The crowdfunding process can be broken down into 3 general phases: pre-crowdfunding, crowdfunding (actual campaign), and post-crowdfunding. This article will focus on post-crowdfunding solutions so that you can actually sell your product when your campaign is finished.
Indiegogo InDemand Program
If you used Indiegogo and your crowdfunding campaign was successful (target reached within the timeframe), you can opt-in to keep your campaign page active. Visitors can continue to make contributions and select perks, and Indiegogo will continue to charge you the same fee as before. Visitors will be able to see the old information, including comments, updates, your funding goal, amount received, and date funded, along with an “InDemand” title. The URL remains the same and you essentially use your Indiegogo page as a storefront. You can click here for more information about Indiegogo InDemand.
Shopify
Shopify is a popular turnkey e-commerce solution for people who don’t want to build their own site from scratch. They will provide hosting, payment processing, design templates, and tracking/analytics tools. They basically provide everything you need to get up and running – the only downside, of course, is the cost. They will take a payment processing fee and a percentage of all your sales processed. Still, if you don’t have the time or money to maintain your own standalone site, many users swear by Shopify and highly recommend it. You can click here for more information about Shopify.
WooCommerce and WordPress
WooCommerce is the most popular e-commerce plugin for WordPress. WordPress is the most popular self-hosted CMS / website solution in the world. If you combine both of these tools, you can create your own highly-customizable storefront. There are many powerful plugins and themes specifically made for WooCommerce, so if you know how to use WordPress then you should be able to create a solid website to sell your item. You’ll have to handle your own programming, payment processing (but there are WordPress plugins to do this), inventory management, and hosting. However, you’ll save yourself the % fees you would otherwise be paying for an all-in-one solution like Shopify and Indiegogo InDemand. You can click here for more information about WooCommerce and WordPress.
Amazon
Amazon needs very little explanation- it’s the largest e-commerce site on the internet that attracts buyers from all over the world. There are a variety of partnership arrangements and setups with Amazon, so we will save that for another article. But if you are serious about selling your product, look into getting listed on Amazon. Just be sure to carefully consider all of the fees and make sure the numbers add up – if you are selling a low-margin item then it might not make economic sense (although the customer acquisition and exposure benefits will still exist and probably make it worth it anyway). You can click here for more information about selling on Amazon.
Etsy
Etsy is a niche online marketplace that specializes in handcrafted items, art, and supplies. Similar to other e-commerce markets, you can create an account, set up a storefront, and sell and market your stuff. They have a large following and have been around for years. Just make sure your items fit into their “niche” of handcrafted, “artsy” items and products (jewelry, design, photography, toys, etc.). You can click here for more information about Etsy.
