Our fifth consecutive successful Kickstarter campaign, the Air Strap, has just come to a close. We figured now would be a great time to talk about why we love using crowdfunding to launch our products.

It allows us to connect and grow with a community

This is by far our favorite part of Kickstarter. We launched our first campaign, the C-Loop, in 2010, and since then, we’ve stayed connected with a lot of our backers. In fact, many people who backed the C-Loop backed the Air Strap this time around too. Throughout the campaign and the fulfillment process, we’ve got backers cheering us on through comments, messages and emails. That type of connection can’t be found anywhere else.

Our backers get to have a say in the development of our product

We care about what you have to say. Kickstarter is a great way to hear from customers firsthand and find out what they like, what they don’t like, and what they’re hoping to see in the future. The feedback we get from backers has informed much of our design decisions.

Here’s what  co-founder, Ivan Wong, has to say about that:

"Creating viable products no longer becomes a guessing game but a collaborative effort from supporters around the world. Coupled with technologies such as 3D printing and rapid prototyping, crowdfunding accelerates the product cycle and spurs growth in innovation.”

Backers get awesome products at low prices 

Kickstarter allows backers to be the first to get innovative products at a discounted price compared to retail.

It keeps us independent and focused

Thanks to crowdfunding, we’ve been able to bootstrap our operations from day one. Without outside investors, we’re able to focus on what matters: designing great products and making our customers happy.

So thank you to all our Kickstarter backers, near and far, old and new. We couldn’t do what we love without you!

Be on the lookout for our next one…

Cheers,

The Custom SLR Team