{"id":5703,"date":"2015-06-29T06:00:42","date_gmt":"2015-06-29T11:00:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/thewritelife.com\/?p=5703"},"modified":"2017-01-27T08:27:35","modified_gmt":"2017-01-27T13:27:35","slug":"crowdfunding-a-book","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/?p=5703","title":{"rendered":"How One Writer Used Crowdfunding to Raise $12,775 in 30 Days"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jon Yongfook didn’t even intend to write a book at first. But the growth-hacking expert and software entrepreneur decided to give it a shot when Guy Vincent, founder of crowdfunding platform Publishizer<\/a>, dropped him a note and suggested he throw his hat in the game.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was in a sassy mood,\u201d writes Yongfook on his website<\/a>, \u201cso I replied \u2018ok.\u2019\u201d And then he raised $12,775 in 30 days.<\/b><\/p>\n

While crowdfunding has long been a popular way for musicians, inventors and artists to raise money and develop interest in their work, it\u2019s becoming a more common option for authors as well.<\/p>\n

Crowdfunding a book basically involves taking pre-orders. If there\u2019s enough interest to hit a preset funding goal, the author will write and publish the book. This fundraising method offers several benefits for authors, depending on which site you choose, such as a guaranteed payout if you meet your minimum fundraising goal, and no obligation to write a book if you don\u2019t find enough of a market.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re considering crowdfunding your next book, studying Yongfook\u2019s campaign for Growth Hacking Handbook<\/i> could help you achieve similar success. Here\u2019s his best advice for aspiring crowdfunders.<\/p>\n

Build your audience first<\/b><\/h2>\n

Yongfook\u2019s buyers didn\u2019t appear out of thin air; he already had a network in place, including his Twitter and Facebook followers as well as a mailing list.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think anyone launching a crowdfunding campaign needs to have some assets or network built in,\u201d he said. \u201cIt’s almost impossible to do it without it.\u201d Before you decide to create a crowdfunding campaign around your brilliant idea for a novel, make sure you\u2019ve put some work into building an author platform<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy advice would be to keep blogging about the subject you want to write a book about, build that community, build that mailing list and use it when it’s time to crowdfund that pet project!\u201d<\/p>\n

Spread the word<\/b><\/h2>\n

Since Yongfook\u2019s foray into publishing was unexpected, starting with the note he received from Vincent, he didn’t have a lot of time to plan a marketing strategy. He did find and pitch some of his media contacts, but he found most were not interested in covering his crowdfunded book launch.<\/p>\n

Instead, he focused on social media and guest posts. He used his personal social media accounts, including Facebook (and a promoted post) and Twitter, and sought out retweets from influencers. He wrote a guest post for The Next Web<\/a> and volunteered for an \u201cAsk Me Anything\u201d with Tech In Asia<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Be ready to work hard<\/b><\/h2>\n

\u201cDuring the campaign, it was almost like a full-time job keeping up the momentum and the marketing activities,\u201d Yongfook said. He didn\u2019t anticipate marketing would require quite so much footwork.<\/p>\n

\u201cI guess I did naively think it would be a \u2018set and forget affair\u2019 though,\u201d Yongfook said. \u201cLike I would just click ‘upload’, sit back and enjoy a whiskey, and then a few weeks later, I’d have the funding for my book. In reality, it was a day-to-day hustle and the campaign needed constant maintenance to keep the momentum going.<\/b>\u201d<\/p>\n

However, he was always confident he would reach his goal, and he believes that self-assurance is key to a successful campaign. \u201cI was quite confident,\u201d he said. \u201cI think as long as you are very determined and have a good idea for a book that the market (and more importantly, the network around you) wants, then you’ll meet your goals.\u201d<\/p>\n

Stay positive<\/b><\/h2>\n

We asked him what he found to be the most challenging part of the campaign. \u201cThe most difficult is the ‘dip’ or the ‘lull,\u2019\u201d he said. \u201cStatistically, most of your crowdfunding activity is going to come at the start and the end of the campaign.<\/b> Between those two points, the backings can trickle in quite slowly and it can be hard to keep motivated.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a point in the middle of my campaign where I was quite shocked as it looked like it might not make it, and my confidence went down. You have to power on through that \u2014 there will be more activity towards the end.\u201d<\/p>\n

Consider the lasting impact<\/b><\/h2>\n

\u201c[Crowdfunding] is just a win-win situation all round,\u201d Yongfook said. \u201cThe backers get a book they are interested in, I get to write a book with no huge undertaking of risk.\u201d<\/p>\n

When the campaign finished and Yongfook was still receiving emails from people who wanted to buy the book, he created an email list <\/a>to notify them when it launched.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter I launched the book and sent the copies to the original backers, I then emailed that mailing list that the book had launched, and instantly had another $2k in book sales (in one day!)<\/b>. So I guess my point is, the positive effects of a successful crowdfunding campaign go far beyond just the campaign itself!\u201d<\/p>\n

How to launch your own crowdfunding campaign<\/b><\/h2>\n

While Kickstarter<\/a> is likely the most popular crowdfunding platform, a few sites specifically focus on writers and their needs. Here are a few of the options to consider:<\/p>\n

Publishizer<\/b><\/a><\/h3>\n

This is the platform Yongfook used for his campaign. To begin, simply submit a 1,000-word proposal for approval, then choose your campaign\u2019s length (one to 45 days) and funding goal.<\/p>\n

If your campaign is successful, Publishizer collects a 5 percent fee on pre-orders, plus 2.9 percent and $0.30 per transaction for Stripe. You retain all rights to your book.<\/p>\n

Pubslush<\/b><\/a><\/h3>\n

Pubslush\u2019s mission is \u201cto give authors the opportunity to get out of the slush pile.\u201d They do this by helping authors create crowdfunding and pre-order campaigns for their books, 30 to 60 days before their release dates.<\/p>\n

The site charges a 4 percent commission and third-party processing fees after the campaign concludes. You keep all rights to your work.<\/p>\n

Unbound<\/b><\/a><\/h3>\n

Unbound works similarly to the other sites, though they focus on U.K.-based authors. Authors do the bulk of their fundraising until they hit the 70 percent mark, and then Unbound jumps in with marketing and promotion assistance to help them reach their target.<\/p>\n

However, Unbound does take 50 percent of profits (after costs) and keeps the rights to your book. For more details, check out the site\u2019s FAQ<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Have you crowdfunded a book? Would you consider it? We\u2019d love to hear about your experience in the comments!<\/b><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Considering crowdfunding your next project? Here\u2019s what you can learn from a successful book crowdfunding campaign.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":183,"featured_media":5716,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[958,6],"tags":[119,71,246,596],"class_list":["post-5703","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-publishing","category-self-publishing","tag-crowdfunding","tag-finances","tag-publishing","tag-self-publishing"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5703","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/183"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5703"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5703\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5716"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5703"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5703"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thewritelife.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5703"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}