It looks like the kickstarter project may not make it. There's 2 days left, and we're $7,000 short of the goal.
It was a learning experience.
While I'd hoped we could rely on this to finish funding OctopodiCon, we are exploring alternatives (not that we ever stopped!).
I spoke briefly with a professional fundraiser earlier today, and she gave us some good directions to go in.
Some of y'all here on DKos have given me some solid advice that we've been able to implement - THANK YOU. Information is precious and important and so very, very useful. It often costs nothing to share information, and the results can be amazing.
We acquired a brand new PR director (marketing professor at a local university) this past week, and it looks like things are picking up.
While this kickstarter may fail, we've learned a few things. We have time to revamp and do a new kickstarter, let it run longer, and we have new and better avenues of getting the word out.
This whole process is a learning experience.
We generated a lot of excitement at yesterday's Monthly Tea, too. I met a woman who is involved in a different type of group that puts on events, and we compared notes.
Also, over the weekend, I was asked to join a newly forming support group for people who run conventions, which will prove beneficial in the long run. It will be more helpful for OctopodiCon 2013 than for this year's OctopodiCon. The long view is as important as the immediate needs.
I also did some recalculating and if we had to cancel OctopodiCon before August 15, it won't be as expensive as expected. There are some fees I thought we'd have to pay that we don't.
But.
It's getting harder to cancel the event, there are so many large expectations on it: the junior and senior high schools, the universities, museums, and library, all expect this to go off as planned. The attendees are getting fired up and excited about attending and the pre-enrollments are starting to pick up - nearly $1,000 worth in the last 2 weeks.
Cancelling may not be an option anymore.
So, onward! Onward we inexorably push.