Crowdfunding : why do campaigns fail ?

Crowdfunding Campaign Pitfalls

Five Pitfalls to Avoid :

Crowdfunding: there is no such thing as a free lunch !!

You will not find many crowdfunding textbooks that say:  post your campaign on a crowdfunding platform on Sunday afternoon. Turn your computer off.  Peek at your campaign on Friday afternoon  and low and behold you will find your crowdfunding campaign fully funded !!

A successful crowdfunding campaign takes hard work. 

It is a myth to think that crowdfunding comes with a crowd. 

We have identified 5 of the most common reasons that crowdfunding campaigns fail and what you can do to make sure that you avoid these common pitfalls.

Campaigns launch too soon 

Many campaign creators spend much of their pre-campaign time focused on building a beautiful campaign page but they fail to focus their effort and time on their backer community and building their following or own fan base in advance.

In order to avoid this pitfall, engage your  “day one supporters” before you launch being sure they will support you on day one.

There is no team  

Although some campaigns run by single project creators succeed, it is an uphill battle and from our experience the campaigns run by teams are more successful.

If you select a team with a mix of skills this is likely to increase the quality of your campaign and just think about the reach. Everyone who joins  your team will have different people they can help attract and to help increase the size of your crowd. 

There is no video 

Only a few campaigns without a video are successful. Most content viewed online today is in the form of video so provide your audience with your message in the form they are most likely to engage with and share.

A crowdfunding video is best kept short – less than 2 minutes will increase the chances that at least some of your audience will get to the end of your video. Some stats we read estimated that 50% of audiences switch off after 60 seconds!

The campaign goal is too high 

It is easy for campaign creators to start to dream of dollar signs and get rather carried away when they set their crowdfunding campaign goal.

If their campaign stated goal is too high it will often put backers off. If a campaign looks unlikely to reach its target with a huge gap between the amount raised and the target some backers will be turned off from supporting. 

People want to back successful projects where the products are in demand.

Try to keep your campaign goal as low as possible. You can always exceed the goal.

There is no special deal for the rewards  

People back campaigns because they want to be the first to obtain something unique or want to get a great deal that they would not otherwise be able to obtain. In return for this they understand that they may need to wait a period of time before they obtain their reward.

Failing to create compelling enough offers or rewards that will excite backers is another reason campaigns fail. 

You need to create a special deal even if you reduce the number of  ultra -low priced deals you offer.

By avoiding these 5 pitfalls you will greatly increase your chances of creating a successful crowdfunding campaign. 

If you are going to run a crowdfunding campaign make sure that you give it your very best shot.


If you'd like to see more of our essential tips for managing and promoting your crowdfunding project, you can grab our Guide To Crowdfunding here.

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About ReadyFundGo

ReadyFundGo is a crowdfunding platform and community of social entrepreneurs, business owners, change makers and innovators who have a great idea they want to get off the ground or grow. If you are interested in the world of innovation and ideas, or want to find strategies for raising funds for your own project or expansion, ReadyFundGo can help. To begin your own crowdfunding campaign, start your draft here.