Crowdfunding Statistics –
Start Motion Media Statistics – Since 2009
171 Campaigns
79,348 Backers
$23,565,200 Contributions Raised
Multiple $1 Million+ Projects
460% Funding Goal Raised
$137,000 Average Raise Per Campaign
Twenty Million+ : Video Views
7+ Years Specializing in Video Production
First Video Studio in San Francisco
Clients from 10+ Countries (India, China, South Korea, Singapore, France, Germany, Taiwan, UAE, United Kingdom, Brazil, Chile) About Kickstarter:
| Projects and dollars | Projects, million U.S. dollars, success rate in percent |
|---|---|
| Launched projects | 461,628 |
| Total dollars pledged (billion U.S. dollars) | 4.56 |
| Successful dollars (billion U.S. dollars) | 4.07 |
| Unsuccessful dollars (million U.S. dollars) | 447 |
| Live dollars (million U.S. dollars) | 41 |
| Live projects | 3,872 |
| Success rate (%) | 37.3 |
“This is hands down the best thing I’ve EVER read, and I’m old as sh*t.” “EVERY creator needs to see this article.” “If you don’t read this 2019 stats guide, you’re making the biggest mistake of your life.” Ok, I came up with those quotes this morning. But that doesn’t mean they’re not true. Here’s every meaningful statistic, updated for 2019.
STATS 2020
1. YOUR ODDS OF RAISING $1 MILLION ON ARE 0.08%
“Holy sh*t?! I have an 8% chance of raising a million bucks?!?!” No, you damn fool! That’s 0.08%, not 8%. Said another way, one out of every 1,250 projects hits $1 million. (You’re literally more likely to die by drowning than launch a $1 million campaign.) There have been 453,585 projects launched since was founded in 2009. And only 369 have raised $1 million or more. P.S. A whopping 92% of $1 million projects were in one of just three categories: -Games (133 projects) -Tech (112 projects) -Design (95 projects) So if you want a chance at striking it rich, launch a project that fits in one of those three categories.
2. 63% OF PROJECTS FAIL TO REACH THEIR FUNDING GOAL
Welp, these stats are officially making me depressed. Which category has the lowest success rate? Technology projects have a success rate of just 20%. Meanwhile, nearly 62% of dance projects hit their funding goal. “Oh heck to the yeah, let’s all get filthy rich launching dance campaigns!” No so fast, tiny dancer. Dance projects are far, far smaller than tech projects. So more of them get funded, but they bring in WAY less money. Over the last 10 years, dance campaigns have brought in a TOTAL of $13.4 million. tech projects have taken home more than $874 million.
3. NOT A STAT, BUT YOU LOOK EXCEPTIONALLY GOOD TODAY
I had to do something to cheer you up. Those first two stats were demoralizing! But fear not, things are starting to look up…
4. BACKERS PLEDGED $4.4 BILLION TOWARD PROJECTS OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS
$4.4 billion, eh? That’s almost as much as I’ve spent on gas station scratch off tickets in the last 6 months. But it’s certainly nothing to sneeze at. And when you factor in Kickstarter’s slow start from 2009 – 2013, things have really taken off in the last few years.
5. COOL STAT: 16.5 MILLION BACKERS HAVE SUCCESSFULLY FUNDED 167,087 PROJECTS
That’s 167,087 dreams come true. Including the potato salad guy, who raised $55,492 for a giant potato salad party back in 2014. (That’s a true story, by the way.) So if somebody tells you that your idea is stupid, send over that link and tell ’em… “No, YOU’RE stupid!”
6. THE AVERAGE SUCCESSFULLY FUNDED CAMPAIGN RAISES JUST $23,409
Raising a lot of money on is hard. Your product has to ball out. And you need an exceptional amount of luck. If you launched a project tomorrow, your odds of raising over $100,000 are just 1.3%. (Dammit, now I’m depressed again.) But you can increase your odds of success by reading our 11 proven tips for 2019. #selfpromotion
7. 32.7% OF BACKERS SUPPORTED MORE THAN ONE PROJECT
This is one of the most important 2019 stats: 5.4 million people have backed more than one project. Creators… THESE ARE THE PEOPLE YOU NEED TO REACH. Hold up, I want to make sure that sank in… THESE ARE THE PEOPLE YOU NEED TO REACH!!! You know what the best way to do that is? Be a repeat creator. That screen shot is from Travel Tripod by Peak Design, the most funded project of 2019. Look at how many of their backers were returning backers. Your odds of success SKYROCKET if you’ve already fulfilled a successful project. The backers from your first campaign will be your best customers on your 2nd campaign. Send them an email on Day 1 and watch the funds roll in, baby.
8. YOUR CAMPAIGN SHOULD RUN FOR 39.7 DAYS (ACCORDING TO THESE STATS)
“But that’s impossible!!” Yes, so go with 40 days. The average campaign duration for the each of the 15 most funded campaigns of 2019 was 39.7 days. Most lasted between 30-35 days. And a handful used the maximum of 60 days to run their campaign. Pro Tip: If you think your campaign is going to ROCK, go with the full 60 days. Why? The big campaigns make tens of thousands of dollars every single day their campaign is live. So the more days you run your campaign, the more money you’ll make. Yes, you’ll have to spend more on advertising. But it’s worth it.
9. THERE ARE 3,000 – 4,000 LIVE PROJECTS AT ANY GIVEN TIME
It’s like dating. For every good lookin’ lady, there are about a thousand different suitors going after her. So how do you stand out? Easy, just be better looking than everybody else. “But I’m ugly!!!” No worries, me too. Here’s what you gotta do if your product doesn’t look like Prince Charming: #1. Be different, wacky, or weird. (Stand out by being insanely creative with your campaign page and video.)
#2. Send paid traffic to your page. (Via Facebooks ads and newsletters.) “Wait, isn’t that like prostitution in this analogy?” Yes. But in this case it’s 100% legal.
#3. Read our 2019 guide with 5 wildly useful tips. (#selfpromopartdeux)
10. GAMES BRING IN THE MOST MONEY (ESPECIALLY IN 2020)
One of the most surprising stats in this list: Games are Kickstarter’s most popular category in 2019. Particularly board games. Here’s how much each category has raised since 2009: #1. Games – $977 million #2. Design – $875 million #3. Tech – $736 million Then there’s a HUGE drop off before you get to #4. 4. Film & Video – $383 million Strangely, Kickstarter’s home page usually promotes film/art projects over much more successful design & tech campaigns. Why? doesn’t really care how much money they make.
11. TUESDAY IS THE BEST DAY TO LAUNCH A NEW PROJECT
Why is Tuesday the best day to launch your campaign? organic traffic is at its peak. Monday: Another solid option, but people are busy as sh*t on Mondays. Tuesday: Da best. Wednesday: Still good, but missing Monday and Tuesday isn’t ideal. Thursday: Sorta like eating ice cream for breakfast, you’ll regret it later. Friday: Actually a really good idea! (If you want your project to bomb.) Saturday: Don’t even think about it. Sunday: What do you think? (NO!)
12. YOUR CAMPAIGN SHOULD HAVE 13.7 REWARDS (MAYBE)
“But Grant, you’ve always said that having fewer rewards is better!!” Yes, this is true. And despite the numbers staring me in the face, I still tend to believe that. The average number of rewards for each of the 15 most funded campaigns of 2019 was 13.7 rewards per project. That’s definitely more than I thought it’d be. But take that with a grain of salt… Travel Tripod by Peak Design, the most funded campaign of 2019, had just two rewards. (One top-15 campaign had a whopping 26 rewards.) But The Universal Law of Sales still applies: In general, having a ton of redundant rewards confuses people, and confused people don’t buy stuff. P.S. You SHOULD offer a $1 reward so you can collect as many email addresses as possible. Why? So they can turn into customers down the line. P.P.S. You should NOT offer a $30 company branded t-shirt as a reward. (Trust me, nobody wants that crap.)
13. CRUCIAL STAT: IF YOUR VIDEO IS 4 MINUTES OR LONGER, STOP SCROLLIN’ AND READ THIS
A long video won’t kill ya. IF IT’S GOOD! Entertaining videos can be four minutes long and do just fine. But in most cases, your video should be around three minutes or less. The average video length for each of the 15 most funded campaigns of 2019 was 3 minutes and 11 seconds. And another important stat… Only 20-30% of people will watch your entire video. So get the important stuff out of the way EARLY. Or people won’t see it. P.S. You should read our 2019 video tips with 7 proven ways to increase conversions. P.P.S. It’s insanely helpful.
14. 64% OF BACKERS ARE MALE
They’re also young. I’m talkin’ 25-34 year-olds. So if you want your product to resonate with the biggest chunk of Kickstarter’s organic audience, design it for millennial men. “So you’re saying female-focused products don’t do well on Kickstarter?!” No. It’s definitely possible to raise a boat load of money with a product that’s mostly for women. The Kosan Go Travel Dress absolutely crushed it, for example. But the average user browsing is a millennial male. #facts
15. KICKSTARTER’S MOST POPULAR COUNTRIES MAY SURPRISE YOU…
Most of your backers will come from the U.S. But a large chunk will hail from Australia, Canada, Germany, and the U.K. Focus your advertising budget on those five countries. Sorry, Bora Bora.
16. 12% OF PROJECTS NEVER GET A SINGLE BACKER
Moms of the world… You really dropped the ball on this one. Creators of the world… If not even your mom would back your campaign, it’s time to give yourself a long, hard look in the mirror. (And give her a gosh darn phone call, will ya?)
17. YOU (YES YOU) HAVE THE POTENTIAL TO LAUNCH A PROJECT THAT CHANGES THE WORLD
Some of these stats are discouraging as hell. I know. But understand this… Having read them, you’re better prepared than 99% of other creators. YOUR idea could change the world. Believe that. But you’re never going to find out unless you hit that launch button. My favorite quote has nothing to do with stats. But it has everything to do with making the most of your life. “Each of our stories pivot on a single moment. That short pause between what is, and what could be. In a breath, we can decide between what we wish to be true… And what we can make happen.” So, when in doubt… HIT THAT LAUNCH BUTTON. And see what happens. (But first, give your mom a call.)
Kickstarter’s Had a Big Impact on the Creative Economy
Another examination by the University of Pennsylvania gives the primary exhaustive glance at how the people group impacts the inventive economy. The examination finds that ventures have: Utilized 283,000 low maintenance partners in breathing life into innovative ventures. Made 8,800 new organizations and charities, and 29,600 all day occupations. Produced more than $5.3 billion in direct monetary effect for those makers and their networks. Here are the key discoveries from the examination.
Film & Video $383 million Strangely, Kickstarters home page usually promotes film/art projects over much more successful design & tech campaigns. The average number of rewards for each of the 15 most funded campaigns of 2019 was 13.7 rewards per project.
Paying Creative Collaborators
A long-running test in the realm of innovative activities is the capacity for associates to be paid for their commitments. Editors, artists, backing performers, group, and other imaginative teammates are frequently unpaid for their work on inventive ventures. Not so with Kickstarter-financed inventive undertakings. Respondents to the UPenn study announced that empowered them to pay colleagues who they would not have in any case had the option to pay. By and large, ventures have utilized around 283,000 brief specialists.
Occupation Creation
While numerous ventures are unique cases (films, books, collections, and so on.), others are getting progressing, economical endeavors that make new openings. For each 1,000 ventures that have been enlivened, 190 organizers presently work close by 82 full-time representatives. As of June 2016, an expected 29,600 new full-time imaginative professions have originated from ventures.
Organization Formation
An expected 8,800 new organizations and philanthropies have gotten their beginning through Kickstarter. Among them are organizations as different as Palmer Luckey’s Oculus, which carried computer generated reality into the standard; Radiotopia, an enlivened digital recording system of free narrators offering voice to subjects not very much shrouded in conventional open media; Debbie Sterling’s GoldieBlox, which makes games and diversion intended to grow early enthusiasm for building; Eric Migicovsky’s Pebble Technology, which spearheaded the smartwatch classification; Kazoo, a flawlessly envisioned print magazine determined to motivate solid, brilliant, savage young ladies; and Chicken Town, a London-based eatery and social venture focused on serving fortifying, privately sourced suppers while paying its staff living wages. Eighty-two percent of the associations made through keep on working today.
Monetary Impact
Another approach to evaluate the people group’s effect is to inspect whether makers win income from their undertaking in the wake of breathing life into it. Seven out of ten makers detailed such profit. Each dollar vowed to an effectively supported venture came about in $2.46 in extra income for the maker, prompting an expected $5.3 billion in extra financial action.
Professional success and Mobility
Another energizing finding is Kickstarter’s effect on professional success inside the innovative workforce. Movie producers, picture takers, specialists, creators, architects, performers, and others announced that their venture prompted proficient development, more noteworthy profit, and professional success. 37% said that their venture helped them advance their professions. 21% announced accepting an expansion in yearly income in the wake of running an effective task. 19% said they got another line of work open door because of their venture. 7% said their venture helped them effectively switch professions. Makers additionally announced significant expert gains inside their fields: Movie producers announced that helped them secure appropriation bargains. Artists announced that helped them secure record or distributing bargains. Computer game makers announced that their venture helped them secure a distributer or consideration from commentators. Writers and comic book makers detailed that their venture prompted consideration from standard distributers. Writers revealed that their venture gave them opportunity from the outside control of editors and distributers, and helped them make work that served an underserved crowd.
Imaginative Independence
Imaginative autonomy is at the core of what gives makers, and this likewise turned out in the investigation. Makers revealed that managed them the imaginative autonomy they would not have had the option to accomplish through other financing roads, and permitted them to breath life into their task without bargaining their vision. These are conditions that enable makers to reach skyward and face the imaginative challenges expected to fuel development. Benefactors detailed over half of ventures to be inventive. An expected 4,200 licenses attached to ventures have been recorded. Over 10% of makers announced winning significant honors for their work, including a MacArthur Genius award, National Design Awards from the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum, a James Dyson Award, IDSA’s International Design Excellence Award, CES Innovation Awards, the Sikorsky Prize, Independent Games Festival Awards, Grammys, an Oscar, and some more. This exploration outlines how the people group has reinforced the monetary picture for makers while filling in as an important motor for social creation. We’re excited to be a piece of it. You can peruse the investigation in full here. Exposures and Methodology: This depends on the autonomous research of Professor Ethan Mollick of the University of Pennsylvania. assisted with information gathering for his study yet had no impact over his investigations. For the motivations behind this post we’ve utilized his discoveries from an example of 61,654 ventures propelled before June 2015 and extrapolated them to incorporate the most recent a year of undertakings.
