April 8, 2015

Kelly Tindall is an illustrator, cartoonist and a teacher. He writes the webcomic Strangebeard and used a Kickstarter campaign to raise the funds to print and distribute a finished book version of the comic.

Can you briefly describe Strangebeard?

Strangebeard is the two-fisted story of Jenny Brigham, servant girl, who is possessed by the ghost of the long-dead Pirate Emperor Augustus Strangebeard. Soon she finds herself with all his magical powers… but also the loyalty of his duplicitous pirate crew!

Why did you feel that the crowdfunding model was the best way to promote the comic?

It was the best option for me. I spent a year pitching it to comic-book publishers; almost all of them liked the book but nobody was willing to take a chance on an all-ages book starring a little girl. So, it fell to me to raise the money myself.

Why and how did you choose Kickstarter over other crowdfunding options available?

I was not an early adopter of Kickstarter; it felt desperate to me, initially. But I’ve come to see it as an invaluable asset to young creators; it allows us to handle our own careers in a way that was never available before. We can basically write and fulfill our own grants.

I chose Kickstarter because it’s got more credibility, and the rule about only receiving the funding if you make your budget makes it more like a game show; people love to back a winner.

How big was your budget before you launched your crowdfunding campaign?

$4500 CAD. I’m glad we went well over that, as the U.S. dollar started to strengthen and the final printing tally was a little over $5000. We ended up at about $8300 CAD at the end; every dime went to the project, and then some.

How far along was your project before you felt ready to launch a crowdfunding campaign? In hindsight, would you have preferred to be farther along, or to have crowdfunded earlier?

Nope, I picked a nearly perfect time. The book was nearly complete and all I had to do was compile existing work and secure the art for the pinup section. It might have been nice to be completely done but there’s always more you can do. At some point you just have to pull the trigger.

Can you explain how you prepared for and managed your campaign?

Tons of research. I had to figure out the printing costs, costs of extras for stretch goals, weight of shipped items, the costs for shipping materials, the costs to ship both to Canada and outside, how to put together a good video, and I had to create all the buttons and art for the Kickstarter itself. Probably a solid month’s part-time work.

What tools did you use to market your campaign? Do you feel like you did so successfully, and if not, what could you have done differently?

I think I did pretty well… I updated Twitter three times a day and Facebook every couple of days, and I appeared on at least six podcasts, a number of online interviews, one radio broadcast, and got featured in my hometown newspaper.

In retrospect what were your best assets for running this successful campaign? On the other hand, what would you do differently ?

I have very loyal family and friends who really stepped up to help out with money and were willing to talk to others about the campaign. To say nothing, of course, of the brilliant artists who supplied pinups for the book. I had over a year’s worth of loyal fans who couldn’t wait to read a print version of the story, too.

What was your biggest challenge during your campaign?

Ultimately, I think shipping and budgeting were the two that were the most difficult to deal with. I had a few odd-shaped items that needed to go (original art from the comic series) and they were a struggle to get out the door. Not having tiered options for shipping meant that overseas customers had to be charged above and beyond via messages, because their packages were so much more expensive and Kickstarter didn’t have shipping options for multiple countries.

What’s the most valuable advice you could share with aspiring crowdfunders?

Do your research. Talk to friends who have done Kickstarters and pick their brains. Don’t be afraid to market yourself, but don’t hassle people (especially strangers). Work hard, and get as much done as you can before the campaign ends. And have fun! People can tell when you’re enjoying yourself.

This post is part of the #CrowdfundingCrashCourse series. You can find the entire series of interviews and summary posts here.