[bctt tweet=”Only show your idea’s best sides. via @TrinketTom” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
Kickstarter campaigns are just specialized game marketing. You still need a strong hook, great presentation, and keen understanding of your competitors. Your video should therefore be professional, fast-paced, and short. Get straight to the gameplay and don’t let up. Each viewer should finish the video excited about what they just saw, not bored. Don’t give them reasons not to back the game – only show your idea’s best sides.

Tom Eastman, President of Trinket studios.

[bctt tweet=”The top mistake I see Kickstarter creators make is only researching success stories. via @tanyaxshort” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
The top mistake I see Kickstarter creators make is only researching success stories. Look up Survivorship Bias and then tell me how many games you’ve found that are similar to yours in some way, yet failed. Those are the campaigns you will learn the most from! For Moon Hunters research, we looked at failed RPGs, failed indies, failed pixel art projects, and failed multiplayer games, and it was a treasure trove of knowledge.

Tanya Short, Creative Director at Kitfox Games.

[bctt tweet=”We spent 2 whole months preparing for the launch. via @LindseyDHandley” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
The more you can prepare ahead of time, the more time you can spend doing productive things when the Kickstarter actually launches, like answering backer questions and promoting the campaign! We spent 2 whole months preparing for the launch.

Lindsey Handley, Co-Founder & COO at ThoughtSTEM.

[bctt tweet=”You’re not selling people your game, you’re selling them your Kickstarter. via @grumpygamer” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
You’re not selling people your game, you’re selling them your Kickstarter. Don’t make your Kickstarter page an extended back of the box. Sell them a dream, not a game.

Ron Gilbert, designing, writing and programming on Thimbleweed Park.

This can be said not only for Kickstarter campaigns, but anything you’re trying to sell to someone. People buy the vision, not the product. An excellent video by Simon Sinek masterfully covers this.

Think of the last Kickstarter you backed, or at least thought of backing. Were you sold on the game’s features/mechanics, or the vision behind it?

[bctt tweet=”Develop a working proof of concept before starting your campaign. via @StoicStudios” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
Develop a working proof of concept of the game you plan on crowd funding before starting your campaign. It will help you understand the scope of the project and whether or not it’s attainable by your team. Prospective supporters will get a good look at what you plan to develop and if the campaign doesn’t succeed then it’s good to know before you drop a year or more into developing something that no one wants.

Once the campaign is underway be sure not to over-promise on any stretch goals. It’s easy to get carried away when you see money coming in, but it’s the path to under delivering. Good luck!

Arnie Jorgensen, Art Director at Stoic Studios

[bctt tweet=”We hit the publish button on the campaign, and that’s where the real learning began. via @SteamrollerStds” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
We had the benefit/curse of running a failed Kickstarter and a successful Kickstarter for the same project, back-to-back with-in a couple of weeks of each other. We did a ton of research before the first campaign, almost 6 months of worth of prep work. We knew you had to present a very polished presentation in order to sell our game to our prospective donors. We hit the publish button on the campaign, and that’s where the real learning began.

Keith Lackey, Technical Supervisor & Co-Founder of Steamroller Studios

[bctt tweet=”Don’t overlap with any major gaming events that might draw attention away from your campaign. via @CompulsionGames” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
Don’t, for the love of god, start, end or otherwise do a video game Kickstarter in the week before or during E3. Or, more broadly, make sure you don’t overlap with any major gaming events that might draw attention away from your campaign.

* I was given permission to use the above quote by Naila Hadjas of Compulsion Games

[bctt tweet=”Be honest, direct, and don’t be afraid to say no. via @mitchgit” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
Hit your Kickstarter Comments page every day to answer questions and be present. You’ll get a lot of suggestions and requests that have the potential to really help your campaign but might really hurt your development efforts – after all, most people don’t know how game development really works (and if they did, they’re run screaming).

If you take the time to explain why you can’t or won’t take a piece of feedback, your communication will feel more transparent, your credibility will increase, and more folks will be able to share the information on your behalf.

Mitch Gitelman, Co-Founder & Studio Manager at Harebrained Schemes

[bctt tweet=”Don’t underestimate the amount of work a Kickstarter requires. via @JarMustard” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
Don’t underestimate the amount of work a Kickstarter requires – Not just the preparations, but work during and after the campaign. Unless you have a sizable team or help managing the campaign, it’s unlikely you’ll be able to continue development at your natural speed.

Justin Ma, Co-Founder at Subset Games

[bctt tweet=”It’s critically important to build at least a small audience before launching your campaign. via @tylersigman” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
It’s critically important to build at least a small audience before launching your campaign. Find a way to get some people on your mailing list, FB page, or Twitter, so at least a couple hundred know about your campaign the moment it goes live. We did this with a teaser trailer we circulated months earlier.

Tyler Sigman, Executive Producer & Game Designer at Red Hook Studios

[bctt tweet=”The first thing on your list should be to back somebody’s project. via @wizard_fu” url=”http://bit.ly/1Uoywib” via=”no”]
The first thing on your list should be to back somebody’s project. Go browse the video games until you find something that you would like to play. Back the project at the level you are comfortable with, then sit back and watch what they do. Take note of what you like, read all the updates and make comments. Reflect on what motivated you to become a backer.

Nathanael Weiss, Founder & Game Developer at Wizard Fu Games