BackerKit now integrates with Discord to grow your funding and your fandom. Introducing BackerKit's Discord integration - a direct connection between your Discord server and your BackerKit account that helps you activate and grow both fan and backer communities simultaneously with every crowdfunding campaign you launch. This BackerKit integration offers the easiest and most effective way to turn your Discord members into backers; turn new and returning backers into Discord members; and maximize reach, fandom and funding for each new project. For creators, this means every campaign grows your Discord, and every Discord member becomes a warmer audience for your next campaign. For your fans, it means your most loyal community members get access to exclusive tiers and bonuses, and new backers get a welcome into the Discord where your fandom lives. The BackerKit Crowdfunding Platform is the only major rewards-based crowdfunding platform with a built-in Discord integration. Turn Your Discord Members Into Backers, and Vice Versa Until now, Discord members and backers have lived in separate places without an easy or compelling path for one community to join the other. Today, one powerful integration finally opens that path in both directions. With BackerKit's Discord integration, creators can now: * Turn Discord members into backers with exclusive pledge tiers * Turn backers into Discord members and automatically grant them a Discord role * Offer a connect-to-qualify bonus incentive before or right after a pledge * Transform every pledge into an invitation to "Join the Discord" * Connect once and use it for each new BackerKit campaign How It Works Renegade Game Studios is the first creator to use its Discord integration with Immortal Universe RPG - Interview with the Vampire, which launched yesterday on BackerKit. - BackerKit's Discord integration offers several ways for you to reward your Discord members, drive Discord memberships, and boost pledges within your live BackerKit campaign. Create Discord-exclusive pledge tiers. Lock any pledge tier and make it available only to your server's members. Backers click Verify with Discord, sign in, and the tier unlocks instantly if they're a member. If they're not, they'll get a link to join, then can re-check their membership in one click to back the tier. Automatically grant Discord roles with BackerKit's Discord bot. After you install the BackerKit's Discord bot on your server, you can match select pledge tiers to Discord roles. When a backer pledges at a matched tier and connects their Discord, the bot grants them the role you've specified in your server, so your most dedicated supporters are recognized the moment they back. Roles stay accurate, too. If a pledge is refunded or a payment fails, the role is removed automatically. Offer bonus incentives for Discord members. Outside of, or in addition to, creating an exclusive pledge tier, you can offer a Discord-exclusive bonus incentive - like a digital extra or an add-on. Backers who aren't members yet are invited to join your server to qualify. The connect-to-qualify bonus offer can be claimed until your campaign ends. Invite backers to "Join the Discord" after every pledge. Right after pledging, each backer sees your Discord on their confirmation page, complete with your server name, member count, and a Join the Discord button. It's a simple but relevant invitation that turns the excitement of backing into a new community member. Why Discord Creators Are Crowdfunding on BackerKit As creators grow, their community grows alongside them. And more creators are building their communities on Discord. Its own data shows what that means for crowdfunding. Among BackerKit creators who list a Discord server on their profile: More are joining BackerKit than last year: So far in 2026, 50% more Discord creators have launched their first BackerKit campaign than at the same point last year, raising 38% more in total. They're running bigger campaigns: Among those who've crowdfunded, the median campaign raises about $30,000, roughly 4x that of creators without a Discord, and nearly 2 in 5 have run at least one $100,000+ campaign, close to 3x the rate of creators without a Discord. Their communities often outnumber their campaign backers: Most Discord creators (59%) have more Discord members than their latest campaign had backers (median ~520 vs. ~370). Among those who've run a $100,000+ campaign, that gap grows to about 1.7x (median ~2,170 members vs. ~1,290 backers on their latest campaign). Some fans already show up in both places, but many don't. That leaves Discord members who haven't backed and backers who haven't joined the server. Now creators can grow both audiences at once. Whether you're planning your first campaign or your next one, only on BackerKit can you now: * Turn your Discord server into a launchpad for the next campaign * Turn crowdfunding into a new growth channel for your Discord community * Identify and recognize your top supporters with Discord roles that match their pledge * Start every launch stronger with a community that stays engaged between campaigns Getting Started Connect your Discord server and add the BackerKit bot in just a few clicks. You'll need the Manage Server permission on your Discord server to get started. See the full setup guide. Contact [email protected] if you have any questions or need assistance setting up. Run your community on Discord and thinking about crowdfunding on BackerKit? Get a demo.

Platypod got the warehouse out of the founder's home by partnering with Fulfillrite. Date Published: August 17, 2026 The company. Platypod started with a simple idea. Photographers shouldn't have to carry a full-size tripod everywhere just to have stable camera support when they need it. As founder Larry Tiefenbrunn puts it, there are more and more places where "the 'Tripod Police' simply won't let you set up a conventional tripod at all." Platypod's customers range from professional photographers and videographers to serious enthusiasts, content creators, and travelers around the world. "What began as an extremely compact, flat tripod has grown into an entire system of camera supports, ball heads, mounting products, and accessories for photography and video," says Larry. Today, Platypod products are sold directly through Platypod.com, on Amazon, and through major photography retailers such as B&H Photo. The challenge. Before Fulfillrite, Platypod sold mostly through Amazon, B&H Photo, and other authorized retailers, plus in person at trade shows like Photoshop World, PhotoPlus Expo, and WPPI. Larry simply didn't have time to pick, pack, and ship individual consumer orders himself, so the company referred direct customers to its resellers. Platypod wasn't set up for everyday direct-to-consumer fulfillment at all. Things changed when Platypod went to Kickstarter. Crowdfunding became an important way for the business to grow. With each campaign came thousands of rewards, add-ons, and international orders to fulfill. In 2016, Larry found Fulfillrite through Kickstarter's recommendations for fulfillment companies. The fact that Fulfillrite was in New Jersey, about an hour from home, was a big plus. The solution. Today, Fulfillrite is Platypod's warehousing and fulfillment hub for North and South America, handling individual customer orders, inventory going to Amazon, and larger wholesale orders headed to retailers. "They're really at the center of our North and South American distribution," says Larry. For Kickstarter campaigns, once a campaign ends, backers confirm their details and add products through BackerKit, which integrates directly with Fulfillrite. "When everything is ready, we can essentially push the completed orders over to Fulfillrite with the push of a button," says Larry. Meanwhile, finished products are dropshipped straight from Platypod's manufacturer in China to Fulfillrite, where they're received, warehoused, and then picked, kitted, and shipped as the right combination of rewards and add-ons for each backer. Everyday website orders flow in from Shopify the same way. And when something unusual comes up, like a very large order going to B&H Photo or Amazon, Larry can ask his account representative, Steve Schwab, to personally check that everything is packed in the correct quantities. "Steve has always been very cooperative about giving those orders the extra attention they need," says Larry. "The everyday orders are handled automatically, but when something needs special attention, there's a real person I can call." The results. "One of the biggest results for me personally is that I'm no longer running a warehouse out of my home," says Larry. For years, he stored significant Platypod inventory himself and personally handled large retail shipments, sometimes 20 cartons at a time bound for B&H Photo or Amazon. "Boxing up large cartons and dragging everything over to FedEx or UPS is something I'm very happy to let somebody else do these days." Now inventory goes directly from the manufacturer to Fulfillrite, which warehouses it and handles every outbound shipment, whether it's going to an individual customer, Amazon, a retailer, or thousands of Kickstarter backers at once. The time savings are substantial, and Larry spends it developing new products, marketing them, and growing Platypod. After nearly a decade, Larry has visited the facility several times, gotten to know the owner, and built personal rapport with the managers on his account. His advice to other gear and electronics brands reflects that: "I wouldn't choose a fulfillment company based on price alone. You're trusting them with your inventory and, in many ways, with your relationship with your customers." Bumps happen in any logistics operation, he says. "What matters to me is what happens next. With Fulfillrite, I've always found that there's someone I can talk to who takes the issue seriously and works with me to get it resolved." He's seen other companies switch fulfillment centers two or three times. "Frankly, I haven't had those problems with Fulfillrite. I started with them in 2016 and I've never had a reason to leave." I've been with Fulfillrite since 2016, and I've never had a reason to look elsewhere. I know the people handling my account, I can reach someone when I need them, and I trust them to take care of its inventory and its customers. - Larry Tiefenbrunn, CEO & Inventor, Platypod Ready to see what fulfillment would cost for your business? Fulfillrite has helped thousands of eCommerce and crowdfunding brands like Platypod ship orders. These companies range from startups doing 100 orders a month to established brands doing 10,000+. Tell Fulfillrite a little about your business and Fulfillrite'll put together a custom quote for you.