Bands and artists are finding continued success with fan-funded platforms like Kickstarter and PledgeMusic. When indie rock band A House For Lions was looking into the different crowdfunding platforms available to help raise money for their debut album, they found another option. Mike Nissen, the band’s guitar player (and designer), did a little digging to find out if a WordPress plugin existed to help with their approaching campaign. Sure enough, he found Ignitiondeck, a WordPress plugin that lets you to implement a crowdfunding campaign without any fees (except the cost of the plugin itself and small PayPal transaction fees) or middlemen.
The band carefully considered their options, as they acknowledged that using a well-known platform like Kickstarter might result in getting a few more eyes on their project. But at the same time, as they explained, “We realized that we might just be white noise in those other platforms, just another band trying to raise funds for their album.”
One of the plugin’s selling points for the band was that it wasn’t an “all or nothing” model; “If we come very close to our goal but aren’t fully funded we will still get to make the album no matter what so that our backers will get what they are pledging to help make.”
Any good campaign requires a solid kickoff. “We wanted to make an intro video that pokes fun at the idea of hitting people up for money, because we realize that it’s a bit of a ludicrous thing to do,” they explained. So they did just that. Their launch video shows the band interviewing several precocious children, asking them if they might be willing to spare some money and donate to the campaign. Definitely worth watching.
Also vital to any crowdfunded campaign is that the artist keeps fans interested throughout. A House For Lions is tackling this by releasing silly outtakes from the launch video and extended cuts from their interviews with kids. They’re also churning out creative rewards, including t-shirts and posters designed by Nissen. With 9 days to go, A House For Lions has received 54% of their goal.
At TuneCore we always encourage artists to be their own labels. In the new music industry, artists have all of the resources, and bands like A House For Lions are proving just that.
Check Out the “A House For Lions” Campaign
Tags: artist money artists DIY independent artists industry video