Category: Crowdfunding

Trail Tuesdays- It's the Climb.

9/2/2014

In reading that title you either first thought of our Kickstarter campaign or Miley Cyrus. Whichever it was says a lot about you.

Now going on Day 20 of our Kickstarter campaign and we’re standing strong around $7500. We’re starting to get excited with idea of a race to the finish. We have an important strategic move ahead so continue reading..

Successes: We’ve been reaching out and building our Founding Family with some new faces. We have more new faces than old (but beautiful) faces at this point.

Challenges: Continuing to stay present in the media and keeping some eyes on FNO. Most importantly communicating what is probably our best reward on Kickstarter- The Founding Family.

The Founding Family is a group that you can only join by pledging at least 10USD on Kickstarter. FNO has a current emailing list, but the Founding Family will have their own exclusive email list. We plan to use the FF as a soundboard on all projects and products in the future. What does that mean? Impressive discounts on gear.

Let us say, hypothetically speaking of course, that we have a pretty sweet design of a new camping mat we plan to market for 100USD to the public. First dibs are going to the Founding Family, but even more importantly the FF will be looking at the product for nearly half that price. And its brand new gear! Why would we do this? We’re not looking to the Founding Family for profit, but we’re looking to build a small FNO team. The ability to get gear in the hands of the Founding Family means more feedback and ideas for us. Win-win.

This is what we mean by "U" shaped Funding Curve.

What to look forward to (Strategy): We plan to do the last of our media outreach over the next week. Then next Tuesday 9/9 we plan to launch the last of our social media push in order to move our campaign up the “U” and over the edge. We hope this last push will serve as the catalyst that increases awareness as we climb the “U”. So, like us on Facebook now and we will let you know when this final push begins..

Chris DeVore

Final Note: Lastly we’ve partnered with a few different projects on this journey of ours as we’ve tried to learn and grow. These guys have been great resources and they are the last of our partners. Check them out, and maybe even help them out to help them reach their goals too.

Sun Strap- Harness the power of the sun and keep all your devices charged. Why wouldn’t you?

VIER- The most compact and durable bike lock we’ve ever seen. If you missed the “Today Show” this morning on bike theft, you should watch it. And return to your computer to back these guys.

HYDAWAY Bottle- This isn’t some roll-up plastic bottle. The most durable bottle that disappears before your eyes.

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Trail Tuesday- Would you say our goal is lofty, or super-lofty? Punny.

8/26/2014

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For the next few Tuesdays we will be giving updates on our Kickstarter campaign, and all the insights you could ever want from our end. But well still keep this simple for the sake of the reader-

Updates- We are now on Day 13 of our campaign and nearly $7000 has been raised towards our $12000 goal. That is sweet! But we now find ourselves thickly in the middle of the Kickstarter “U” so here’s what were thinking:

Successes-

1) Still going strong. $6700 is a solid standing, but still plenty of way to climb.

2) Great shout outs and posts in the media recently including sites such as Gear Institute, The Campsite Blog, Word in the Woods.

Challenges-

1) Keeping the momentum. Our strategy is to keep sharing the project in the media for the next week or two, and go for one final blitz towards the wind-down of the campaign.

2) Communication-What is Superloft? Not your run-of-the-mill fill.

The search for the right fill was by far the most challenging part of the prototyping process. We knew what we wanted, but we also knew the challenges in sourcing it. Working with different manufacturers we found that some were completely open to saying ‘hey we offer this fill from Brand X. Do you want it?’ Some manufacturers were vaguer for understandable reasons (of the legal nature).

In the end we ended up describing exactly what we wanted to our manufacturer. In turn they create a unique blend of short-strand microfibers that make the filling highly compressible, very soft, and feel as much like down as we could design. It also has impressive water resistance qualities. The biggest disadvantage of this fill is expense, but we think we did well not to pass this on to customers. It is not your typical fill; it is Superloft.

So what’s new ahead?

Well of course our biggest goal is reaching the finish line (and then some if possible). For that were going to need aid from the media, and we may be calling on our Founding Family to help get the word out. The FF has a nice surprise in its future so of course the efforts will be rewarded handsomely.

Thanks for the help so far and here’s to keeping it going strong!

Chris DeVore
Father Nature Outdoors
Because Mother Nature can be a pain.

Final Note: To run a Kickstarter campaign it takes a whole lot of research and preparation. We reached out to a few different cool projects for insight and we have two partners to show off this week-

Flip and Jive (Hepcat)- Handcrafted skateboards made from re-purposed bourbon barrels. Each board is unique, and the way we see it- it's like you're riding a piece of art. One of the coolest projects we have found.

The best designed tent ever made? Quite possible. That's what they're working on over at TheTentLab. With over 20 years of experience Mike is looking to take his project to the next level. Wish him luck!

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Trail Tuesdays: Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained.

8/19/2014

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For the next three Tuesdays we will be giving updates on our Kickstarter campaign, and all the insights you could ever want from our end. But well still keep this simple for the sake of the reader-

Updates- We are now on Day 7 of our campaign and just over $5000 has been raised towards our $12000 goal. That is nearly half way there which is awesome. However in our research we know that Kickstarter funding occurs on a “U” shaped curve so we have to keep the interest there!

Successes-

1)      Great start towards our goal- Nearly $3000 in the first 2.5 days. Nearly $5000 in the first 6 days.

2)      Another goal with this campaign was not to reach out to family and friends as much as it was to generate genuine interest in our venture here. Our goal is to build a community (or rather a Founding Family) from all backgrounds, all geographic regions, and not just my best friend and my grandfather. We see this as critical in order to continuously improve our products and our operation here. Luckily we have a very healthy mix of friends and newcomers so far!

3)      We went into this campaign with the mindset saying ‘Hey we’re pretty sure we can be successful here, but whatever happens we’ve learned and we’ll have no regrets trying. Nothing ventured, nothing gained’. So far that is very true. Learned a lot already and having fun doing it!

Challenges-

1) Keeping interest up during the next few weeks- We expect interest on the backend with help from Kickstarter, but we have to keep momentum going! Hopefully some media outlets will come in handy here!

2) Communicate our message effectively as possible. We have been getting a few questions over here regarding what makes our campaign and product unique.

The difference- Backpacking quilts have been around for a little while, but the advantages of backpacking quilts have never been translated over to your traditional camper. So we modified a traditional ultra-light quilt to not only to increase comfort, but also to increase versatility and longevity. This is a three season blanket that any camper should enjoy! Although backpackers should enjoy this quilt too, our primary market is campers.

So what’s new ahead?

We would be thrilled if we reach our goal before the homeward stretch. For now we’re focusing on outreach, but in the meantime we haven’t forgotten our founding family that we’ve already started! If we’re successful and we pass our goals, we’re already planning a few surprises ready for them.

So here’s to keeping the trek going! Thanks for the help so far!

Chris DeVore
Father Nature Outdoors
Because Mother Nature can be a pain.

Final Note: To run a Kickstarter campaign it takes a whole lot of research and preparation. We reached out to a few different cool projects for insight and one of our helpers was Bakpocket Products. If hammock camping is up your alley, check these guys out too! (We may share one or two projects during these posts because they’ve been so helpful for us)

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Trail Tuesdays- It's the Climb.

In reading that title you either first thought of our Kickstarter campaign or Miley Cyrus. Whichever it was says a lot about you.

Trail Tuesday- Would you say our goal is lofty, or super-lofty? Punny.

For the next few Tuesdays we will be giving updates on our Kickstarter campaign, and all the insights you could ever want from our end. But well still keep this simple for the sake of the reader-

Trail Tuesdays: Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained.

For the next three Tuesdays we will be giving updates on our Kickstarter campaign, and all the insights you could ever want from our end. But well still keep this simple for the sake of the reader-

What will you find here?

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