Idea 099 - Stevens projects club

This post is part of the 100 project ideas project. #The100DayProject. I am looking for feedback. Comment below or DM me via social media Instagram, Twitter.

One Line Pitch

Patreon subscription for people receive one of Steven’s projects twice a year

Description

I love making projects. Currently I make two projects a year. The projects are small because anything I make personally costs me money.

I am sending these projects to a curated list of friends and family. I would like to send them to random internet strangers who have asked for copies in the past but I can’t justify the costs.

I would make more of these style projects but I want to ensure people actually want them, and I want feedback on what direction I should take next.

Examples of the projects that I have sent out to people

The (2021) Vancouver Bird playing Cards project cost me a total of $1,632.44 CAD for 50 decks or about $13.60 CAD per deck shipped in North America.

The (2022) Monthly Habit Tracker project cost me a total of $131.28 USD for 15 boards ($8.75 per board shipped)

The Idea 8 - Reconnect a postcard project project costs about ~$300 CAD (Printing ~$85, Stamps ~$150, AI subscription ~$50, $25 shipping materials) for 100 people ($3 per person)

Proposal

Create a “crate” style subscription service called funvill’s project club.

The subscribers would get the following;

• A weekly idea post - I post a weekly idea similar to the (2023) 100 ideas project. This idea post is created to solicit feedback and direction on what I should be making next.
• A monthly build log - At least once a month I will post a project update blog post on what I am currently working on and the status. In this post I will also address all the feedback I have received from the ideas posts, community, or any interesting links. Think of this as a newsletter.
• Every three months Twice a year a project in the mail - This is the main reward. A copy of my current project Every three months Once a year. I will send via physical mail a new project that I have been working on.

If people pay a subscription it’s a good indicator that there is interest in the projects that I am making. The fees from the subscription can go directly into funding the projects so the costs do not come out of my pocket. The goal is not to make an income, the goal is to cover the materials costs and time that I spent on these projects.

I would try to keep every project around the $30-40 CAD price range. Including shipping.

The feedback loop from the weekly ideas post, and the monthly build log would help keep me directed towards what the community is looking for. I personally thrive from feedback from people, the more I get the better my projects tend to be.

I would probably use Patreon as it does all the logistics of the subscription service for me. The subscription fee would be pulled from peoples accounts after I ship the previous project. Essentially they are paying for the next project. At that point I should have numbers for the next project. Anyone who subscribes in the middle of a period will get the next one down 3-6 months later. So they might miss one shipment.

To get subscribers I would start with friends and family and see what I can get from there. If I don’t get at least 20 to start I probably wouldn’t start this project at all. If there are more than 50 subscribers then I would have to change up this project. The sweet spot is 20-50 people.

Depending on the complexity of building the project I should be able to ship a quantity of 50 of any projects. Things that are printed on demand would be easier than things that need to be hand assembled. With more than 50 subscribers, I run into a different problem where assembly takes too much effort. I would hire out to help with assembly. I would hope that the economies of scale would allow me to reduce the costs of the project and the savings would be passed on to the assembly help.

I don’t want to do youtube videos, I have tried in the past and It’s not something that I am good at or anyone would want to watch. Articles and reading are where I shine.

All the source files would be released as Open Source on Github for anyone to reproduce.

20-50 people at 120 per year = $2400 - $6000 ($30 a project shipped)

20-50 people at 160 per year = $3200 - $8000 ($40 a project shipped)

Example projects

Any of the (2023) 100 ideas projects.

Small electronics PCB boards and PCB art projects would be ideal as I can get the assembly done by fabrication houses and it’s unique enough that people can’t easily make it themselves.

The whole #BadgeLife scene and everything they do.

Flat packed laser cut projects where the recipient needs to assemble them. Cheaper shipping, easy to get many copies of the same design.

Small books of collections of things on a particular topic. Most POD places will ship directly from their location to your customers. No need to come though my house.

Prior art

Boldport Club - Beautiful hand crafted PCBs with a story behind each and every one of them. Their subscription club was always too expensive for me to justify. They closed down in 2019

Lots of makers on Patreon already