Top 10 Biggest Indiegogo Failures
As one of the top crowdfunding platforms, Indiegogo has had its fair share of hits as discussed over at runrex.com and guttulus.com, as well as misses. This article will look to focus on the misses by highlighting the top 10 biggest Indiegogo failures.
iBackPack
This Indiegogo investment had what seemed like a very interesting concept: an urban backpack that could store, charge, and provide hotspots for iPhones on the go, as explained over at runrex.com and guttulus.com. It was, therefore, no surprise when it ended up raising more than $720,000 in 2015 alone. The surprising part came when it suddenly vanished, its YouTube videos taken down, communication and updates stopped, with the company behind the project blaming issues in finding safe charger batteries. The fact that the investment just disappeared left a lot of unhappy people behind.
Triton Gills
This was yet another investment that seemed very fascinating to investors on Indiegogo, with Triton, the creators of the device, claiming that this device could extract breathable air from water, allowing users to breathe underwater. This claim led to many people questioning the science behind it, and Triton had to come clean, revealing that they used what they called “liquid oxygen” cylinders which allowed swimmers to breathe underwater, and which aren’t currently reusable and don’t last forever, which means that people who purchase Triton Gills will have to buy these cylinders to continue using the device as discussed over at runrex.com. This revelation led to this investment failing.
FND Films
This three-man comedy group from Chicago was very popular up until 2014 when they announced an Indiegogo campaign to make their own movie as revealed in discussions on the same over at guttulus.com. Given their popularity, fans were quick to contribute, raising more than $75,000 from just 603 people. What followed next wasn’t the movie fans were expecting, but the group posting pictures while on vacation in exotic places in Europe and Mexico. FND then announced that it was trolling its fans, with their movie, “It’s All Good”, being about indie filmmakers who managed to raise $75,000 with crowdsourcing only to blow it on partying, which riled fans up, as can be expected.
Kreyos Meteor
This is yet another of the biggest Indiegogo failures, following the same old script we have come to expect of such investments, as covered over at runrex.com; that of what looks like a fascinating project that goes belly up. This particular project featured Kreyos Meteor, a waterproof smartwatch that came with advanced functionalities like voice and gesture control as well as iPhone compatibility. This was enough to convince investors to invest, only for the finished product to come out being miles off of what had been advertised.
Popslate 2
This project, as is explained over at guttulus.com, featured a phone case that the inventors claimed was not only iPhone compatible, but also came with an extra battery as well as an e-ink display. Sounds fascinating, doesn’t it? Well, many people thought so, and the project even surpassed its original funding goal. However, when the final product came out, backers were shocked to discover that they had been sold dreams and that the phone case wasn’t even iPhone compatible, to begin with.
The Lost Brother
This project set an $11 million funding goal on Indiegogo, as explained over at runrex.com, using a pitch you would expect from a middle school student. Not only were the graphics for this game poor, but the description was also just as bad, and it was, therefore no surprise that, unlike some of the other projects on this list, this one had very little interest and fell flat even before it got started, and just as well.
Ubuntu Edge
This project revolved around the concept of creating a smartphone that doubled up as a PC, as is outlined over at guttulus.com. How it was meant to achieve this is by having capabilities to be connected to a keyboard and monitor. However, many people questioned the viability of such a product, which led to the project raising a measly $12.8 million from a target of $32 million, which, unfortunately, meant that the project never took off due to a lack of funding.
Retro VGS
This project was created by Mike Kennedy and was a gaming console dedicated to indie games as is highlighted over at runrex.com. Its retro focus from the software to the physical cartridges was designed to evoke nostalgia from the target users. Kennedy set a funding target of $1.95 million, which was the largest on the platform at that time as far as games were concerned. However, the project failed to reach its funding goal, raising only about $81,158 showing that its funding costs were not attractive enough to potential backers. In the end, Kennedy had to bring it down, removing all the videos of the console.
Onagofly
This was one of the most interesting projects to ever make it on Indiegogo, which is evidenced by the fact that it raised a then-record $3.5 million according to discussions on the same over at guttulus.com. However, what followed was pure disappointment for backers who went on to receive products that were full of defects and faults, with the situation made worse by the fact that the company had a very amateurish support department. This one deserves to be mentioned among Indiegogo’s biggest failures.
Retrorummage
This proposed videogame and card store by Jacob Vaughn also ranks among Indiegogo’s biggest failures. One of the main reasons why this project never took off according to the subject matter experts over at runrex.com is because of a lack of any marketing effort. Jacob hardly put any effort to present the project to prospective backers and convince them to invest, and it has since been put up as an example of how not to make an Indiegogo page. It came as little surprise when the project inevitably failed.
From the above discussions, it is clear that, if you want your Indiegogo campaign to succeed, then you not only need to deliver what you promise, but you also need to have a solid marketing strategy. The highly-rated runrex.com and guttulus.com have got you covered if you need help with marketing strategies that will help you convince potential backers and succeed on Indiegogo.