My partners and I created a GoFundMe campaign to raise contributions for expenses to film our pilot but have had difficulty in gaining traction for donations and responses and looking for some advice on turning this into a successful campaign.
A bit about our project:
SUMMARY: No Boundaries is a brand new documentary series developed to bring people's stories of struggles, culture, and passions in their lives and achieving something more in this life we have than just existing day to day.
WE ARE NOT HERE TO DEBATE POLITICS OR RELIGIOUS IDEOLOGIES.
Everyone has a story to tell and we are looking for people who are living testaments to the trials and errors that life brings us. Seeking something more in this existence. Our goal is to tell their stories through film and narrated essays to bring a sense of motivation and success revealing the ability to "create" our own realities and bring fulfillment to our lives.
PRODUCTION: The production is to be a very small unobtrusive 5 person crew with co-hosts bringing the stories of selected people to life. Our goal is to be unobtrusive and organic in the filming environments without major set design and building. It is to remain as natural as possible. The goal is to push the cameras "out there" and capture the nuances of the guests and surrounding environments to capture a larger but detailed vision. As the story unfolds on film, we create and narrate an essay telling each story that is revealed.
We appreciate your advise and assistance. Thank you in advance!
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Short answer, crowdfunding campaigns require a lot of work, a lot of advertising and a lot of prep. Ideally, or maybe required, is a large list of supporters you can access, which you have cultivated BEFORE the campaign begins. It also requires a budget to spend to reach out to people. I worked on a very successful campaign which raised ~$350K but it did take many months and it did spend ~$60K in advertising to do that... Crowdfunding is not necessarily free money.
You may also want to consider supplemental funding that will increase buzz (and trustworthiness) - does your film qualify for any grants? Both subject matter and people attached could qualify you. Could organizations be interested in supporting it? Or local businesses? Every affiliation you can tack on with give potential investors a sense of being a part of a "winning team", and we all want to be on the winning team.