8 Considerations to Make Before Backing a Crowdfunding Campaign

Whether or not you are familiar with Kickstarter or other crowdfunding sites, it can help to run through a few considerations to see whether a campaign you are looking at would be a good one to back. It is also important to consider which risks you are willing to accept before backing a campaign.

While we can’t guarantee that you will be happy with what you back, we do find the items mentioned below a great way to figure out which campaign we will feel comfortable backing ourselves.

1. Type of Product

The very first thing I consider is the type of product they are requesting funding for. Not only does this ensure that I want to spend my money on whatever they are offering, but it also gives me insight into potential future risks. You have to consider which stages of development and fulfillment remain, as well as any other issues that could arise depending on the product type.

Here at Absurdist, we have experience working with manufacturers for our games and draw on industry knowledge. We know the schedule, quality, and what to expect at all stages of the supply chain - from manufacturing to shipping to fulfillment. We stay on top of news and current issues to ensure we are familiar with anything that could delay our campaign and are completely transparent about anything that may come up.

2. Completion Level of Product

This consideration provides some of the most important data, in my opinion. It helps me determine whether the product will be any good and what the campaign/fulfillment process will look like.

When reviewing their campaign, I look to see:

When they started working on the project,
How much of the project is completed,
If any product testing has been done, and how much - Learn the Four Phases of Playtesting here!,
Are they working with contractors (artists, developers, etc) currently, or still needing to find them,
What do they plan on spending the Kickstarter funds on,
What they have listed or shared in their FAQ,
How they respond in the comments and with Updates,
What risks have they identified on the campaign page,
Or anything else that could slow down the process once they have the funds.

I can often find this information on the Kickstarter campaign page itself. If the campaign doesn’t answer these questions and give me a good idea of its level of completion, I will send the creator a message to ask.

Here at Absurdist: When we go to Kickstarter with a game, it's ready to go. We have playtested more times than we can count (though we do have a count), the art, graphics, components, and pricing are done. The rulebook is typically done or nearly done. We like to keep testing the rules until we can’t test them any longer, to make sure they are as easy to follow and understand as possible. We need funding to turn all of that into an actual game you can bring to your next game night. If there is anything outside of manufacturing that depends on funding, we do our best to share that information in the campaign.

3. Company’s Track Record

I will click into the company’s information to see if they have created any other campaigns before the current one. I look to see if it was successful, fulfilled, and how long it took to be fulfilled. You can typically tell this by looking at updates the creators have made and comments from backers.

This gives you a general idea of how the company will handle the campaign you are considering backing. If they have experience, you can rest a bit easier knowing they’ve done this before and fulfilled their obligations. If they don’t have experience, you may be a bit more cautious, and I think a lot of the other things listed here can help determine whether you want to support them.

Here at Absurdist, we have multiple successful campaigns across multiple crowdfunding platforms, and we have fulfilled all of them either on time or slightly early. Something we really pride ourselves on. While we are always creating, designing, and developing games, we only create and fulfill one campaign at a time. We do this to ensure that we are not spread too thin or end up in a position that prevents us from delivering on our promises.

4. The Pledge Levels

This might sound like a weird thing to consider, but it is a very big part of crowdfunding and directly impacts the timeline. The pledge levels can include a variety of rewards that encourage you to purchase at different levels, which means some pledges are a bit more exclusive than others. If any part of a pledge is not yet completed, expect the timeline to extend, and understand that some issues may arise after the campaign has ended.

Image of pledge levels from a Backerkit campaign

We know this one firsthand. Our first successful campaign was Churrascaria, and we had a pledge level that allowed folks to have their likeness added to the cards in the game. It was a very successful pledge level, and it has made our game really unique and meaningful. We were able to add more diversity to the characters in our game while showing off folks who supported us, which is very important to us as a company. However, the artist experienced health issues, which forced us to extend our timeline beyond our expectations. We were thankful that we could give the artist the space she needed to recover and that we had understanding backers throughout the process. Thankfully, we had also planned for some delays in our timeline, but this pushed us to the edge.

Here at Absurdist, the potential delay in fulfilling our campaign is a major factor in determining pledge levels. We want to provide pledge levels that are fun and get backers excited to play our game. We also want to make sure that, to the best of our knowledge, everything we do will be accounted for when providing a timeline for the campaign.

5. The Add-Ons and Stretch Goals

When determining the goal for a campaign, creators will usually choose the cheapest possible version of the game they produce while still meeting a minimum level of quality. Stretch goals are then used to improve the quality of game components and to add content that would otherwise have been costly to include. This might mean custom meeples or minis, or double-thick player boards. It could also include additional playable content, like more cards and factions.

Add-ons often include premium components that are not required for a quality game, such as metal coins or wooden tokens instead of chipboard. In some cases, add-ons may not be relevant to gameplay at all, such as stickers, pins, and plushies. It is important to note that while most pledge levels tend to include stretch goals, add-ons are additional costs that the backer pays after the campaign has successfully funded.

When looking at the add-ons and stretch goals, I try to determine how they will impact my enjoyment of the game. Will the game be a solid, quality game even if no stretch goals are met? Will the stretch goals enhance the gameplay? Are the add-ons necessary for gameplay, or are they fun extras? Are they premium components or something else that will enhance my experience with the game?

Here at Absurdist, we believe that the base game we create should be the highest quality we can achieve. We love premium components like acrylic tokens, but we want to offer high-quality games at an affordable price. Our stretch goals and add-ons are often extras and can include a wide variety of items with different goals. Some make the game feel more premium, like fancy tokens or playmats, and some are just for fun, like stickers. But all of them are designed to enhance your enjoyment of our games without sacrificing quality if we don’t meet all the stretch goals.

6. Updates and Comments

I look at the comments mostly to see how responsive the company is and how often they are responding. I also look at what the backers are saying, what kinds of questions they are asking and what the answers are, what positive things people are saying about the product, what negative things they are saying, and how the company is handling that. For me, this is similar to seeing reviews on a website before making a purchase.

I also look at the updates to see what kind of information they are sharing and how often. I want to see how engaged they are with their community. If they have prior campaigns, I’ll check them and see how often they updated their backers there, too. My golden rule is that an update once a month after the campaign has ended is the bare minimum, but I prefer to see more when the campaign is stretched out longer than expected.

Here at Absurdist, we aim to provide monthly updates after the campaign, but will provide them more frequently as needed. During the campaign, we will update sporadically and as often as necessary to share information. We do our best to keep everyone in the loop so they always know what’s going on and where the game stands. Of course you have to balance that against sending so many updates that you annoy people.

7. Connection With The Company

Do I know the owners? Do I know someone who knows the owners? If so, this tends to make me feel a bit more comfortable with supporting them; however, this one is the least impactful for me. I do enjoy checking out their social media, website, and other spaces to see who they are, what they stand for, and what's important to them. Also, at conventions I like to try to meet people whose games I’ve backed and enjoyed.

Here at Absurdist, we love connecting with our community, and if you love board games, we’d love to invite you to hang out with us!

8. Your Excitement Level

Are you excited to receive the item? Are you excited to support the creators? These are important factors when determining who to give your money to and shouldn’t be overlooked. I find that it’s much easier to handle any timeline or fulfillment glitches when you are really excited about the item and creators.

Also, in this category, consider how understanding you’ll be if something goes wrong. These creators are not large businesses with vast resources and a dedicated supply chain. They are all doing the absolute best they can to bring their creations to life and, hopefully, bring their business one step closer to becoming what they hope and dream it will be.

Here at Absurdist, we hope you are as excited about the games we create as we are to share them with you. Our biggest mission is to get solid, fun, amazing games onto your game table for you and your gaming groups to enjoy.