Top Takeaways from an Interview with Kickstarter's Sam Kusek

PLUS: The Comic Book Crowdfunding Planner Kickstarter Campaign Ends at Midnight!

It’s a good month when you get to fill it up with great conversations about comic, creativity, commerce and crowdfunding. As a part of the promotion push for the new Comic Book Crowdfunding Planner this month, I’ve done near daily interviews with comic creator crowdfunders.

(BTW, the Planner, which is now supported by over 550+ backers and is closing in on $20K in funding wraps TONIGHT at midnight. Don’t miss out if you’re looking for an edge on YOUR next launch… or if you’re looking for a killer gift for the comic creator in your life!)

On Wednesday, I had the chance to convene a panel with three veteran comic creator crowdfunders — Rob Multari (Lone Wolf Comics), Allan Liska (Green Archer Comics), and Christian Douglas (Unpopular Comics) — and the head of Comics Outreach at Kickstarter Sam Kusek. If you missed the entire interview, I’ve included the interview below… but I also took the liberty of jotting down my TOP TAKEAWAYS from the session, as there were some KEY INSIGHTS you’re going to want to know about if you pay attention to the world of comics crowdfunding

The Complete Sam Kusek Interview:

Here’s Your Cheatsheet of the Top 7 Takeaways from this Interview:

1. Kickstarter’s Native Pledge Manager Is Live (Open Beta) and Sam wants your feedback!
   Kickstarter has launched its own pledge manager, allowing creators to manage shipping, add-ons, taxes, and surveys—all within the platform. Feedback is actively sought to improve it, as Sam acknowledges that in its current form it doesn’t do EVERYTHING that the other PMs do, but they’re actively working to get there. Creators on the panel praised BackerKit’s Pledge Manager for streamlined logistics (e.g., batch label exports), which Kickstarter's tool currently lacks. Efficiency features remain a key ask.

2. A Strong Push for Creator-Owned Communities
   Sam and creators voiced interest in more community-building features within Kickstarter to reduce reliance on social media giants and better engage repeat backers. A number of promising ideas were raised.

3. Kickstarter's Comic Growth is Steady, Not Declining
   Despite creator concerns, internal data shows a 5.25% increase in both launches and successes year over year. Still, discoverability and backer acquisition remain tougher than in boom periods like the pandemic.

4. Economic Pressures Are Real & Affecting Backers
   Higher costs for creators and tighter wallets for backers are making it harder to fund projects. Many backers are downsizing pledges or switching to digital tiers. Kickstarter has recently rolled out PLEDGE OVER TIME which may be able to help backers afford bigger pledges by breaking up those payments over three months instead of charging them all at once.

5. Kickstarter Launches Monthly Comics Newsletter
   Sam curates a monthly comics newsletter highlighting 6 campaigns, industry updates, and creator spotlights. Creators can sign up for the newsletter at: https://www.kickstarter.com/newsletters/comics

   Pro tip: Email Sam (s.kusek@kickstarter.com) 4–6 weeks before your launch to be considered.

6. Discoverability is Being Addressed—Including NSFW Content
   Kickstarter now offers a separate NSFW newsletter and is exploring content filters so users can better tailor what they see. Creators talked about concerns of family members only seeing NSFW when trying to find and support their tamer content.

7. There’s No Magic Algorithm Trick, But Early Momentum Helps
   While Kickstarter’s algorithm isn’t public, pre-launch followers, strong early backer turnout, and being nearly funded can trigger promotional boosts. Creators should focus less on trying to game the Kickstarter system and instead double down on bringing their own audience to ever launch. Use freebies, email lists, convention networking, and authentic engagement to grow an audience before going live. Real community-building trumps flashy launch gimmicks every time.

All in all, a lot of gold in that conversation, and I’m grateful to Sam, Rob, Allan and Christian for talking to me.

-Tyler James

P.S. I’ll be going live for the last daily livestream of the month at Noon today with 4 more awesome creators. Come join us at NOON for the live on YouTube.

P.P.S. Don’t forget… the ComixLaunch Planner launch wraps TONIGHT!