Never send the B team.<\/p>\n
There’s a reason why Pandora is so successful. Tim Westergren. The company’s tireless leader is not only willing to show up everywhere, he’s impassioned, he’s a believer, hell, I’ve always said Westergren’s selling a religion, not a radio service.<\/p>\n
And that’s how I felt about Benji Rogers of PledgeMusic yesterday.<\/p>\n
Crowdfunding. Is it forever? If you haven’t gotten e-mail from disgruntled pledgers, pissed that the project they donated to didn’t come through, you’re not…ME! That’s the number one challenge facing the sphere. People who pony up cash and end up with nothing.<\/p>\n
PledgeMusic gives them their money back.<\/p>\n
Furthermore, after a project is funded, Pledge holds the hands of the creators and updates the donors, keeping the relationship alive.<\/p>\n
Do Kickstarter and Indiegogo do this? From what I can understand, no. They certainly don’t give money back, as for a continuing relationship with the creators…<\/p>\n
I need someone to look me in the eye and tell me the truth. I need to know I’m getting it straight from the horse’s mouth. Otherwise I’m left with questions, and I hate uncertainty.<\/p>\n
Now that’s not the only problem confronting crowdfunding sites, there’s also the issue of veracity. People manipulating the platforms to their own ends. In other words, did “Veronica Mars” really need the money, or was the whole campaign a marketing manipulation?<\/p>\n
I got e-mail to that effect.<\/p>\n
But I also got e-mail from a tech entrepreneur that many would know telling me his next project was already funded, but he was going to put it up on Kickstarter for the marketing boost.<\/p>\n
Hmm… Will this alienate donors?<\/p>\n
And then there was that guy from Protest The Hero on the panel. He raised a lot of money, the most successful item being a pizza party at the donor’s house, but did he gain any new fans? He got a ton of publicity, but did it grow his audience?<\/p>\n
Maybe an itty-bitty bit.<\/p>\n
Then again, all these companies are now promoting themselves as kind of a social network. A way to round up your fans and bond yourself to them. But it always worries me when a company changes focus. As we say in the music business, it’s not about the money…IT’S ABOUT THE MONEY!<\/p>\n
That’s why crowdfunding is successful!<\/p>\n