Thoughts from a first-time self-publisher Part 15: Prepping for the big finish.

Final week of the campaign. Welcome back!

Best Part of my week (so far): Everyone in the family is testing COVID negative and we finally have our childcare back. My wife and I went out to a restaurant for the first time in a very long time (about 3 years) with our new super-immunity. And my big mid-campaign shift has gone off well (will be talking about that).

Most stressful part: It’s still stressful to watch those numbers stall or -worse- go backwards. It was such a relief to see my strategy work out, but it has restarted that whole excitement followed by withdrawal thing I experienced in the beginning of the campaign. The end of the campaign is drawing near and I’m trying my best to stay grounded and excited about what I have (and will have) accomplished while still feeling motivated to do everything possible to make that success bigger.

Numbers are from last week, Thursday, until today, Wednesday at 10:30 AM.

Funds Raised: $12,512 13,626 (+ $1,114)

Number of Backers: 290 326 (+36)

$1 Pledges: 42 44 (+2)

PnP Backers: 31 36 (+5)

Super Saver (reduced cost $25): 20 (sold out for now)

Retail Backers: 2 3 (+1)

(NEW) Take your Shot $35 Level: +16

Super Snipers KS Game: 184 192 (+8)

Sharpshooter (prototype and game) $300: 3 of 8 No Change

Elite (make your own Super Sniper) $1500: 1 of 2. No Change

Costs: I’ve spent an additional $500 to get Super Snipers’ rulebook translated into Spanish and French, and another $40 in shipping for prototypes.

How did the Big Shift Work out?
I made the shift (see the last blog if you don’t know what I am talking about) late Thursday night and put out the Update then. The email went out Friday morning and the ads shifted to push the new tier on Friday as well..

I went to sleep hopeful after finalizing everything, but knew there was a possibility of waking up Friday morning with less funding if I hadn’t given my $48 backers enough incentive to stay put.

Since then, the campaign is up $1000 and about 36 backers! That’s not huge in the grand scheme of things, but it is absolutely huge in comparison to the rut I was stuck in. The momentum is back! Though each day, I fear it will grind to a halt again.

What were the actual results? Note that I am not trying to imply causation, only everything that happened since the changes were put in place. Numbers as of Wednesday morning.

Lost Revenue: - $404

• 6 cancellations of the $48 Pledge, 1 cancellation of the $6 pledge, 1 cancellation of the $1 pledge: -295

• 3 reduced from $48 to $43 ($35 pledge tier and Mini-expansion), 2 reduced from $48 to $1: -109

Gained Revenue: + $1,170

• 2 people (One $6 backer and one $1 backer) upgraded their pledges to $48: +89

• 7 new “Take your Shot” Pledges ($35 base but some paid more for add-ons): +261

• 13 new people pledged at the $48. level: +$624

• 4 people upgraded from $1 Surveillance to the $35 Take Your Shot Pledge (2 at 35, 2 at 43): +156

• 5 new $1 Surveillance Backers: +$5

• 5 new $6 Reconnaissance backers (PNP) + $35

• 1 new Retail Backer: +25

  Overall Effect? +$1,114 and 36 Backers The amount earned in the same time period the previous week? +296 and 1 Backer. I am aware that the numbers don’t match up perfectly but I just didn’t track every single change (like pledges without rewards or overpaying)
  
  I think it is safe to say that my change made an impact. So how do I continue to capitalize as I head into the final week? I’ve got a couple things that I am trying/ going to implement:
  

  Tabletopia: The folks at Tabletopia actually reached out to me and offered to create the mod for their system. That’s great because I am low on time! They did finish up but there are a few critical errors that I’m hoping can be fixed soon. When I know it is playable, I will be advertising it more widely, joining their Discord, and hopefully running a demo there.
  
  Reviews: 3 more reviews still scheduled to come out.

  Backer Count Incentive: I will be revealing a new incentive. For every Backer count level we hit (+20 backers) I will be selecting 2 random backers from any of the physical rewards levels to receive $15 store credit. This is meant to offset shipping and -hopefully- provides one more level of encouragement to up the pledge level to a physical version in hopes of being selected. Additionally, if I hit every one of the goals and get to 500 backers, it is only costing me $300. I don’t know how effective this will be, but I feel better investing that money back into my backers as opposed to one more marketing avenue.

  Exclusive prize for sharing: I received a complaint from a backer that the current contests leave out a number of backers who cannot or don’t use TTS. This is a very valid criticism. I do not have the time to set up equivalent contests, but I plan on giving everyone a chance at the same prize by setting up a system where they can earn entries for shares on social media.

  Influencers: I have reached out to several folks in the industry who have had kind things to say about Super Snipers and let them know about the big mid-campaign shift in hopes that they will cover it and their audiences can see it.

  
  Email List: I will be sending an email to my whole list about the last week and the plans. It’s not always a huge response, but I’ve found that every email blast results in at least some backers.

  
  The Final 48 Hours: This is not something I can “do” but it is probably the best prospect for the biggest influx of backers and money. The common wisdom (that I’m not sure really holds anymore) is that you will make a third of your funding in the last 48 hours. I’ve also heard it said that you will make the same that you made in the first 48 hours. If that holds true, I’m in good shape to cross that $20,000 mark and the big acrylic upgrade.
  
  Next time we catch up will be right before the end of the campaign. I would love to hear any questions you may have!
  
  And please, if you haven’t yet, take a look at the Super Snipers Campaign