Interesting online sales technique

[wyone]

So I was just browsing and came across this. She created a kickstarter to sell her pens and it looks like it went better than expected.

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1404462208/hand-turned-wood-pens-from-burls-and-other-special

 

[paintspill]

I'd seen one of these before and didn't pay it much attention. I checked this one out. Looks like a huge sale and a lot of money but when you do the math looks like a heck of a lot of work for not much profit. At least not for what I've see most selling there pens for. But hey. A hell of a lot more than I've ever sold.

 

[Fatdawg]

She defiantly do her homework on constructing her page. A lot of details about the process and nice gifts for her supporters. I'd have to agree with paintspill though, doesn't seam like much profit made.

 

[Dan Masshardt]

Hey,
She lives close to me. That's cool.

She did a great job in all the description and her pens look nice.

My problem is that I fail to see how this is a kickstsrter program. It seems like a sales avenue only.

Isn't the entire point of kickstarter to enable something that wouldn't be possible without the 'backers'?

 

[JasonC]

I thought about a Kickstarter not to get started, but to help recoup the out-of-pocket expense so far for everything I purchased like tools and equipment.

Would also help establish yourself and not get lost in the seemingly endless Etsy sea.

Marc, I researched Kickstarter a while back and read where people have said it was a lot of work for little profit. Regardless, twelve thousand dollars is better than no thousand dollars.

 

[wyone]

It did not seem to fit what my idea of a kickstarter was about, but obviously they allowed it. She seemed to get a lot of interest. Not sure about her profit margin though

 

[Dan Masshardt]

I'd sell most if those pens for the prices she was I think.

Does anybody know how much kickstarter takes?

It seems like they're not being really fussy - maybe not wanting to turn down $.

 

[mredburn]

You did notice it was funded and finished in May 2013, THere is a thought that with that large of a cash deposit she could buy in enough quantities to receive a large discount. I doubt she made a killing on the pens in the end.

 

[southernclay]

I was thinking the same Dan. Kickstarter takes 5% and then another 3-5% for card processing to Amazon.

If you balanced it out to pens and materials you like seems like a good deal. I do think the spirit should be to fund a project of some sort. Didn't read the comments so it may have been. If not, still good for her for blowing away her goal and making some $$$.

 

[TimS124]

Kickstarter has an art project category, so pens could presumably easily qualify there...

I've seen quite a few pen projects on Kickstarter. Some rename the common pens instead of using the standard "cigar", "slimline", etc terms. Sounds fancier if you pick names that make sense...one of those used Australian woods and all of the pen styles were renamed after Australian cities. That's not intended as a complaint, simply explaining their tactic.

Some folks explain they're doing it to be able to afford a new piece of equipment and the pens, stoppers, etc are a reward along the way (vs. the entire thing just being a way to sell pens). The key is to price the rewards appropriately and to make sure supporters understand what they're getting as they're helping fund what you're getting...barely scraping by after Kickstarter and Amazon take their cut off the top isn't good business (but it is at least very good practice for pen making).

 

[wyone]

well the average sell price of her pens was around $75 each.. and she had 169 to make, so depending on her margins, she should have done OK, not going to make a killing, but not a bad payday, particularly when a lot of the pens are slimlines.