So, you have a game or another fun project that you want to produce, but you don’t have all the means (read: funds) to do so. Or perhaps you want to involve those interested in your project in the process of creating it. You’re in luck! At Gen Con 2011, Greg Stolze, Daniel Solis, Gary Sarli, and Wolfgang Baur spoke about their experiences publishing games with patronage and Kickstarter. The key messages included the following (more after the jump):
- Earn your sponsor’s/patron’s trust and keep your promises
- Art matters–pay your artists up front
- Be clear about the perks and goals
- Have a plan to get the word out
- Set your funding goals carefully
- Be passionate and honest about your work
- Admit to your mistakes and rectify them quickly
Budgets, community, and the various forms for involvement by sponsors all came up, with a lot of give and take between the panelists. Kobold Quarterly might have an audio for the seminar available later on, so keep an eye out on the site (or Twitter and Facebook) for an update.
Got a question about patronage or launching a Kickstarter project? Ask it here.
What is the best way for a freelancer to market his services to a patronage project?
Ideally, there is a healthy give and take between you, the designer, and the patrons/co-designers as a project takes shape, but what are some good strategies to maintain your creative vision in the finished product and make sure your patrons are happy? Hah, that kind of amounts to ‘How do you pull a patronage off successfully?’