Kickstarter: crowdfunding the 2012 way
It was recently alleged that crowdfunding website, Kickstarter.com has fudged their reporting to make the site look like a more successful tool for crowdfunding than it actually is, to which we asserted that other peoples’ success does not necessarily encourage or discourage entrepreneurs, who typically have an attitude that they can do anything, no matter the past failure rate.
With all of the hoopla surrounding the Kickstarter success rates, we thought we would take a look back at the Kickstarter projects we have shared with you, the reader. Our data is not indicative of how the site works in full, as we do not cover any of the creative projects like movies or albums, nor do we cover art installations, mission trips, group gardens, but we do share technology tools, which for the most part have performed quite well on Kickstarter, many of which have raised nearly ten times what their original fundraising goal was.
Kickstarter entrepreneurs must declare the dollar amount they are raising, and if they do not raise that amount through the site, no money exchanges hands, but for projects that meet their goal, perks are offered to people who pledged funds, and the entrepreneur has to deliver a product along with the promised perks.
Below are the ten projects written about on AG that succeeded in meeting their fundraising goals, along with one that is still fundraising, and five projects that failed.
1. Curly Cable: 1,814% funded
Curly Cable for iPad and iPhone adds a curly cable to iPads and iPhones. Simple. Genius.
- Fundraising goal: $1,500 / Fundraised $27,216 / Funded on January 28, 2012
- AG story on Curly Cable
- Kickstarter page for Curly Cable
2. Trigger Happy: 887% funded
Trigger Happy app controls your digital camera via smartphone. Innovative photo tools that automate photography seem to do well on Kickstarter.
- Fundraising goal: $25,000 / Fundraised $221,739 / Funded on May 5, 2012
- AG story on Trigger Happy
- Kickstarter page for Trigger Happy
3. Brydge iPad case: 887% funded (fundraised $797,979!)
The Brydge is hellbent on adhering to Apple design standards, and it turns an iPad into a laptop, adding speakers, a keyboard, and even when shaken roughly, it stays put. Nice.
- Fundraising goal: $90,000 / Fundraised $797,979 / Funded on June 4, 2012
- AG story on Brydge
- Kickstarter page for
4. GoPano: 846% funded
GoPano is a lens that snaps on to an iPhone 4 to steady your camera to film a 360º video, getting rid of the need to have a steady hand when filming panoramic videos. Dummy proof.
- Fundraising goal: $20,000 / Fundraised $169,209 / Funded on May 14, 2012
- AG story on GoPano
- Kickstarter page for GoPano
5. Timelapse+: 829% funded
The Timelapse+ is an intervalometer, aka timer device, for automatically triggering SLR cameras, built with bluetooth for connecting accessories, including smartphones, created (among other things) for long-term timelapse projects.
- Fundraising goal: $20,000 / Fundraised $165,730 / Funded on February 19, 2012
- AG story on Timelapse+
- Kickstarter page for Timelapse+
6. Galileo: 702% funded
This clever iPhone device gives video 360 degree tilting and panning and solves a real world problem. Fabulous!
- Fundraising goal: $100,000 / Fundraised $702,427 / Funded on April 21, 2012
- AG story on Galileo
- Kickstarter page for Galileo
7. Tiltpod: 637% funded
Tiltpod for iPhones is an articulating iPhone base which solves the balancing act of trying to get yourself in iPhone pictures before your smartphone falls off of a rock or table, or worse, chops your head off in pictures.
- Fundraising goal: $10,000 / Fundraised $63,745 / Funded on April 1, 2012
- AG story on Tiltpod
- Kickstarter page for Tiltpod
8. Romo: 359% funded
Romo turns your smartphone into a functioning robot for under $100 – this is easily the most fun Kickstarter project we’ve ever written about.
- Fundraising goal: $32,000 / Fundraised $114,796 / Funded on November 21, 2011
- AG story on Romo
- Kickstarter page for Romo
9. Glass: 287% funded
With this glass multi-touch keyboard and mouse that uses smartphone-like technology and open source software to track your fingers when you tap on the glass, germophobes will rejoice at no longer scraping out the crevices of their keyboard with rubbing alcohol and q-tips.
- Fundraising goal: $50,000 / Fundraised $143,538 / Funded on January 1, 2012
- AG story on Glass
- Kickstarter page for Glass
10. Last Alert: 124% funded
Find your missing iPhone even if it’s dead with the Last Alert app. Nice!
- Fundraising goal: $3,500 / Fundraised $4,334 / Funded on March 8, 2012
- AG story on Last Alert
- Kickstarter page for Last Alert
Spike: 94% fundraised, still fundraising
Spike gives your iPhone a real keyboard and is built to improve typing accuracy and make using an iPhone feel more natural.
- Fundraising goal: $75,000 / Fundraised $70,153* / Fundraising ends on August 11, 2012
- AG story on Spike
- Kickstarter page for Spike
*as of publication
The not so lucky projects
Obviously, not all fundraising goals are met, and while we enjoyed the following five projects, no money changed hands with these crowdfunding projects:
- 1. UPPRcase, lowrcase: beautiful, durable iPad cases
- Fundraising goal: $20,000 / Fundraised $10,400 / earned 52 percent of their funding goal
- AG story on UPPRcase, lowrcase
- Kickstarter page for UPPRcase, lowrcase
- 2. Cord-on-Board: stores iPhone charger in phone
- Fundraising goal: $20,000 / Fundraised $7,263 / hit 36 percent of their goal
- AG story on Cord-on-Board
- Kickstarter page for Cord-on-Board
- 3. Acoustic kickstand for Kindle Fire
- Fundraising goal: $12,000 / Fundraised $3,259 / earned 27 percent of their goal
- AG story on Acoustic kickstands
- Kickstarter page for Acoustic kickstands
- 4. 17″ tablet PC
- Fundraising goal: $50,000 / Fundraised $6,719 / met 13 percent of their fundraising goals
- AG story on the 17″ tablet PC
- Kickstarter page for the 17″ tablet PC
- 5. PhoneRenter.com: Netflix for cell phones
- Fundraising goal: $15,000 / Fundraised $0
- AG story on PhoneRenter
- Kickstarter page for PhoneRenter
