

The Kickstarter Delusion - sirvaliance
http://blog.sirvaliance.com/post/30910379086/the-kickstarter-delusion

======
james-skemp
"In the entire world, I am sure there are at least 300 people that would
gamble on a $10 digital download to see if I could make, at least out of the
100 minutes I promise, 30 minutes of music they like. I know those people are
out there, but fuck if I know how to find them."

I'm sure a lot of very large, successful, companies would like the answer to
that as well.

It sounds like you don't have a following yet, and I think you're trying to
cut out the hard work of building an audience, hoping instead that someone
else (Kickstarter) will do the marketing for you.

Note, I'm not trying to be mean, but I'm coming at it from the perspective of
someone who has watched people struggle with music, video, comedy before
finding supports. And most of the time they started out (or are still) doing
stuff for free.

I wish you the best, but if you really are niche, try putting your stuff out
there for free first. Yeah, it sucks, but as an artist I think a part of you,
if you're in to it, would be willing to sacrifice for your art.

~~~
james-skemp
And I just read your Kickstarter.

You're going at this completely wrong. From what I read, you're expecting
failure. There's over three weeks left, but the day you wrote the text for
Kickstarter you knew it was going to fail.

I don't know you, so you can ignore me, but I'd recommend asking yourself why
you posted this if you don't expect to meet your goal?

Is this something you'd love to do, or just something to do so you don't have
to worry about working (since it doesn't sound like you're putting effort into
this)?

And I realize that may come off a little harsh, but I'm actually pretty upset
about this. You don't have a fan base, you haven't proven yourself, but you
expect Kickstarter to help you out?

Set yourself up to win, not fail. Do what your current situation allows, and
put your all into that which you wish to occur.

~~~
sirvaliance
Don't be defensive, I think you are right and the feedback helps.

Confidence is something I have never had. The truth is I poured a long time
into writing and developing the concept and idea. Years of learning how to
properly write and record music.

I need to revise the Kickstarter. I didn't know it was going to fail, but as
some sort of defense mechanism I think I wrote it that way.

In a way, I think I gave up before I even gave it a chance. Maybe I need to
push much harder than give in a few days after it started.

Once again, thank you for the feedback :)

~~~
james-skemp
"In a way, I think I gave up before I even gave it a chance. Maybe I need to
push much harder than give in a few days after it started."

Yes!

And you might be niche, but I'm sure there's similar music. Find those groups,
and get your music out there.

I've found a deal of stuff on <http://soundcloud.com/> (based on equipment
you're looking for, you may be aware). Again, they won't do your marketing for
you, but get your stuff out there.

Don't spam, but find people who do something similar and ask if they can give
a listen and provide feedback.

And if the Kickstarter fails, give it some time. Do what you can to get what
you need. Keep producing, and try it again.

If you love it, if you fall, you'll get back up and try it again. It hurts,
but it makes success that much nicer :D

