What is Kickstarter and how does it work

Kickstarter is a crowd funding platform that connects creators and backers from all the over the world to bring new ideas to life. The famous Pebble watch was launched as a Kickstarter project and is still the most funded project ever. Let's dive right in then.

Creator

Any individual/company who has a new product idea but doesn't have enough funds of his/her own. He/she submits his product in Kickstarter to collect funds from the members of Kickstarter.

Backer

Member of Kickstarter who funds the project(s) of his/her liking. If you back a project, you become a backer. Your money is collected only if the project is successfully funded at the end of the campaign. Your money is not collected if the project is:

• Unsuccessful - not funded within the deadline.
• Canceled - creator cancels the project.
• Suspended - creator violated the Kickstarter rules.

Project

The creator submits his new idea as a project on Kickstarter, with the following info:

• Goal - minimum amount needed for the project, e.g. $5000.
• Days - number of days by which the goal should be reached, e.g. 30 days. 
• Details - Usually the creator submits the project with a demo video and a detailed description, sometimes accompanied by a working prototype.
• Risks & challenges - risks involved and how the creator plans to overcome them.
• Faq - general questions and answers about the idea/product.

If the goal is reached within the given days, the project is considered as a success. Once successfully funded, the creator uses the funds to manufacture the product and ships it to the backers on a later date. The product is usually delivered in 2-6 months since successful completion. The delivery date is mentioned in every project and most of the projects come with a detailed timeline, since the idea's inception to delivery date.

Pledge levels

The creator usually provides different options to back the project. The product is initially provided at a cheaper price to attract more backers and at a different price as more backers join.

Let's see with an illustration where the expected retail price of the product is $129.

• Super Early Bird - Cheapest. $59 and limited to 50 backers.
• Early Bird - $69 and limited to 100.
• Kickstarter Special - $89 for all other backers.

You can see that as more backers join, the price increases but still less compared to the retail price when it hits the market. As the creator sells to the backers directly without middleman, the product is sold at a cheaper price.

My Favorite Projects

ZeTime - World's first hybrid smartwatch

Ori-Kit - The ultimate small space kitchen solution




IllumiBowl - Anti-germ toilet night light



The Everyday Watch - an affordable minimalist watch

I backed this project and received the watch on 02-May-2017. Hence I can personally vouch for it. It's a great looking watch at an affordable price.

Pro-Tips

• Let's say you want to back a project but only Early Bird (EB) option is available and all the cheapest Super Early Bird (SEB) are already taken. Initially back it at EB price but keep checking regularly as any of the SEB backer might cancel it. Once the slot is open, you can change your pledge to SEB. Usually backers cancel their funding in the last few hours of the project.
• There's always risk involved with crowd funding. Do some basic background check about the creator before you back a project or funding is collected. It's your money after all and hence your responsibility to ensure that your money is in safe hands. If the creator has already created successful projects and honored them, he/she is most likely to deliver as promised.

Kickstarter is also a great place to stay up to date with innovative products and future trends. So what are you waiting for? Join Kickstarter right away to create/back awesome projects.


I'm not affiliated to Kickstarter in any way, except as a normal member with immense interest for new ideas.