Tutorial: How To Create A ClickStartMe Project
We have made creating a project on ClickStartMe easy with blanks to fill in and drop-down menus to select from. But, to make it even easier, we have creating this tutorial to walk you through each step.
Step One. If you have created a profile already, simple log in by typing in your e-mail address and password. Or, Log-in directly through your Facebook or Twitter account if you have them linked to your profile.
Or, if you just finished the profile creation, you can start a Project by clicking the “Create A Project” button as seen below.
To begin, click the orange “Start a Project” button.
Step Two: Fill in your information. First, name your project. Give it a name that is descriptive and memorable.
Next, select a category for your project. Click on the arrows next to the Category box, and choose.
Pick the category that best describes your project.
Many categories also have subcategories. If your category has a subcategory, another drop-down menu will appear for you to choose from.
Next, enter the amount you want to raise, and pick a deadline. The best timeframe is usually 30-60 days, but do what is best for your project.
Step Three. The rewards are one of the most important steps to funding your project. You can choose to not give away rewards by clicking the “No” button, but we strongly recommend against that.
Click the “Yes – “I’m giving away…” button.
Next, fill in the blank for how much you must be contributed to receive the reward, and type in what you are giving away in the text box below.
You can upload a photo to accompany this reward on your project page. Simply upload the photo from your computer by first clicking the orange “Upload File” button.
Select the photo you want to upload.
Crop the photo then click the orange “Save” button.
Review the reward, check what you typed, be sure the photo is uploaded, the click the orange “Save” button.
You can add as many rewards as you want. To add another reward, click the “Add another Contribution Amount” button, and start the process again.
Here is one more example of the reward process, all packed into one photo.
1. Type in the amount of contribution needed for the reward.
2. Explain what the reward is in the text box.
3. Upload a photo if you want to accompany the reward.
4. Hit the orange “Save” button
When you have added all the rewards you want, hit the blue “Next” button.
Step Four. Time to describe your project and explain it to potential donors. The first box is the “Short Description” box.
Fill in a short but interesting description of your project. The short description should be no more than 2-3 sentences long. This is the description that will appear with your project on all Search and Browse pages on the site.
The long description is very important. This is where you explain your project in detail, and get people excited to contribute. For more information on writing a compelling project description, read our blog on project writing.
You can add links to your description, use bold, underline or italics I your text, and you can create bulleted or numbered lists.
Once you have entered your long description, click the blue “Next” button.
Step Six. Now you get to make your project look unique in our Theme section. First, you can upload a project thumbnail by clicking on the orange “Upload File” button.
Second, you can select different colors and patterns for your overall theme or background images. Everything you do is previewed in the box below. Once you are satisfied with your theme, click the blue “Next” button.
Step Seven. The Media Box is what gives your potential donors the best chance to see and relate to your project. Your Media Box can contain videos, photos and/or documents like Word documents, Power Point files and PDFs. To upload a document, click the + button next to “Upload Something” in the Media Box.
You first have to choose whether you want to upload a video, photo or document. Important Reminder! Whatever you upload first will be the default video or photo people will see in your project Media Box, so be sure to upload the thing you want everyone to see first.
To add a video, first click the orange “Add a YouTube video button.” Second, cut and paste the YouTube video’s URL into the box that says “Video Page Address.” Finally, click the white button that says “Add Video.”
Repeat this step for other videos, photos and documents until they are all uploaded.
When you have uploaded everything, click the blue “Next” button.
Now it is time to set up Stripe, our payment gateway, so you can get paid by donors. Follow the step-by-step instructions here.
First, read everything carefully, then click on the blue “Connect With Stripe” button.
Next, you will be asked for your website name. If you do not have your own website, just put in www.ClickStartMe.com.
Stripe will check to be sure this is a valid url. Then, fill in the blank that says “Tell us about your business.” This is where you give Stripe a brief explanation of your project.
Your next step is to pick an “Average Payment.” We recommend you select $10-$1000. You can ignore the next two buttons that say “My business processes more than $100,000 a month on average” and “My business sells and ships physical products.”
Next, select your country. The next box asks your “Business Type.” If you are an individual, select “Individual/Sole proprietorship.” If you are a business, select the business type.
The next box asks for your EIN. If you do not have one (if you are an individual who does not have a Tax ID number) leave it blank. This box is optional so you do not have to fill it in.
Then, fill in your address.
The next step asks for your name, date of birth and the last four digits of your social security number. This information is necessary for Stripe, and for ClickStartMe, to verify that you are who you say you are.
Then you will fill in the “Credit card statement details” section which is the information that will appear on your donors’ credit card statements when your donation is posted.
Next is a very important step. You must have a valid bank account to use Stripe and ClickStartMe. Enter the bank’s routing number and your account numbers into the blanks. Stripe will verify the bank name and the account.
Then, add an e-mail address and a password to create your Stripe account. This does not have to be the same as your ClickStartMe e-mail or password. When you have entered this, click the blue button that says “Authorize access to this Stripe account.”
If everything was properly input, Stripe will approve you and you will see this screen.
At this point, your project is complete. You have two choices, you can either Preview and Publish right away, or you can save the project to publish later.
If you chose Preview And Publish This Project, you will see this screen. You can go through the project one last time to be sure everything is perfect by clicking on Back to Edit. Or, if you are ready to publish and start promoting your project, click the Publish Project button.
We give you one last chance to edit, just in case! If you are really ready to publish, click the orange “Publish Project” button and your project will be sent to ClickStartMe for approval. Projects are generally approved within 48 hours, and you will receive an e-mail telling you when your project has been approved and posted.
