Journal
What Kickstarter backers actually click
We studied 40 hardware campaigns. The hero loop beats the hero image every single time.
Ines Calder
7 min
We reviewed forty hardware campaigns that raised over $500,000 and tracked what backers clicked, watched and shared in the first 48 hours.
Motion beats stills above the fold
Campaigns that opened with a short looping render held visitors 2.3 times longer than those that opened with a static hero. The loop did not need sound — it needed light moving across the product.
Stretch goals need pictures
Stretch goals announced with a render of the unlock outperformed text-only announcements by a wide margin. Backers fund what they can see.
Your campaign page is a product page with a deadline. Treat every asset like it has to sell on its own.
Plan the GIF set and stretch-goal renders before launch day; mid-campaign is too late to start.
Launch strategy
Why your pre-order page should launch before your prototype does
Hardware teams wait for samples to start marketing. The ones that win start the day the CAD freezes.
6 min
Production
The CMF swatch is your most important render reference
Colour, material and finish decide whether a render reads as real. Here is how we brief them.
5 min
Studio
Inside a 30-day launch: from STEP file to hero film
A week-by-week look at how a Tesel launch film is planned, approved and rendered.
8 min