Giraffe Call:pondering incentives

[aldersprig]

With a Giraffe Call coming tomorrow and a more-urgent-than-usual need for the income, I've been pondering the incentive levels.

The current donation incentives are:
Everyone who donates gets 100 words per dollar on their giraffe call of choice.

In addition, there are group-levels based on total donation level:

$35- 1000-2000-word fic on the subject of the audience's choice. (I always reach this level)

$65- 2 microfics for every prompter (I get here about half the time)

$95- write EVERY prompt (I've gotten here once)

$120 - podcast of a story and double wordcount for donors (I never reach this level)

$150 - ebook of fiction for this call & last one (I never reach this level)

There is a linkback-incentive story as well, updated 50-words per linkback, and a new-commentor/donor incentive piece written about the setting.

There's a poll up from the last giraffe call here and here)

My questions:
Do the current incentives serve to incentivize people?

What might better encourage donation/participation, if anything?

Thanks!

Comments

[inventrix]

My thoughts, based on objective analysis and past experience with your calls:

I think that the current incentives are reasonable, and appealing enough for their dollar values. Basically, I don't think there are any changes you could make to the incentives to make a significant difference.

What I have noticed is that it seems to be a fairly consistent core group of prompters and donators each time, which suggests it isn't so much an issue of encouraging increased activity as encouraging increased awareness.

There are a couple tricky bits to this "awareness" thing. One is that there is only so much a linkback can do. I know from personal experience that a lot of the time, it will go like this:

- See someone you like/enjoy the work of link to a crowdfunding thing
- Interested, you click the link
- The crowdfunding landing page gives you no indication of the type or quality of work this new person you have never read before does, and no clear instructions on how this works
- Lacking any real emotional/mental investment into it, you close the page

Your giraffe calls, I have to say, are one of the best organized in terms of informative layout. Going into your GC landing page, you know exactly how it works in terms of money-to-output. So that, at least, gives you an advantage over most of the other things I've seen and been confused by and left.

I do think, however, that putting a writing sample in the post itself (at the bottom, perhaps an excerpt from a past GC microfic?) could help draw the attention of new viewers. Putting a couple of links to some example stories in the post itself (at the top or above the excerpt?) could also help a lot.

Also, I think a referral system might be a good idea. I don't think any of your core readers/donors have a particularly large disposable income. A specific referral system might be a good way to encourage people who would like to donate more or want some donor perks that they can't afford to bring in new people.

Lastly! Not specifically Giraffe Call related, but have you considered doing a joint writing/art crowdfunding project with somebody?

[inventrix]

holy shit that is long

[aldersprig]

The referral system is a very good idea! I have used such things in the past - with the Drakeathon, for instance.

So is the writing sample. Hrrm. Suggestions? :-D I'm thinking a stand-alone, perhaps the English Language one or one of the Shadow Ghosts

[inventrix]

I don't have a specific suggestion off the top of my head, but I actually would suggest a story that works as a stand-alone but is part of one of your existing settings. (Maybe with a postscript linking to the setting's landing page.)

That gives new people a good lead-in to more of your work, which I think will make them more likely to become engaged and, as it is often put, "keep coming back".

[aldersprig]

*ponders thoughtfully*

Thanks!

[aldersprig]

... that's an awesome idea.

[inventrix]

"Or, in more seriousness: I liked the 'when I get to this level I am buying myself X' levels. The carpet is the overall goal, but could you put in "IF I get to $x, I get 50% of a carpet"? Or Chinese takeout? I thought that was adorable." ~cluudle

I second this! I like those kind of incentives, too. They're fun. 8)

[aldersprig]

Okay!