We cover our fair share of Kickstarter projects here at Solidsmack. Some projects, like the heavy-duty COMBAR and the problem-solving Triggers Cards, are lucky enough to receive full funding and get shipped to their backers in a timely manner. Others? Well, not so much.
But, as is the nature of the popular crowdfunding platform, there’s still no real guarantee you’ll be getting what you paid for.
YouTuber Josh Smith recently pointed out some useful tips on how you can be more cautious with your money on the project-backing platform.
For instance, jumping on an overfunded project could result in the creators not being able to deliver on the high demand. While they have planned for initial orders, a massive increase could royally mess up their timeline and leave some consumers waiting for months for the product to arrive at their doorstep.
Another tip is to be wary of first-time creators offering complex products like electronics or software applications. These are harder to develop and may take a bit more time for a new creator to produce.
The ultimate solution to most of these problems though? Take a look at the developer timeline and don’t over-pledge. By checking to see whether a project is an idea, prototype, or a full-fledged product, you can save yourself a lot of risk by knowing its chances of success or failure are slim. It also helps if you don’t throw money at everything you find remotely interesting—so don’t go funding flying cars…if it needs to be said.
