When it comes to crowdfunding, most of the time a project creator only runs one campaign for one project. Unless it doesn’t get funding the first time around, and they return to try again a second or even third time. But, there are a few that keep coming back for more. In this edition of Kickstarter Primer I take a look at those who “double dip” and become what I call “serial campaigners”. You can watch the full video below but I want to discuss some general aspects of this phenomenon.
I won’t go into specific examples here as I cover it quite well in the video, but you can probably already guess a couple of them if you’ve kept up to date with our previous work. These are the people specifically that have kept returning to get more and more money for the same project over and over. Sometimes being successful while other times not. And they’ve usually tried to cover their tracks to bury their previous attempts. It’s these shady people that I wanted to highlight but they’re not the only ones. Just the most blatant.
It’s the above that have really gotten under my skin over the years but it’s understandable to want to return for a second project. Usually this is after a previous game has already been released but sometimes not. In either case, these are usually fine as they are for separate titles but to keep returning for who knows how many does throw up some red flags. Just read our previous coverage on AJ Tilley to get an idea of what I’m getting at here.
As I have mentioned above, these “serial campaigners” just keep coming back for more. I’m not just counting the unsuccessful attempts, as those make sense. Yet, people still tend to flock to them. Some reasons, such as missing out on the first one, are pretty common. But, in the end if there’s more than two successful campaigns for the same game it does make you wonder if they’re starting to panic and run out of money.
In the case of some this actually is the case. Such as Hero-U returning for a second time. I wasn’t particularly a fan of it, but I can understand if that’s the main reason. Even if I don’t like it. I’ve talked about “double dipping” a while back so you can learn more from reading that article if you want, but I will say that how one feels about this phenomenon varies from person to person. Some don’t mind it while others think it’s just a cash grab.
Whether it’s needing more money for the same game or asking for more money for a second title the end result is the same. The same group of people have returned to get more money from fans.
My own opinion can be taken with a grain of salt but this is how I personally feel about “returning to the well”. For some it’s fine and for others it’s not. Go ahead and watch the Kickstarter Primer video to get to know more about my thoughts and examples of “serial campaigners.”
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z_dOGS1cLn0
