Crowdfunding makes things possible that would not have been without access to the money to do it. When it comes to cards, Exploding Kittens might very well be one of the most well-known crowdfunds that made it to their goal – and this made me wonder what was on crowdfunding platforms when it came to bridge.

Here are some bridge-related projects that rely on people.

1. The Keep Bridge Alive Campaign (KPA)

The demographic of bridge players is varied: Many are professionals, many are young adults, all of us are a little different – and yet the love of the game is the thing that unites all of us around the table.

The Keep Bridge Alive Campaign is a project that promotes awareness of bridge and aims to study the game and its players as a science. It started off as a crowdfunded project, and it’s blossomed into a lot more since the beginning. (Source: Crowdfunder.co.uk)

We can thank Professor Samantha Punch from the University of Stirling for devoting her time towards refining the Sociology of Bridge into an official academic area of study. Bridge players are quirky in their own way: Study us as much as you like! (Source: Sociology of Bridge)

Some users here might know her better as puncher, her BBO handle.

She’s also a regular blogger about the project, recently appointing Dr Miriam Snellgrove to the Sociology of Bridge project, too. Congratulations! (Source: Bridgewinners)

2. A Unique Bridge Lithograph

If you love bridge art, then you might very well fall in love with this unique Kickstarter project. It ran in 2016 and offered cards, limited lithographs and the eventual original artwork with a few special final touches by the artist depending on how much the user added to their contribution.

It’s a piece of art with a cool story behind it, and it’s even better because the end product turned out to be a great depiction of the elements that make up the game.

The artist of the unique piece is Martin Holt: And of course, he draws a lot of other cool things that aren’t related to bridge. (Source: Kickstarter)

3. The Aces & Knaves Bridge Documentary

There are very few documentaries about the game of bridge – at least, less than there are about topics like poker or WWII – and there are even fewer good ones. Aces & Knaves deserves to be mentioned as one of the worthwhile bridge documentaries out there. (Source: Vimeo)

Of course, to quality for this list, it had to be a crowdfunding initiative first. (Source: IndieGogo)

Launching Your Own Fund?

If you’d like to launch your own crowdfunding campaign for your bridge club, idea, software, tech or project, there are a few things that can make it easier. Here’s how to launch your own idea – and how to have a better chance at success.

• Choose the right funding platform.
  The first step is to choose the right funding platform for your project. There are very well known options like Kickstarter, IndieGogo and Crowdfunder, but there are also a few smaller niche options. What you’re looking for is a funding platform that has been established for a while, one that has a good reputation and one that actually pays out money by the end. Some options, usually ones you’ve never heard of, might be scams so always do your research first.
• Make sure the funding platform supports your payment method.
  How would you like to be 75% into your funding project only to realize that they’ll only pay out the funds by check when you only have PayPal? This happens: Check that your chosen funding platform supports the payment method you eventually want to use to withdraw the funds.
• Outline your concept thoroughly.
  The crowfunds that work best are the ones that have a thoroughly outlined concept with at least some material at the start to show for it. What are you going to do once you’ve reached your goal – and what can people earn for donating to your cause or fund? If it’s an idea that gets enough people to say, “I’d love to see this and I’ll contribute,” then you have a successful fund.
• Promote and interact from start to finish.
  Your fund can’t be expected to be very successful if you just put it together and then leave it there. The most successful crowdfunding projects are the ones that are promoted and the ones that continuously interact.