Digital marketing has been a critical component of some of the most successful crowdfunding campaigns on Kickstarter, but it hasn’t always been accessible for all creators. With so many projects competing for backers' attention, it's important for creators to use effective marketing strategies to share their stories with potential backers.
Kickstarter has partnered with Jellop, the leading provider of digital marketing services for crowdfunding campaigns. With this partnership, we’re teaming up to combine deep crowdfunding expertise and advanced advertising tactics to deliver the most value for creators.
In this blog post, we'll explore what digital marketing is, why it can be effective for crowdfunding campaigns, and how you can determine if it's right for you.
What do we mean when we say “digital marketing?”
Digital marketing encompasses a range of strategies and tactics that utilize online channels to reach and engage with potential backers. When working in concert with a compelling campaign, digital marketing can significantly increase brand awareness, drive traffic, and ultimately convert visitors into backers and lifelong customers.
With the right execution, digital marketing helps creators better reach and engage their current audience, and find brand new backers to support their campaign. Additionally, Kickstarter has recently launched new features to aid effective digital marketing strategies — most notably implementing the Meta Pixel to support remarketing efforts across Facebook, Instagram, and other Meta marketing channels.
Effective digital marketing increases the impact of your project's story across all phases of a campaign. New backers are inspired to jump onboard, and people on the fence are reminded to pledge.
Why is digital marketing so effective for crowdfunding campaigns?
There are several reasons why digital marketing can play a major role in a successful crowdfunding campaign.
Reach a wider audience
With digital marketing, creators can reach a global audience of potential backers. Social media platforms, search engines, and email marketing allow you to target specific demographics and interests, making it easier to tell your story to people who are likely to be interested in your project. It often takes the use of many touchpoints to get a backer to pledge, and digital marketing helps meet potential backers where they are online.
Build buzz
Digital marketing allows you to build anticipation and excitement for your campaign before it launches. By creating a pre-launch strategy, you can generate interest, collect email addresses, and build a community of supporters who will be ready to back your project when it goes live.
Track your progress
Digital marketing provides valuable data and analytics that allow you to track your progress and make data-driven decisions. By monitoring ad engagement rates, onsite conversion rates, and other key metrics, you can adjust your strategy and learn what resonates most significantly with your audience. (By the way, be sure to check out our new advanced dashboard, designed to help creators better understand the performance of their live campaigns.)
It’s worth noting that digital marketing isn’t a silver bullet, and it’s most effective for campaigns that have found traction with a community already. Digital marketing is unlikely to turn around a campaign that hasn’t quite found an audience, but it can offer a tremendous boost for campaigns with an excited and passionate audience.
How do I know if digital marketing is right for my campaign?
Digital marketing can be an effective strategy for most Kickstarter campaigns, but it's important to assess your specific goals and resources before investing in a digital marketing strategy.
Here are a few questions to consider:
What is your budget and cost structure?
Digital marketing can be cost-effective, but it still requires resources. Though it is easy to turn off if performance isn’t where it needs to be, consider how much you're willing to invest in a digital marketing campaign and what you hope to achieve with that investment.
Who is your target audience?
If your campaign is in a product category with broad appeal, digital marketing is very likely to be an effective way to reach potential backers who may not require quite as much context to jump aboard. If your audience is more niche, you may need to explore other marketing strategies before investing in significant advertising. Additionally, if you have an established community already, digital marketing can be a huge accelerant to reaching potential backers who are already excited about your creative work.
Do you have the resources to execute a digital marketing strategy?
Digital marketing requires time, expertise, and resources. With our partnership with Jellop, we’re committed to sharing our deep expertise with creators. But there is still effort required to ensure the most successful results.
In conclusion, digital marketing is a powerful tool for Kickstarter campaigns that we’re excited to make more accessible to creators across our platform. While it's not a one-size-fits-all solution, most Kickstarter campaigns can benefit from a well-executed digital marketing strategy.
By assessing your goals, target audience, and available resources, you can determine whether digital marketing is the right strategy for your campaign and start reaping the benefits of these powerful marketing channels.
If you’re interested in learning more about our partnership with Jellop and leveraging digital marketing on your next campaign, visit our page with more information.
