What is Kickstarter?
It is a platform for raising money for a project, raised through a process called crowdfunding. It is an all or nothing platform, and only 14% of the overall Kickstarter projects reach their goals and get funding.
Who can start a Kickstarter project?
Kickstarter projects are launched around the world but there are a few eligibility guidelines for the creator and for the project.
The creators must be 18 years of age or older, have a government issued ID, social security number (SSN) or employer identification number (EIN) for US citizens, a US or UK address, US or UK bank account and US or UK credit or debit card.
The project must be a project (eg. you cannot raise money to simply fund your business) and must fit into one of the follow categories: Art, Comics, Design, Fashion, Film, Food, Games, Music, Photography, Publishing, Technology and Theater.
How do I create a Kickstarter project?
You would sign up through the Kickstarter website. You would need to enter a project title, upload a main project image and fill out the additional details pertaining to your Kickstarter project. You can set your funding duration up to 60 days but Kickstarter recommends keeping it under 30 days to create a sense of urgency to help raise money.
Remember, Kickstarter is all or nothing so if you set a goal of $5,000 and you reach $4,999, you get nothing. We recommend setting a goal that you feel comfortable reaching and is enough to fund the creation of your project.
If you raise more than your goal, you can keep the funds additional to your goal amount.
How much does Kickstarter charge?
Kickstarter charges 5% from the funds you raise and an additional 3.5% goes to Amazon Payments. While this may seem absorbant, they are providing a platform not only for raising the funds but for the average Kickstarter project, their platform also provides referral traffic of upwards of 30% — visibility from prospective backers that the projects would otherwise not receive.
Keep in mind that you will need to offer a reward for backers who pledge money towards your campaign. You would need to budget some of the money you raise to cover the expenses for your rewards.
How long does it take to set up a Kickstarter campaign?
It takes 2 to 3 business days for Kickstarter to review and approve your Kickstarter project. Connecting your Kickstarter to Amazon Payments can take up to 7 days so we recommend setting that up as soon as possible.
Are there alternatives to Kickstarter?
Indiegogo is the frontrunning alternative to Kickstarter. The key difference between Indiegogo is that you can set a flexible funding campaign meaning even if you do not reach your goal, you still get to keep the money. Indiegogo also charges less than Kickstarter; you would pay 4% to Indiegogo and 3% to PayPal. If you do not meet your goal, you would pay 9% to Indiegogo, which is still preferable over not getting any funding at all with Kickstarter if your project does not meet its goal.
If you do not want to pay the fee to Kickstarter or Indiegogo, there is also Selfstarter, an open source platform that allows you to launch your own self funding project.
How do I promote my Kickstarter project?
The key ingredient to successful Kickstarter projects is press coverage and online buzz. Press Release Jet offers Premium Press Release Distribution at $129 and your Kickstarter press release is guaranteed to be seen on ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, CW and 350+ media outlets including national, regional and local news sites, major newspaper sites, TV & radio news sites, financial feeds, industry journals and major search engines including Google, Bing and Yahoo. Your press release is also guaranteed to syndicated to Google News and Bing News.Send Your Kickstarter Press Release Now
Here are some examples from actual customers who have used Press Release Jet to promote their Kickstarter projects:
 | CivCraft – Legends of Ellaria is a Sandbox, RPG, FPS, RTS video game.952 backers$36,785 USD pledged of $35,000 goalRead Press Release Open Kickstarter |
 | bolo is an invention that combines the idea of the knife and the wheel—creating a rolling knife.1,274 backers$52,572 CAD pledged of $50,000 goalRead Press Release Open Kickstarter |
 | APYROS is an infinity fountain pen.46 backers$4,500 AUD pledged of $4,500 goalRead Press Release Open Kickstarter |
Send Your Kickstarter Press Release Now
Have questions about press release distribution, or any of our other services? Our team at PR Distribution™ is ready and happy to help through email, live chat, support tickets and phone! Contact us