Top 10 Short-Term Ways to Stumble into Long-Term Success – Stonemaier Games

Top 10 Short-Term Ways to Stumble into Long-Term Success

If I had a time machine that I could use to fix mistakes I made when creating and growing Stonemaier Games, it would get a lot of use. But along the way I stumbled into a few things that set a foundation for future success. I’d want to tell my past self to do those things.

In the comments of my recent 2017 stakeholder report, reader Haralampos T. asked an interesting question: “What do you consider were the choices that really made a difference in your early years, that lead to the success of this financial report (being positive in cashflow / having a well recognized company with tons of followers / older games that still impact players)?”

Just to keep things in perspective, Stonemaier Games really is still a tiny company. We only have 5 games and 1 full-time employee. At best, we’re moderately successful, and for each foundational element that led to that success, there are several other mistakes and near-misses.

The following list is roughly in chronological order in terms of when I implemented these elements.

  1. Me putting together a very early prototype of Viticulture in 2012 (with Biddy’s help).

    Create a unique product. I’m a little hesitant to start out here, because Viticulture was far from the first worker-placement game, and it wasn’t even the first wine-themed worker-placement game. But I still think this is worth saying, because if your first product gets lost in the crowd, you’re in trouble. I got a little lucky with Viticulture in 2012 because Vinhos had flown under the radar at that point. (read more)

  2. Find a business partner. I mostly like to work alone, and I like to do as much as possible without relying on others. But there’s no question in my mind that Stonemaier Games wouldn’t be what it is today if I hadn’t partnered with Alan. He keeps me accountable, and it’s incredibly helpful to know that there’s always someone there who will say yes to a playtest at our weekly meeting. (read more)
  3. Say yes to volunteers. We now have over 2,000 ambassadors who help out in a variety of ways, but when Viticulture launched on Kickstarter, we had 0. Some backers surprised me by saying they wanted to playtest the game, proofread the rulebook, translate the text, etc. I’m so glad I said yes to these generous people and found ways to engage and recognize them as the company grew. (read more)
  4. Prioritize visuals. I selected Viticulture’s original artist and graphic designer based on budget, not quality. Fortunately I realized this mistake before it was too late, and I brought in Beth Sobel and Christine Santana, each of whom made a significant long-term impact on Viticulture’s success. The tokens in the game also helped–there are tons of custom tokens in Viticulture that could have just been cubes, but table presence matters for any product. (read more)
  5. Make it personal. I’ve never tried to hide behind a corporate wall in my years at Stonemaier Games. I’m Jamey, and I’m going to talk to you as Jamey. It’s simply the way I express myself in comments, updates, e-newsletters, etc. Yes, there are negatives to having someone as the face of a company, but I think the positive interactions and connections far outweigh the downsides. (read more)
  6. Don’t quit your day job. One of the most important things I did during the first 2 years of Stonemaier Games was to not quit my day job. That security and regular income was incredibly helpful, and it meant that I didn’t need a single cent of the $400k earned from Euphoria and Viticulture in 2012-2013. (read more)
  7. Have a home base. It has been integral to our success that we have a hub where people can find us, engage with us, and sign up to get notifications from us. I’m glad I had an e-newsletter from the very beginning and that I started writing this blog soon after that first Kickstarter. (read more)
  8. Get advice from an outsider. Some of the most pivotal moments in Stonemaier Games history have come from conversations with a friend named Greg S. Greg doesn’t know anything about the board game industry, so he’s able to approach situations with a completely different perspective. It’s Greg who asked me why I wasn’t shipping Viticulture to fulfillment centers around the world–a question that led to the creation of the Stonemaier method of fulfillment, which is now the standards for almost all board game Kickstarter projects–and it was Greg who asked some key financial questions last year that led to us restructuring as an S-corp. (read more)
  9. Build in a buffer. I realized early on that no matter how precise my budget is or how well I plan a schedule, it has never hurt me to have a buffer in place (and it often comes in handy). So if you think your game will cost $10 to make, assume it’ll actually cost $12. If you think your product will take 5 months to produce and ship, estimate 7 months instead. I used this wiggle room to avoid crashing before we got off the ground.
  10. Know your limits. This is something I had to learn the hard way before getting it right. During the Viticulture campaign, I didn’t sleep much, and I got really sick at the end. I learned my limit. For a while after Viticulture and Euphoria, I offered private advice to people who asked/paid, but it was taking me away from my core objectives. I learned my limit. Around that same time, I was actively replying to every thread on BoardGameGeek about my games–even threads where I wasn’t welcome–and it was taking a toll on me and not benefiting anyone involved. I learned my limit. The list could go on.

There are, of course, other things–like getting Viticulture into distribution, waiting on Viticulture’s second print run, stopping exclusives post-Euphoria, finding, localization partners–but they’re less universal than the list above.

If you’re a fellow creator, what’s something you did in the short-term that led to long-term success?

17 Comments on “Top 10 Short-Term Ways to Stumble into Long-Term Success

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  1. This is awesome Jamey. I appreciate the perspectives on Greg’s feedback and how engaging folks outside of our areas of focus can bring great insights.

    To answer your question, one thing I did early on was ask lots of questions when others made “shiny promises”. For perspective: I own a tiny design company and have created one indie game that’s received good press. I’ve invested almost 10 years in its success so far.

    Well, as an exhibitor at cons, small in-person events, and online, I’ve met several well-meaning folks who contacted me to propose some great-sounding lucrative deals. As creators and business owners, researching such offers is vital.

    Of the four entities that offered to back my game or license it in some way, zero are still in business.

    Thanks again for sharing this content Jamey!

    1. “Ask lots of questions” (and listen carefully to the answers) is fantastic advice. Thanks for sharing, Eric!

  2. Love this list. Reassuring to see what we got right and enlightening to see where we can still grow. Thank you!

  3. It’s an amazing success story, even more so with stats like 0 volunteers pre-ks of Viticulture.

    Do you remember any more pre-KS statistics on Viticulture like how many BGG subscribers it had, how many Stonemaier/Viticulture mailing list subscribers and so on? Before the launch was there big Viticulture hype and a large fan base or almost none?

    1. I’m not even sure I listed Viticulture on BGG before the project launched–that’s how little I knew. :) At best, I had a few dozen e-newsletter subscribers. No one knew about it prelaunch. I spent the first two days of the project sending individual e-mails to every family member of friend to let them know what I was doing, and that made a big difference.

      1. :) wow! Amazing that it still did well. That is great.
        I wonder would that still work now with all the competition, it would be cool if it still did :)

        –“sending individual e-mails to every family member of friend to let them know what I was doing, and that made a big difference.”–

        You must have a big board gaming family. Out of all my family and off-line friends probably 4 buy board games.

        1. I don’t think it would work at all in the current environment. :) For the friends and family, they aren’t/weren’t gamers–they just wanted to support me in the creation of something I was passionate about. I’m very grateful for them!

          1. That is very nice of them. Probably best not to start that email with “If you like board games consider supporting me.” :)

  4. This list is encouraging on so many levels. But then I got to number 8 and wow, that was quite the rabbit hole. Previously I thought I was doing a good job of pre-planning logistics and accounting for shipping, but this gave me a whole new scope of my task. Thank you so much. Your blog is vital.

  5. “In the comments of my recent 2017 stakeholder report, reader Harry H. asked an interesting question”

    I am pretty sure it was reader Haralampos Tsakiris that made that comment, credits to him :)

    1. You’re absolutely right! For some reason I thought it was you, Harry. I’ll update it. :)

      1. We do share similar birthnames yes, but Haralampos is active much longer than I am.

        Maybe the fact that I read all your blog posts and comment a lot did the work! :P

  6. Fellow creator answer: I believed in my products.
    I made a video-game crossover Tower Defense game that takes 4-hours to play. Some thought it was a cockamamie plan. I loved it. I still do. And now, so do thousands of others.

  7. Really great for setting up a solid foundation early on, incredibly helpful – especially knowing your limits. Over time with other projects, I’ve become aware of how susceptible to burnout people can be if left unchecked. What did you do to keep the balance between your day job and your passion projects when you started out?

    1. Rob: Thanks for your question. from August 2012 to July 2013, I was essentially working two full-time jobs, and it was tough to keep that balance. I readily admit that Stonemaier Games bled into my day job a bit. In hindsight, I think I would have tried to draw firm lines between the two: No Stonemaier at day job, no day job during Stonemaier time.

      1. Thanks Jamey – that’s surprisingly relevant, as I’ve worked from home for a few years now – bit of a blessing and a curse. Good to sneak in a bit of project work when it’s quiet, but risk blurring the lines, which can kill the drive. Happened on a few projects.
        I try to keep to keep them reasonably separate these days, and I’ve noticed it does help to have the balance.

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