#boostedtoolkits4

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The 5 W’s for a Crowdfunding Pre-launch Event

The who, what, when, where and why of a pre-launch event 

 WHY should I have a pre-launch party?

To let people know you have a crowdfunding campaign coming up!

A common misconception is that you should spring your crowdfunding campaign on your friends, family and networks. Not true! We’ve found the best results come from letting people know well in advance that you will be doing one. We at Boosted have also found that it takes “three asks” to get people to donate.

Build momentum for your campaign so that on launch day everyone is ready to celebrate and donate on the first day! You will get so many warm fuzzies from seeing how many people support you.

WHO should I invite?

Friends, family, potential big donors, anyone who wants to celebrate your art and wants you to be successful! If you have done a network chart send the word out to them.

WHEN should I do it?

There is no golden rule to this, but generally a couple of weeks out from your launch date.

WHERE should I do it?

In a place where you feel comfortable to do it. Somewhere that you can celebrate and/or show what you do as an artist. This kind of depends on the ‘What’ section.

WHAT should the event be?

Well something that relates to you! You and your campaign.

Here are some ideas:

● If you are a local community printmaking group looking to crowdfund a new printing press maybe have an open day where people can try out some sort of art making.

● If you are a musician - great! Have a gig with a cover charge and let people know you will make a bulk donation on their behalf on the first day. During your performance remind people why they are there and what they are celebrating! Tell them to spread the word.

● The Loons Theatre Trust teamed up with local business Freeman’s cafe in Lyttelton for their pre-launch event. The Loons are setting up a new theatre in Lyttelton so they are rallying the whole community and local businesses to get in behind it!

If you want a hand brainstorming get in touch with a Boosted Ambassador and they can help talk through some ideas.

TIPS: ● During the event encourage people to take photos and share them on social media. ● If you aren’t good at public speaking, get an MC or have a poster up around saying you are running a crowdfunding campaign soon. Make sure to mention the date of when your campaign starts as well!

This blog was written by Gemma Syme, our Christchurch Boosted Ambassador. To read more about Gemma and the Boosted Ambassadors, visit our website.

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4 Video apps to use for your crowdfunding campaign

Want to engage with your audience using video? Great idea! 

Video is a great way to connect with your networks and let them know about you, your work and how you are going with your crowdfunding campaign.

Got to 50%? Send out a Vine celebrating it! 

Doing a live event? Stream it on Periscope and remind people to check out your crowdfunding campaign online.

Here are some great apps that you can use.

Main Campaign video

BEFORE YOU START

• Make sure you have a good room to record if you need to create your videos first • If you want to talk during your video, make sure there isn’t a lot of noise so you get good quality audio

1. Cute CUT

What it’s good for: Cute Cut is a simple video editor that you can put together a basic video. You can also add music, titles, effects and a voice over. How to use it: 

• Make sure you have the video/s & audio you want on your device. • Start a new project by pressing the ‘+’ in the top left hand corner. Choose the settings you want (pick the settings for where the video will end up. Is it going on Youtube, Instagram or somewhere else). • Click on the ‘+’ sign on the left hand side of the screen to start adding content. You can add videos, photos, text, drawings, and music or do a voice over. You can then move content around and edit it by double tapping whatever clip you want to edit. • Once you have a video you are happy with you can export the video to your device’s photo album, or directly to email, YouTube or Facebook. Here are some more videos on how to use Cute CUT

Compatible with: iOS (Mac) Amount: Free

During your campaign

People love seeing how you are getting on with your work and campaign, so video is a great way create some excitement and keep people update.

2. Vine

What it’s good for:

Filming short clips (up to 6 seconds) to engage with your audience and let them know what is going on behind the scenes. Humour works well on Vine!

How to use it:

Sign with Twitter. To make a Vine, click on the record button on the middle, bottom of your screen. Hold down on the video screen to start recording, and you can stop and start recording and also add music at the end. Don’t forget to hashtag (check out the #crowdfunding vines for ideas https://vine.co/tags/crowdfunding)

Compatible with:

iOS, Android, Windows

Amount:

Free

3. Periscope

What it’s good for:

Running a live event during your campaign? Stream it live!

How to use it:

Sign in with twitter, click the live broadcast, write in a title about what is happening (feel free to use a hashtag), and start broadcasting! Afterwards it will save your video so you can save it to your phone, and if you want you can upload it to Youtube and Facebook. Don’t forget you can interact with people live during a broadcast, so remind people to go and check out your crowdfunding campaign as well.

Compatible with:

iOS, Android

Amount:

Free

4. VIBBIDI

What it’s good for:

This is the new kid on the block and still in testing, but you can sign up for an invitation to try it on their website. This is a great app for putting together short clips that you can post to Instagram and Twitter. You choose a variety of clips that you want and edit them to a set duration, add a filter to each and then you can add music from Spotify.

How to use it:

Make sure you have the clips you want to use on your device. Log in with either a VIBBIDI username, Facebook or Instagram. To make a video click the button in the bottom, middle of the screen. Here you can choose one of four options (all options have a 3 second ending where you can write text).

1.1 second x 12 clips (with a 3 second ending)

2.2 second x 6 clips (with a 3 second ending)

3.15 second x 1 clip (with a 3 second ending)

4.30 second x 1 clip (with a 3 second ending)

Edit the clip/s how you want it and then add a filter and music to your clips.

Compatible with:

iOS

Amount:

Free

This blog was written by Gemma Syme, our Christchurch Boosted Ambassador. To read more about Gemma and the Boosted Ambassadors, visit our website.

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Your Crowdfunding Checklist: The Dinner Party

If you can host a dinner party, you can run a successful crowdfunding campaign. 

 Hosting a dinner party can be a triumph or disaster! Whether it’s a backyard BBQ, birthday bash, potluck or your best 8-course degustation extravaganza for a few or many, there are certain features of hosting good ones that anyone can master. The same is true for getting your project over the line on Boosted. Yes, you can do it!

Here is our checklist to help ensure that you’re good to go… and while you’re at it, take inspiration and kick off your campaign with a dinner party to boot!

What’s for dinner?

Eating is a shared experience, and your project page on the Boosted website is the food. You want to be sure it all looks and tastes great! The good ingredients are: a clear and catchy title, text that tells your story, describes how your project is unique and contributes to your vision, and your video is like the dinner menu, which reveals everything that will be experienced from your project kitchen. None of it has to be fancy, choosing and reducing down quality ripe tomatoes, garlic, oregano, olive oil, sea salt and pepper makes for an excellent spaghetti marinara sauce. In your menu, remember to acknowledge the other cooks in the kitchen: your sponsors and match donors.

Who is invited?

Well everyone in your network and beyond, of course! But your funding target shares a reciprocal relationship with how much your network and key donors can give, just like how much food (think funds!) you’ll need for the size of your dinner party (think project!)

Analyse your guest-list and communicate to your network in the right way. Your nearest and dearest will certainly come along to your birthday and give. Some people might have dietary requirements and may not use Facebook events or Twitter to organise their social calendars. So be sure to modify your invitations and menu to the particular needs of the invitees: remind them in person, on the phone, with text messages and direct emails. Getting the RSVP from your guests (donations to your project!) generally requires asking 3 times and in 3 different ways.

When is the party?

Plan your time accordingly. Just as you’re thinking about when to have your dinner party, including when to send out invites, cooking times of menu items, and the timeframe of the dinner party itself, you’ll want to create a content calendar for your campaign. The menu is the grand invite to your project. 

Appetisers and snacks throughout the dinner are your social media posts with snippets of insights and attention-grabbing delectables about your work and the people involved. The entree can be a key launch event or big email blast that everyone tastes. Drinks and water throughout your campaign are those more personal calls and quiet conversations every step of the way. There will definitely be that moment in your dinner (campaign!) of great quiet anticipation, where the main hasn’t arrived and nothing is happening. Don’t fear! Savour this moment with your best yarn or something unexpected about your project. Enjoying the main course is reaching 65%. Eyeing up the dessert, which, like everything sweet, is the last stretch of your campaign and what everyone wants. It needs to deliver directly to the sweet buds, so be direct and ask your network to get you over the line. Over 100%? You can manage this with some finishing touches: after dinner mints, coffee, tea and maybe even a wee port to make your ‘dinner’ that extra something special.

My mother once said: “Life is a party and everyone is invited!” I’m sure she’s right, so go into crowdfunding campaign with that attitude, and you’ll be right.

You can download a Handy Boosted Project Content Checklist here!

This blog was written by Charley Davenport, our Wellington Boosted Ambassador. To read more about Charley and the Boosted Ambassadors, visit our website.