How to run a successful crowdfunding campaign

I started writing this blog nine years ago after moving to Berlin. I’ve written around 90 posts covering all sorts of topics, from German parenting styles to Brexit, from street art to the Berlin film festival and, most recently, about life in lockdown and life after lockdown. But of all the posts I’ve written over the years, there is one that stands out for number of views. It is the piece I wrote at the beginning of last year about my crowdfunding campaign to publish a book. Incidentally, that was the only entry for 2019, since my time and energy were entirely devoted to the campaign and to the book (spoiler alert: a crowdfunding campaign is extremely time consuming). As this is clearly a topic of interest, I’ve decided to share my personal experience and views on crowdfunding.

Was it worth it?

The short answer is yes. For me it was worth running a crowdfunding campaign. Having said this, there are many downsides to crowdfunding and, in some instances, it might be preferable to find an alternative. 

In my case, the goal was to get a book published. In order to reach publication and to start the editing process, I needed 200 pre-orders of the paper book or of the e-book in 100 days. That meant convincing roughly 200 people to pay in advance for a book that might never see the light of day. 

I should point out that if the campaign had ended with fewer than 60 orders, the supporters would have been reimbursed. With 60-200 orders, my manuscript would undergo a “light editing” process. It would be printed and sent to my supporters, but not published.

Luckily my crowdfunding campaign was successful: I reached the goal while on holiday on a small and windy island in the North Sea with poor Internet connection (that's where the picture was taken). The book was published in January 2020.

 

Is there anything I wish I had known beforehand?

There are various reasons why you might want to start a crowdfunding campaign and, depending on your project (a book, an album, a film, a start-up, etc.), there are different platforms you can use and different amounts of money you can raise. Some people use crowdfunding to raise funds for medical costs. If you have no experience of crowdfunding, you may be wondering what all the fuss is about. There are numerous websites, articles, videos and books devoted to crowdfunding. Obviously, there are huge differences depending on the type of project and on the goal, but I would say that any crowdfunding campaign will require a lot of time and energy. 

Before I started, I don’t think I realised how much work it would be. Moreover, I had no idea how difficult it would be to persuade and motivate people. Finally, I had not considered the costs of promoting a campaign (for example, for printing flyers or, in my case, postcards and organising events). It really was a full-time job and I ended up with repetitive strain injury caused by overusing my hands for typing and clicking!

Before you embark on a crowdfunding campaign, ask yourself: 

Do I really have time and energy for this? 

Do I want to be in the spotlight for the entire duration of the campaign?

What is my budget?

What was the best part of the crowdfunding campaign?

I think the best way to describe a crowdfunding campaign is as a roller coaster ride. There is never a dull moment, with plenty of ups and downs. For me the positives far outweighed the negatives. The support I received from family and friends was tremendous. And, as well as being in close contact with almost all my friends, I also made new friends thanks to the crowdfunding campaign.

Tips on how to run a successful crowdfunding campaign

• First of all, you need to establish whether your goal is realistic. I’m not suggesting you shouldn’t aim high, but you should try to aim for something that is achievable. In my case, it was realistic, but it wasn’t easy. The main difficulty I faced was trying to promote a book written in Italian, while living in Germany. Though I have a lot of Italian friends and my parents still live in Italy, I haven’t lived in Italy since I was 18. And although Berlin has a big Italian community, many of the people I know don’t speak Italian. So, the language was a problem. Still, I’m not sure that it would have been easier if the book had been in English, as many of my friends are not fluent in English. Writing in German is not an option as my language skills are inadequate (I’m not being modest). I’m especially grateful to friends and family members who supported my campaign, particularly those whose Italian language skills are very basic.

• Your project needs to sound appealing to a wide audience. Obviously, there is no point running a crowdfunding campaign for something that generates little or no interest. Just because I read a lot of books, doesn’t mean that everyone else does. Some people don’t read any books at all, as I’ve discovered.  

• You need a strong supporter base, by that I mean friends and family, work colleagues, sports friends, friends of friends, anyone that will support you and help you to achieve your goal. Once you have established your core supporters, you need to expand your network. I contacted hundreds of people: nursery and school friends, university friends, work colleagues, neighbours, parents and teachers from my son’s nursery school and primary school, random strangers, people I met at book presentations and bookshops, people I met at cafés, basically anyone who came to mind or I happened to meet.

• You and your campaign need to be visible, so it definitely helps if you are a sociable person with lots of friends and contacts, both in real life and in the digital world. You also need to be enthusiastic about the project and be as persuasive as possible. I have no experience in politics, but at times it felt like being on the campaigning trail. Think of yourself as a politician: you need to be visible, convincing and win people’s support. Tell everyone you know about your crowdfunding campaign and organise events to promote it. I invited my friends in Berlin for an aperitivo to promote the launch of the campaign. I gave a little speech about the project, the crowdfunding campaign and I read the first pages of the book. About a month before the end of the campaign, I gave a party for friends and supporters. As well as providing music, food and drink, I also read some extracts from the book. When the book was finally published, I gave a presentation at the Italian bookshop in Berlin and had a little party with friends and family. I was lucky that I didn’t have to face the Covid restrictions, but you can also organise digital events and presentations.

• Social media is indispensable. If you hate using Facebook, Instagram and the like, then perhaps you should reconsider. If I hadn’t had social media, I wouldn’t have been able to reach my goal. Having said that, I’m not one of those people with thousands of Facebook friends and when I started the campaign, I didn’t have many followers on Instagram. I still don’t have that many followers, but I have a few more than I did 18 months ago. Make sure you post content on a regular basis to generate and keep up interest around your campaign and to find new supporters.

• You need to be patient. Even if people sound genuinely enthusiastic about your project, they won’t all rush to your crowdfunding website. Some may forget, some may simply be too busy, some may wish to spend their money elsewhere. Some may need a gentle reminder or two, while others will never get round to it. Some people struggle with technology and online orders. You will have to be patient and guide them through the process. You will probably find that not everyone is convinced that crowdfunding is a good idea, especially in publishing, and some people will refuse to support you on principle. In that case, just accept their opinion and look for supporters elsewhere. 

• Try to keep an open mind and don’t be afraid of experimenting and of stepping outside your comfort zone. If one approach doesn’t work, try something new. I’m not very comfortable with videos, but I did make one to explain what the crowdfunding campaign was about. One friend suggested posting pictures of animals to attract interest, but that didn’t work in my case. What did work, was a postcard that another friend designed, and which became the image of the campaign. It showed an ironic sentence taken from the book and an eye-catching picture to accompany it. Handing out the postcard to people I met was a good way of introducing my book campaign to them and arousing their curiosity. I also left some postcards in Italian cafés in my area and in an Italian bookshop. They disappeared pretty quickly.  

• Don’t give up. Try to remain positive and to stay calm and focused. There will be bad days, but hopefully they will be followed by better days. Even if you don’t reach the goal in the end, be proud of what you have achieved.

Good luck, or as they say in German, viel Erfolg (literally “lots of success”)!

If anyone would like to read my book, Liberate Lina Pellica, you can find it at Mondolibro, the Italian bookshop in Berlin Mitte, you can order it from most bookshops in Italy, you can order it from the publisher and you can also buy it on Amazon. It is also available as an e-book.

Aha! The new normal

The summer in Berlin ended two weeks ago, when thermometers recorded a spectacular drop of 20°C. One day we were heading to lakes and outdoor pools for relief from the heat and the next we were rummaging through our wardrobes for cardigans and raincoats. Although the summer is technically not over yet, there is an autumnal feel in the air. The mornings have turned decidedly chilly, while the fallen leaves on the ground are getting more noticeable. As the coronavirus summer ends, the coronavirus autumn begins.

Aha!

Some of us were lucky enough to enjoy a proper summer break, perhaps even going abroad, while others opted for a staycation. For most of us, though, the holiday time is over and it’s back to old routines, well not quite. The new normal in Germany is represented by the AHA rules. In this case Aha is not an exclamation to express satisfaction or surprise - Aha! So that’s how you defeat coronavirus! - and it also doesn’t stand for alpha-hydroxy acid. Moreover, it doesn't refer to the Norwegian pop band that was popular in the eighties (Take on meee!). In the year 2020, AHA is an abbreviation of Abstand (distance), Hygiene (hygiene) and Alltagsmasken (daily masks). 

Going back to school

While children around the world are returning to school or are preparing to go back to school in the coming weeks, here in Berlin children have already completed their fourth week of school. The first week was dedicated to learning the AHA rules obviously. Apart from the compulsory masks, the social distancing (not in classrooms) and hygiene rules, school here is pretty much back to normal. We even managed to have an Elternabend or parents’ evening (a general meeting about the class) in the assembly hall, where we were all sitting 2m apart and wearing masks.

It's virus time

As life gradually returns to normal, albeit under the AHA rules, and recreational and cultural activities pick up, what can we expect? Viruses of course! However much we wash our hands and keep away from crowded places, viruses will reach us, especially if we spend time with children. As GPs and paediatricians are keen to point out, there are plenty of viruses out there, in addition to the infamous one. 

After three weeks of school, the first virus made its way into our home, in the form of a sore throat, runny nose and fever.  I spent last weekend wondering whether it was coronavirus and where to get tested. When I finally managed to get through to the paediatrician to ask for advice on the following Monday, it became clear that a Covid-19 test would not be required. Luckily, it wasn’t a serious infection and it cleared up after a few days. In the area where I live, it seems that the only way to get a free test without a long wait is to return from a Risikogebiet, i.e. a region at risk. When I started sneezing and feeling under the weather, my husband suggested booking a cheap return flight to Spain so that I could get tested. The alternative would be a private test in Berlin that costs €158,65. Sunshine and tapas here I come! 

On a serious note, check the guidelines for your country or region. If you live in Berlin and your child is ill, this PDF by the Berlin Senate Department for Education, Youth and Family explains what to do.

Flying in the time of coronavirus

Cancelled flights, concerns about the safety of air travel, worries about the rise in the number of Covid-19 infections at destination and the eventuality of quarantine on return mean that flying in the time of coronavirus can be a nightmare. It is not surprising therefore that many people have decided not to go abroad this summer. Others, meanwhile, have opted to travel by car to avoid being in close contact with potentially infectious travellers.

 

Is it safe to fly?

If you don’t fancy the prospect of driving 2,500 Km or more to visit your family, flying is probably the fastest and safest option, albeit not the most environmentally friendly. According to experts, if you consider various forms of travel, such as bus and train, the risk of Covid transmission inside an aircraft cabin might actually be the lowest. This is because planes use a hepa (high-efficiency particulate air) filter that ensures air inside the cabin is either fresh or recirculated. However, the risk increases if the plane is full, especially if you are sitting next to someone who is infected.

Will my flight be cancelled?

Bearing all this in mind, my family and I set off for Berlin’s Tegel airport by taxi on a bright sunny morning at the end of June. We all wore face masks, including the taxi driver, and we had the car window open to let in a steady breeze. I carried a selection of spare masks in my hand luggage, as well as travel-size hand sanitiser and disinfectant – the essential items when travelling in the coronavirus era.  We had already had one set of flights cancelled by Lufthansa in June (only 12 days after booking – we are still waiting for a refund, as are thousands of others) and, right up until boarding, I had doubts about whether our Swiss flights actually existed and whether we would make our connecting flight in Zurich.

 

Will social distancing be possible?

When we arrived at the airport, Tegel was almost deserted and most of the shops were closed. The queue at the bag drop was much shorter than usual, and passengers generally observed the mask-wearing and physical distancing rules. Once we got to our gate, it became more difficult to keep a distance from others, as more people arrived, so we moved upstairs, where we found fewer people and more comfortable seats. When the announcement to board the plane was made, the airport staff made the usual distinction between business and economy passengers, but other than that we were all called to board at the same time. It was difficult to maintain a physical distance, especially when queuing in the jet-bridge, but at least everyone was wearing a mask.

 

What happens on board?

Once on board, we were greeted by the mask-wearing crew and we were given a disinfectant wipe. The idea is for passengers to disinfect all surfaces close to their seat. We were also given a questionnaire to fill out with our contact and travel details, including our seat number on the plane. According to the airline Swiss, “where possible, neighbouring seats will be kept vacant”, but both our planes were full and, as far as we could tell, there were very few free seats. Swiss has a “modified and partly reduced onboard service”, which “aims at reducing the number of physical interactions between crew and guests”. As both our flights were over 45 minutes, there was a reduced beverage service and on our second flight we were given a snack. There were no Duty-Free sales though. Zurich airport was busier than Tegel, as there were more flights departing. Most shops were closed, but we were able to buy sandwiches.

 

Are the regulations the same in other EU and Schengen countries?

I’ve already written about the confusion caused by the contradictory information regarding Covid. To add to the confusion, when you travel abroad, you discover that each country has different regulations about face masks and physical distance.  For instance, at Zurich airport wearing a face mask is not compulsory, but passengers are encouraged to wear one if a 1.5 m distance cannot be observed. As we were queuing to board our flight to Palermo, we heard an announcement about larger pieces of hand luggage to be placed in the hold.

 

What are the regulations when travelling to Italy?

The Italian National Civil Aviation Authority (ENAC) has prohibited the use of overhead lockers. Small handbags are still allowed, as long as they can be placed under the seat in front of you. The measure is intended to facilitate boarding and disembarking and avoid the formation of crowds. Once on board, we were advised to wear our protective masks. They are compulsory on all Edelweiss flights, “whenever social distancing is not possible”. After take-off, there was another announcement, presumably as we were now flying over Italian airspace: in Italy it is mandatory to wear a protective mask on airplanes at all times. We were also given a self-certification form to fill out declaring we were not suffering from Covid or subject to quarantine. When we landed in Palermo, we disembarked as usual and walked into the terminal, where our body temperature was scanned. After waiting an hour for our luggage, we discovered that 55 suitcases were missing, including ours. Apparently, there had been a problem at Zurich airport. Two days later, after having our body temperature scanned three times at different points in Palermo airport and after a security check, we were finally able to collect our luggage.

 

Do I need to quarantine?

If you travel to Italy from other EU and Schengen countries there is no requirement for quarantine, but it’s probably wise to keep an extra distance from others, just in case.