Kickstarter.com has become a popular website for UT students looking to fund their creative ideas.
This site has gained recent popularity because it is a “crowdfunding platform,” and serves as a “meeting place for entrepreneurs and investors,” according to The New York Times.
Senior marketing major, Dima Shemberev agreed with this claim. It’s an “option to generate capital for your venture” without needing to have any money upfront.
Kickstarter has a solid marketing platform, according to Shemberev, which makes it desirable to a “specific segment of the market.”
The Kickstarter process is simple. First, the creator makes a Kickstarter page, showcasing his or her idea or product. The creator must set a goal for the amount of money to be raised and the deadline the money must be raised by. That’s when the page becomes open to the public.
Then people called “backers” can pledge money towards the project––no matter if it’s $1 or $50,000. In exchange for the support, creators must give something to the backer. Shirts, wallets, and personalized “thank you” notes are some of the most popular items offered, according to Kickstarter.
At the end of the deadline, a project is either considered successful or unsuccessful depending on if the creator raised enough money to meet his or her goal.
UT graduate George Hamilton is currently funding his own project, Hollywood Hamilton Clothing, through Kickstarter.
Hamilton, who considers himself an entrepreneur, chose Kickstarter because he thought it would help “take [his] company in the next direction and at a faster pace.” Hamilton first heard about Kickstarter through Entrepreneur Magazine and decided to research the company.
When it comes to creating successful projects, Kickstarter considers itself an elite.
Kickstarter claims to have helped 56,000 creative projects become successful since its launch in 2009. Kickstarter records show that over 5.6 million people have pledged $980 million to fund individual projects on this platform.
One of Kickstarter’s most successful projects was “The Veronica Mars Movie Project.” Its creator, Rob Thomas, originally set his goal at $2 million in order to create a movie based on the hit television show. By the end of the deadline, Thomas raised over $5 million through the support of 91,585 backers. Currently, this project is the third highest-funded project in Kickstarter history.
Some of the best things about Kickstarter stem from its usefulness to small companies, said Hamilton. “People have the chance to look at your products and the attitude the company is portraying and make critiques,” Hamilton continued.
In the same sense, Hamilton likes that the site gives his products the opportunity to “showcase themselves” to those who view his page. This way, according to Hamilton, young entrepreneurs and smaller companies can be taken more seriously by potential customers and businesses.
However, Kickstarter is not a risk-free platform.
If a project is unsuccessful, the creator will not receive any of the funds earned––even if “you raise $1 less than your project goal,” Hamilton said.
Hamilton thinks that having an unsuccessful Kickstarter project “hurts more” than having a project with no money pledged because “you know your product had caught the attention of a particular market segment but it just wasn’t strong enough.”
Currently, Hollywood Hamilton Clothing is 68 percent funded, with eight days left to fund the project.
Danielle Carpenter can be reached at danielle.carpenter@spartans.ut.edu
Kickstarter is a great resource!