IndieGoGo.Com – Build a fan base, get funding.

Just like almost every other Indie filmmaker out there I am in constant search for funding. As we all know funding can make or break a project to the point of never seeing the light of day. All of us beg, some of us cheat, hell some of us may even steal to get the funding we need. It is the bane of our existence.

While traversing the Net for ways to find money I stumbled upon a fairly new site called IndieGoGo. After reading a few articles about the site and looking around I signed up immediately. Setup is very easy and quick. They provide all the tools you need to get your project out there in front of the eyes you want to see it. Here’s how it works:

When you first sign up you have to create a personal profile for yourself. This includes things like your picture, tags, tagline, bio, location etc. You also get a personal URL like http://www.indiegogo.com/JTysonHarvey. You can also add media such as videos, images, links and files for anyone that is following your projects or working on a project with you. Allof that is fine and dandy but the next part is what we really want.

After you have setup your personal profile you can then setup the project. The project profile includes some of the same features as the personal profile adding  things like a Synopsis and a Team tab. The Team tab will consist of anyone that is currently working on this project with you. They just need to have their own profile setup, which is easy to do with the invite system. The last thing I want to talk about before we get to the meat of funding is the sharing system. IndieGoGo allows you to reach out to multiple social networking sites including Facebook, MySpace and Twitter. There is also buttons for emailing directly to your contacts list using  Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo, and you can even Digg it. One thing I found particularly nifty was the automatic creation of widgets for your site or email. You can see an example below.

Once you have your project page setup the way you like it (videos, images, bios all the fun stuff) it’s time to add the funding tab. For setting up fund raising I’m going to use the ol’ copy and paste method from their FAQ. Just for the sake of rambling and probably getting something wrong.

How do I start fundraising?
First, post a project profile, making sure you complete the MEDIA and TEAM sections.  Then prepare your audience-building and fundraising strategy.  (See IndieGoGo’s Guide to DIWO (Do-It-With-Others!) Filmmaking for tips).  Next, complete the FUNDING section.  For filmmakers with a U.S. bank account, you are eligible to enable the Amazon Payments option.  You will be redirected to Amazon Payments to setup your Merchant account.  Make sure to check for an email from Amazon to complete the setup.  (Learn more HERE)  All filmmakers are able to enable credit/debit card payments directly on the Contribute page.  (Learn more HERE)

Upon payments setup, your project will be “Open for Funding” once you set your fundraising goal.  You can then start sharing your project and receiving contributions!  Contributions made through Amazon Payments will be deposited directly into your project’s Amazon Merchant account.  Other contributions will be sent via bank account or international wire transfer.  We will notify you to add your bank account information and disbursement preferences once you receive your first contribution. Funds will be disbursed the Friday immediately following the point your disbursement preference criteria are met.

For additional fundraising and promotional tactic guidance, check out our DIWO Tips and dial-in to DIWO Live! to ask questions and get real-time advice from IndieGoGo’s founders.

Why do I need an IndieGoGo Merchant account with Amazon?
For filmmakers with a U.S. bank account, this allows contributions to be deposited directly into your Merchant account.  (Learn more HERE)

Is there a time limit for funding?
No.  A funding period ends once the project has reached its funding goal.  IndieGoGo recommends filmmakers break down their total funding goal into mini-goals and raise money in rounds to show progress to fans and build credibility through a track record of successful fundraising and execution.

What happens when a project reaches its funding goal?
IndieGoGo records and displays the fundraising success on the project’s profile.  The project administrator then brings the next phase of the project to life with the funds just raised and delivers the VIP Perks.  We encourage project administrators to share the progress of their project with fans by blogging in the Announcements section and posting fresh content (new videos, dailies, bloopers from the week, interviews with the press, etc) to their MEDIA section.  (Announcements are automatically sent to the project’s community via email or RSS if selected.)  The project administrator can also set a new funding goal to raise money for the next phase of the project.

What happens if a project does not reach its funding goal?
The funding period remains open and project administrators continue to receive contributions until they notify IndieGoGo that they would like to stop receiving contributions for their project.  To stop contributions, please email support@indiegogo.com.

What’s not mentioned here is that IndieGoGo takes 9% of any contributions you receive. Yes, capitalism happens. Also, Amazon takes another percentage but it’s minimal. You can also set it to disperse the contributions to your bank account in different increments such as $500, $1000, $2000 and so on.

All in all I think this is a great tool for any Indie filmmaker to have in their arsenal. I have seen projects on there that have raised 20,000+ dollars and I have seen some that have raised a couple hundred. It just depends on what your funding goals are. As you can see we have not raised any money but I just setup this project a few days ago and have yet to use all the tools provided. Ya know, were Indie filmmakers. We need all the help we can get.

Keep makin’ sh*t.