Kickstarter creators Perry Chen, Yancey Strickler, and Charles Adler want to make damn sure that no one confuses their explosive project-funding site for a store, and to that end have amended the site's rules and regulations.
"Today we're introducing a number of changes to reinforce that Kickstarter isn't a store-it's a new way for creators and audiences to work together to make things," the trio writes in a blog post.
The first addition requires project creators to answer the question: "What are the risks and challenges this project faces, and what qualifies you to overcome them?" By giving creators an opportunity to strengthen their pitch with a sound argument, and giving potential contributors a tool to weed out illegitimate or ill-conceived projects, the Kickstarter team hopes to give readers a more realistic sense of the potential pitfalls that may befall developers.
In the same vein, Kickstarter has prohibited project simulations. The site aims to ground products in reality and provide a matter-of-fact, business-like tone to the user experience. Creators may now only display their products as-is on the project page. Similarly, creators can no longer upload renderings or images of potential final products.
"Over-promising leads to higher expectations for backers. The best rule of thumb: under-promise and over-deliver," reads the team's post.
Lastly, Kickstarter will no longer allow creators to promise several copies of the same reward to contributors.
"Hardware and Product Design projects can only offer rewards in single quantities or a sensible set (some items only make sense as a pair or as a kit of several items, for instance). The development of new products can be especially complex for creators and offering multiple quantities feels premature, and can imply that products are shrink-wrapped and ready to ship."
Stay tuned to Latinos Post for the Kickstarter community's response to these changes.