Sitemaps
How We Secretly Lose Control of Our Startups
Does Startup Success Validate Us Personally?
Should Kids Follow in Our Founder Footsteps?
The Evolution of Entry Level Workers
Assume Everyone Will Leave in Year One
Was Mortgaging My Life Worth it?
What's My Startup Worth in an Acquisition?
When Our Ambition is Our Enemy
Are Startups in a "Silent Recession"?
Do Founders Deserve Their Profit?
The Utter STUPIDITY of "Risking it All"
Why Most Founders Don't Get Rich
Investors will be Obsolete
Why is a Founder so Hard to Replace?
We Can't Grow by Saying "No"
More Money (Really Means) More Problems
Committees Are Where Progress Goes to Die
Wait a Minute before Giving Away Equity
Why do Founders Suck at Asking for Help?
The Value of Actually Getting Paid
Will Investors Bail Me Out?
Is the Problem the Player or the Coach?
Do People Really Want Me to Succeed?
You Only Think You Work Hard
SMALL is the New Big — Embracing Efficiency in the Age of AI
The 9 Best Growth Agencies for Startups
Never Share Your Net Worth
This is BOOTSTRAPPED — 3 Strategies to Build Your Startup Without Funding
The Ridiculous Spectrum of Investor Feedback
$10K Per Month isn't Just Revenue — It's Life Support
Why do VCs Keep Giving Failed Founders Money?
If It Makes Money, It Makes Sense
The Hidden Treasure of Failed Startups
My Competitor Got Funded — Am I Screwed?
Why Having Zero Experience is a Huge Asset
How About a Startup that Just Makes Money?
How to Recruit a Rockstar Advisor
Risk it All vs Steady Paycheck
A Steady Hand in the Middle of the Storm
How to Pick the Wrong Co-Founder
Staying Small While Going Big
Why I'm Either Working or Feeling Guilty
Are Founders Driven by Fear or Greed?
What if I'm Building the Wrong Product?
How Startups Actually Get Bought
Quitting vs Letting Go
Actually, We Have Plenty of Time
Why Can't Founders Replace Themselves?
Who am I Really Competing Against?
Investors are NOT on Our Side of the Table
Plan for Bad Times, Budget in Good Times
Demo Article
When a $40m Exit is More Than a $200m Exit
Don't Fear the Reaper: AI Edition
Don't Let Investors Become Your Customer
We Can't Stay Out Of The Game For Too Long
What if Our Dreams Are an Illusion?
What if this isn't a "Big Business"?
Founders, Not All Problems Are Apocalyptic
Stop Listening to Investors
Can You Build a Startup in Less than 40 Hours per Week?
Unlocking the Power of a Startup Community
Strategies to Effectively Raise Capital for Your Startup Business
Are Bootstrapped Startups Less Valuable?
Why Founders Don't Ask for Help
Where to Find Startup Mentors to Take Your Business to the Next Level in 2023
What Is a Venture Capitalist and How Do They Work?
What Is an Entrepreneur? A 2023 Guide to Starting Your Own Business
A Guide to Different Stages of Funding for Startups
Time is Our Greatest Asset
The Toll of Everyone Around a Founder
Big Starts Breed False Victories
Once a Founder, Always a Founder
The Invention of the 20-Something-Year-Old Founder
When is Founder Ego Too Much?
Founder Impostor Syndrome Never Goes Away
Always Take Money off the Table
Should I Feel Guilty for Failing?
The Case Against Full Transparency
Why Do We Still Have Full-Time Employees?
This is Probably Your Last Success
How Many Deaths Can a Startup Survive?
How Should I Share My Wealth with Family?
Why Do VC Funded Startups Love "Fake Growth?"
Living the Founder Legend Isn't so Fun
Youth Entrepreneurship: Can Middle Schoolers be Founders?
How to get Customers for Startups
Founder Sacrifice — At What Point Have I Gone Too Far?
The Power of a Growth Mindset: How to Achieve Success in Your Startup
Startup Board Negotiations: How do I tell the board I need a new deal?
20 Best Kinds of Startups for 2023
Series A Funding Rounds
6 Similarities between Startup Founders and Pro Athletes
Choosing The Right Type Of Website For Your Business
Startup Failure is just One Chapter in Founder Life
What If my plan for retirement is "never retire"?
Is Quiet Quitting a Problem at Startup Companies?
If a Startup Sinks, Founders Go Down With it
Startup Growth Challenges: The Downfall of Becoming Internally Focused
Analyzing Startup Accounting Results

Using a Virtual Assistant to Accelerate Your Crowdfunding Campaign

Kendell Rizzo

Using a Virtual Assistant to Accelerate Your Crowdfunding Campaign

The success of your campaign depends on the number of people you can reach, engage and motivate during your campaign and the weeks leading up to it.

This is a tall order for an already busy entrepreneur.  Many campaigners are now realizing the most effective way to run a crowdfunding campaign is by utilizing a Virtual Assistant—Like the ones at Zirtual.

Tim Ferris recently said: “The #1 resource we found for outsourcing is Zirtual… Do not run a Kickstarter campaign (or your life) without…”

By delegating crowdfunding work to your VA, you can focus on what’s important.

Your VA works behind the scenes and allows you, your product, and your launch to shine.

So, how exactly do you use a virtual assistant to boost your crowdfunding campaign efforts?

This three-part series is a must use for any crowdfunding campaign.  The three parts contain a breakdown of tasks, deliverables and emails to use with your VA.

No guesswork needed.

Your VA, is only a copy and paste away…

1.) Research

Timeline: 1-2 Months Before Launch

Research Task #1: Find Similar Campaign Traffic Sources

Make a list of ten similar and successful campaigns in an Excel Document.  Then send this document to your VA, with the following email:

Hello (Insert VA Name),

In this project, our goal is to find out which sites are sending the most traffic to Kickstarter projects. Here’s how to do it:

1.    Go to a Excel Doc with list of campaign links.

2.    Copy the short link (e.g. http://kck.st/QyhA7X) below the bottom-right corner of the video

3.    Open a new tab or window in your browser

4.    Paste the short link URL into the new tab or window and add a + at the end

5.    Click enter to get to a bit.ly site

6.    Use the dropdown menu on the right to select “total” for the time frame

7.    Put the top results (anything over 1%) in the attached spreadsheet.

Thank you and have a great day.

Research Task #2: Find Relevant Bloggers Using the “Tim Ferris Photo Hack”

Using the initial list of campaigns sent to your VA, you can use the product or campaign photos in combination with images.google.com.  By pulling the images into this search bar, you can see which bloggers and media outlets covered each campaign.

Outsource using this email:

 

Hello (Insert VA Name),
We are looking for relevant bloggers for our campaign by finding out who’s covered similar projects. Here’s how to do it:

1.    Go to the Excel Doc of similar campaigns and complete steps 2-5 for each site.

2.    Select 2-3 images that you think a blogger may include in a post (you can use the image from the video)

3.    Right click each image and “save image as”

4.    Go to images.google.com and drag one of those files into the search bar

5.    Check out all the links. If you find a media outlet / blog that you think will cover us , put it in the attached spreadsheet.

6.    Repeat steps 4-5 for each image.
Thank you and have a great day!

You now have dozens of blogs that have a high probability of relevance, all neatly organized in a spreadsheet.

If you are looking for more sites have your VA explore other similar sites using: http://www.similarsites.com/

2.) Reach

Timeline: 1 Month Before Launch

Now that you have a strong list of bloggers and media contacts it is time to start engaging with the list.  Have your Zirtual determine their following and then see if you have any direct connections with any of the bloggers and media contacts.

Outsource using this email:

 

Hello (Insert VA Name),

Please use the Excel Doc with Blogger and Media contact information to fill in the Facebook, Twitter, Email, RSS, and Pinterest columns in the media list spreadsheet for all the bloggers. It should be easy to see how many Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest followers they have.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Thank you and have a great day!

3.) Relationships

Timeline: During and After Launch

Relationships Task #1: Weekly or Bi-weekly Updates

Continuous updates throughout the campaign may look like window dressing, but it’s essential to your campaign.  Updates empower your funders to spread your campaign by making funders feel like team members.

Transforming your funder from customer to team member is a turning point in your campaign.  When funders feel like part of your team they share and promote your campaign like it was their own. This is the goal behind campaign updates.  But the more funders you have, the harder this task can be.

That’s why you can write an update weekly or even with every milestone and then your ZA will copy and paste to Social Media, the campaign page, email list etc.

Outsource using this email:

 

Hello (Insert VA Name),

Please copy the following into all our social platforms and broadcasts:

Hey there everyone! Great start to the campaign, I am humbled by everyone’s support and the feedback we received in Week One.

I did want to let everyone know we have a secret perk coming out this week, check it out here….

{{End of Post}}

When finished please send me a snapshot of everything and ensure that the messages get out.

Thank you and have a great day.

Relationship Task #2: Thank You

Thanking a funder is another way to create a personal aspect to your campaign and it also is an easy way to spread the word on your campaign.

Outsource using this email:

Hello (Insert VA Name),

At the end of each day please create an updated list of funders, funder emails and perk purchase.

If they left a message or anything out of the ordinary, please make notes in the excel documents as well.

I will check this Doc in the evenings and we can address questions in the mornings to assemble an FAQ.

When finished please send me a snapshot of everything and ensure that the messages get out.

Thank you and have a great day.

Find this article helpful?

This is just a small sample! Register to unlock our in-depth courses, hundreds of video courses, and a library of playbooks and articles to grow your startup fast. Let us Let us show you!

Submission confirms agreement to our Terms of Service and Privacy Policy.

Already a member? Login

No comments yet.

Register to join the discussion.

Already a member? Login

Create Free Account