creator that you just admire to make one thing distinctive to you each, run a venture side-by-side, and expertise the curler coaster experience of a crowdfunding marketing campaign, collectively.
“I’ve been doing this for over three years now, and I’ve by no means had a lot enjoyable with a crowdfunding marketing campaign earlier than; the cross collabs have actually made this small world really feel a lot extra like a group!”
– Odessa Johnsen-Dearing, Key & Crow Studios
Cross-Collab Campaigns are a primary of its sort in crowdfunding – and we’re in search of progressive creators to be a part of its beta.
Take 5 minutes to use right here to be among the many first to run a Cross-Collab Marketing campaign on BackerKit. 100+ creators have already utilized to hitch our beta. Apply right here by Friday, Might 31 to be thought of.
The New BackerKit Aptitude Board 👾
With over 5x extra initiatives and creators taking part in Pintopia 2, we wanted to discover a enjoyable approach to encourage discovery throughout all campaigns.
The Pintopia Aptitude Board showcased the range of designs from 125+ creators so backers may view all pins at a look or select from the dropdown menu of aesthetic classes. Be it #Kawaii, #Fantasy, #NatureCore, #Informal Goth, or the entire above – regardless of the vibe, the Pintopia aptitude board had all of the pins to precise it and extra.
Every go to and web page refresh randomized the pin show to make sure every venture would get equal and sufficient publicity.
“I believe nearly half of my backers had been from the Aptitude Board, a complete new viewers I wouldn’t have gotten alone.”
– Ash, Flea Circus Designs
The Aptitude Board generated important backer engagement and pledges to Pintopia campaigns, and our staff is at present exploring methods to supply this new and extremely efficient discovery expertise on the BackerKit platform.
Pintopia 2024 has ended, however you’ll be able to nonetheless discover the Aptitude Board right here.
Saying Comictopia 2024! Launching in July 🚀
By common demand, and proper on the heels of Pitopia 2’s success, we’re increasing the BackerKit model of collaborative crowdfunding occasions into the great world of comics.
Comictopia would be the subsequent and latest Topia to launch this July – lower than a number of months away! And we have already got an incredible lineup of comics artists and authors taking part within the first ever Comictopia.
Join our Neighborhood Publication to remain up to date on Comictopia information and necessary dates.
Brandon Sanderson & Phrases of Radiance Leatherbound: Key Options from the #2 Most Funded Crowdfunding Marketing campaign 🐉
Past setting the report with #2 largest crowdfunding venture of all time – Brandon Sanderson’s Phrases of Radiance marketing campaign additionally hit new backer engagement information, specifically:
- #2 Most engaged backer group of any crowdfunding marketing campaign
- #3 Highest variety of backers of any crowdfunding marketing campaign
Fueling that backer engagement had been a variety of newly launched BackerKit options examined by Sanderson’s 100k-strong backer viewers. Beneath are only a few of these options which you’ll study extra about within the full Brandon Sanderson marketing campaign recap.
Pay Over Time: Give backers selection and adaptability when pledging 🌱
Pay Over Time is BackerKit’s versatile pledging possibility that spreads pledge funds throughout a number of months. Not like different versatile pledging choices in crowdfunding, BackerKit’s Pay Over Time is totally interest-free for backers and out there at no further value.
Pay Over Time is at present in beta and out there for campaigns with pledge tiers valued at $150 or extra. If you need to supply Pay Over Time in your subsequent BackerKit marketing campaign, go right here to study extra about Pay Over time and the way to be a part of our beta.
Additional time Mode: A enjoyable, fund-boosting twist to finish your marketing campaign 🔥
Additional time Mode extends your marketing campaign previous its authentic finish time to present backers a remaining likelihood to make their pledge and provides an thrilling twist to the tip of your marketing campaign.
How lengthy will it lengthen? That’s totally as much as your backers: Your marketing campaign will preserve going for an extra 10 minutes so long as pledges preserve coming in – a series of back-to-back pledges we name the Backer Prepare. The marketing campaign will finish solely when the Backer Prepare stops after a interval of 10 minutes passing with none further pledges.
Additional time Mode is now the default setting on BackerKit, successfully altering how campaigns finish, and suspensefully lengthen, in crowdfunding.
Enjoyable truth: Brandon Sanderson’s Phrases of Radiance now holds the report for longest and most worthwhile Additional time Mode on BackerKit – lasting 33 hours and 33 minutes whereby 3,601 backers raised an extra $543,410.
Trivia Challenges and Leaderboards: Maintain backers engaged by means of pleasant competitors 🏆
What saved Sanderson’s viewers entertained and engaged all through the whole three-week BackerKit marketing campaign? A wholesome dose of trivia and pleasant staff rivalry.
Trivia Challenges and Leaderboards enabled Sanderson backers to select groups and compete in opposition to each other by means of day by day trivia challenges that examined followers on their mastery of Sanderson lore.
Launch your subsequent venture on BackerKit 🚀
Join a BackerKit creator account, and get instantaneous entry to a collection of choices which have already set BackerKit aside, together with our industry-leading BackerKit Pledge Supervisor – the primary and premiere pledge administration software program constructed for crowdfunding.
As a BackerKit creator, you’ll expertise:
All you must make it actual.
