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The advent of platforms like Kickstarter has been a boon for aspiring game developers. They no longer have to bow to the whims of publishers or risk massive amounts of personal debt. Now, through these platforms, they can market their products to their potential customers directly and ask them directly for funds and support.

But while these Kickstarter projects seem lucrative, these campaigns are not guaranteed to succeed, with many potential products failing to get ahold of an audience or just not being attractive enough to gather a potential crowd.

Avoid these crowdfunding mistakes, and learn how to successfully start a crowdfunded project by following these essential steps for success.

1) Have a solid plan to follow and a clear, concrete aim for your project.

The most important step to any Kickstarter project is to go into the project with a plan in mind. Whether it’s releasing a small-budget title or creating a bigger, more expensive type of project, your audience (and your team) needs to have an idea of just what kind of product you’re aiming to release.

A detailed plan like this is important for many reasons. Internally, it helps you pace your development teams, helps you avoid burnout, and gives you the chance to manage how fast they need to work each day. For your audience, though, it helps give them an impression of your work's quality. A more detailed plan inspires more confidence and gives them a better metric for the quality of your project.

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Don’t underestimate how important good impressions can be. Prepare appropriately, and put your best foot forward at all times.

2) Know your audience and the market you plan to go into.

After you set up your project, it’s important to identify the type of audience you’re appealing to. Are you aiming for a more retro crowd? Is your game a more modern one, with all the bells and whistles one can expect from a newer title style?

These might seem like small things, but identifying your target audience is half the battle. Your crowdfunding campaign is dependent on inspiring people to fund your project. The best way to do that is to appeal to a specific audience and to cater to their expectations. While it might be tempting to try and snag a bigger crowd, remember that trying to appeal to everyone just means you end up pleasing no one. Stick to a specific audience’s likes and dislikes and go from there.

3) Create content that appeals to your target demographic. Engage and entertain.

Now that you know your target audience, the next step is to create the excitement and hype necessary to attract them to your project. The best way to do this is to create content. Get their eyes on your project. Create gameplay footage and trailers that are interesting. Make your art team create interesting posts and your marketing team some catchy slogans to keep the internet entertained. Engage your community and keep them interested at all times.

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While it might be tempting to let your product’s quality speak for itself when it’s done, remember that your kickstarted projects are at your audience's whims. If they don’t hear about your project or don’t think it’s interesting, it won’t be funded. Do your best to keep your target market interested, or your project will fail.

4) Build a community. Learn to market and engage. Communicate.

Once you’ve made some marketing hype, capitalize on it. Engage them directly, and do your best to address their concerns. Kickstarted projects thrive off of constant communication, and the last impression your audience needs is to think the money they used to fund their project will go to waste. Keep their confidence at an all-time high. Otherwise, you might see some refund requests come in. 

5) Create stretch goals that are understandable, affordable, and realistic.

Once you’re ready to put your project on the platform, be ready to create understandable stretch goals your audience is supposed to hit. By giving them a clear idea of how you plan to use their money, you give them a chance to give their input directly by speaking with their wallet. Use this opportunity to show them that the more they’re willing to fund your project, the more features you’re willing to add.

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Additionally, more expensive reward tiers are a good way to monetize your audience’s fancy. Plenty of people are willing to spend money on projects that promise them extra goodies and incentives for spending more. Things like special editions, physical media like figures and books, and even thank-yous at the end of credit sequences are good ways to give back to the more generous members of your audience.

Don’t go overboard with your promises, though. These stretch goals are supposed to incentivize them to fund your project, but if you can’t deliver on them, it’s better not to promise it all. The last thing you want to do is to give them a reason to doubt your capabilities.

6)  Deliver!

Once your project is on the way, remember to deliver! The last thing you want to do is to disappoint your audience. Reward their faith in you by giving them the content and quality you promised to deliver.

Here at Mega Cat Studios, we're no strangers to Kickstarter. Right now, we're in the midst of a campaign for "Flap Happy," an 8-bit avian roguelike platformer for the NES and GameBoy, developed by Refresh Games. But that's not all - we've got more exciting stuff in store. Keep tabs on us for updates on our upcoming projects.

Managing Kickstarter campaigns can certainly be a challenge. However, they offer invaluable flexibility for game developers like us when it comes to handling project budgets. Despite the hurdles they may present, the rewards of navigating through them are worth it.

But what about you? How do you, as a game developer, feel about Kickstarter? Let us know what you think on Discord. We’re always glad to hold discussions and to share in the experiences of other budding game developers. Gaming is our passion, and indie devs must stick together to see the hobby we love flourish.

This article was written by Alexander Cuaycong.