It’s been said before, but it bears repeating: Starting a crowdfunding campaign can be a complete hit-or-miss. Some become absurdly successful, and manage to raise upwards of ten times their original goal. While others, however, flop and fail to raise any substantial amount — or any money at all. Still, looking at the different ideas and the Kickstarter pages that describe them, it becomes clear that there is a trick to starting a successful personalised t-shirt campaign. People look for specific things when they are considering pledging money to an idea that only currently exists conceptually. It is tough to place, but there is a certain flair to those pages that actually manage to raise their desired amount.
Basic Elements that make a great Kickstarter Campaign
Shoot an Amazing Video
For one thing, any good campaign must have a great video. In this world of low attention spans, people need something good-looking that they can digest easily and quickly. Only after watching an attention-grabbing video will your potential investor go on to read more about your product.
Create Attractive Visuals
Another essential part of any good Kickstarter is plenty of pictures and visualisations of your design. Again, people would rather look at a picture or video than have to utilise their brains and actually read something.
Come up With an Original Idea
It almost goes without saying, but you also must have a good idea. No one wants to invest in your campaign to drink a Red Bull in every state across the US, or to create dog treats that people can eat, so come up with something that others will actually care about.
Other than these things, making a successful Kickstarter should be a walk in the park, right?
The Best Kickstarter Clothing Campaigns Ever Funded
To show you how successful some people have been, (and what your page should look like if you want to actually raise money), here are some of the all-time best crowd funded clothing projects, like personalising t-shirts.
#10 The 10-year hoodie
A sweatshirt can be a person’s best friend. Not only are they perfect for wearing in any casual setting, but I would also say that the right hoodie can be the comfiest piece of clothing in your wardrobe. That being said, for those that know the terrible feeling of having to throw out a sweatshirt because it is ripped or too worn, Flint and Tinder has made a hoodie with a guarantee that it will last a decade. You can even send it back to them if something happens within the ten-year life span, and they will repair it. As the first clothing Kickstarter to reach one million dollars, this campaign is a perfect example for how to crowd fund the right way.
#9 Uniform – World’s softest tee
Uniform is a campaign with a cause. They have created what they are calling the world’s softest T-shirt, which is something I think most people can get behind. Even better, for every shirt they sell, they also donate a school uniform to a child in Liberia who cannot afford it. On top of that, the tees are made by mothers in Africa’s first fair-trade factory. Buying this garment will make you feel good, inside and out. We support their cause. Cheers to you, Uniform.
#8 STANTT: Shirts with revolutionary Fit
With the intention of revolutionising shirt sizing, Stantt has devoted itself to finding a way to create a garment that will fit everyone perfectly. They found the solution by creating over fifty sizes of their casual button-downs. By offering so many different versions, they claim that there is bound to be a perfect piece for anyone — including you. The company has managed to raise almost ten times their goal, gaining their spot on this list.
#7 Silic: The T-shirt that cleans itself
We all know the feeling of putting on our favourite T-shirt and feeling great, only to spill a drink all over it. Fortunately, Silic has created a spill-proof tee that will save our clumsy selves from ruining our beloved garment. The fabric is entirely hydrophobic, meaning it repels liquids and that it literally cannot be stained. Their Kickstarter raised just under $300,000, which far surpassed their goal of $20,000. Clothing like this could be the way of the future, so definitely consider hopping aboard the bandwagon now.
#6 Baubax Travel Jacket
Baubax has created an amazing hoodie that has literally everything you could need while traveling. It has a pillow in the hood, an iPad pocket, gloves built in to the sleeves, and much more. The project is the most funded clothing project in the history of Kickstarter, so they clearly did something right. It also comes in a windbreaker, blazer, and bomber style if you want to switch it up. Either way, this is the perfect thing to have with you on a plane or a long train ride.
[content_band bg_color=”#E8F6D2″ border=”all”] [container]Do you have your very own T-shirt brand? Would you like to delegate the production and inventory stuff – for free? ? That’s right, Printsome’s Print on Demand services are free for a limited time. Join now![/container] [/content_band]#5 Urbane
Urbane Camo is an all over printed, mock suit and tie T-shirt which claims to be “one of the greatest T-shirt lines of all time.” Its strength is in its versatility: with the amount of design options to choose from you can almost guarantee a unique T-shirt every time. The T-shirts are available in all sizes, junior and adult, although I don’t suggest they make so many of the adult ones.
#4 Hanky Hank
Hanky Hank is a curious, little animated chap who seems to solve the problems of everyday Americans through Youtube videos. Now it seems he is keen to get his face on some tees too, and “nothing says I’m awesome like a Hanky Hank T-shirt.” Tru’ dat!
#3 One for the Wall
The only English project in this list, One for the Wall is the brainchild of Fred Wordie who is, at the tender age of 18, quite simply an incredible illustrator. Don’t let the low budget video put you off, these designs really are worth a look.
#2 Planet Money
Planet Money are a group of multimedia reporters who cover the global economy. Ok, that doesn’t sound like the hotbed of creative designers you might expect from a ‘Top 5’ list, but these guys have a really cool idea for an interactive T-shirt and Alex is clearly the joker of the pack, classic phone gag.
#1 Litographs
In the top spot, and hands down winner of best-in-show, is Litographs. Honestly, if this was crufts, creator Danny Fein would be running around that green mat wearing his beautifully designed tee with pride. The idea is simple: they take a classic book and print the whole story onto a T-shirt. Not just an extract, we are talking every single word arranged into a beautiful design that represents the book. I was clearly not the only one taken with this project: of his $15,000 goal, Danny received over $100,000. Wow.
Anyone who has tried to start a crowdfunding campaign knows that although it may seem easy, it really has to be done just the right way to actually be successful. People need to trust that they are not throwing their money away, and are supporting something that will not fail. The lucky souls that made it to this list did everything right. As the saying goes, lead by example, and so to all future clothing Kickstarters, this is the way to do it.
Are there other Kickstarter campaigns that you think should be on this list? Then let us know in the comments below, in the meantime keep reading the Printsome Blog for more awesome content.
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