How to Create an Effective Crowdfunding Pledge Reward Chart

When it comes to crowdfunding projects, a lot of value lies in the pledge rewards from the creators. If you pay attention to crowdfunding campaigns, you’ll notice that many creators put in a lot of effort to create catchy and worthwhile pledge rewards. However, the opposite is true as well — with creators who don’t seem to try at all. The varied approaches to creating pledge rewards suggest that there is confusion when it comes to an effective strategy for gaining more backers.

That’s not to say that $1 pledges don’t have their place. They certainly do, but they aren’t really worth the ‘thank you’ notes that seem to be popular. It’s important to realize that pledge rewards are as significant as any other area of a campaign. Without well-balanced pledge rewards, your efforts could be for nothing. Whether you want to show your creativity or get to the point is entirely up to you, just remember that your backers should feel special. After all, they are the people who believe in you and your project.

The following tips can help you create a better pledge reward chart and develop a stronger connection with your backers.

1. In order to get into the right mindset to create the best ideas, you have to put yourself in your backers’ shoes. Consider what pledge rewards would draw you to your project. If you can answer that, then you have pretty much all you need.

2. A $1 pledge has its place if it doesn’t come across as an act of charity. For example, Amanda Palmer & The Grand Theft Orchestra created a $1 pledge offering a digital download of their album, complete with Kickstarter-exclusive content and bonus songs. In return, they got 4,744 backers for just that pledge.

3. Your rewards need to provide value to your backers, such as limited edition items and personalized engravings.

4. Offer your product at a reasonable price, and certainly less than retail cost. Having different breakdowns for super early-bird, early-bird, etc. can make your backers feel special. A super early-bird backer will appreciate getting the product at a lower cost than an early-bird backer, and so forth.

5. Doing collaborations is an excellent way to get your backers involved in your project. You could engrave a quote from the backer on your product, add them as a character in your book, or anything else creative to go the extra mile.

6. Find a more personal way to say ‘Thank You.’ Giving your backers a call or creating heartfelt cards are examples of ways you can build a stronger connection for the future. With that connection, you may find that they become future customers.

7. Offer a lot of variety in your pledge rewards without making them too elaborate. For example, creating rewards for $1, $20, $50, $70, etc. is fine, but you want to stay away from breaking it down into $1, $5, $10, $25 and so on. This prevents your backers from getting confused with which pledge to pick and makes it easier for them to choose one that suits their budget.