A History of Kickstarter Marketing Success Since 2010.
It all started with a little ‘buddy’ project called Rise & Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story...
Inspired by Jay’s story of ‘perseverance, hard work, and relentless belief’, we decided to dream just as big and are proud to introduce the story, mission, and beliefs of the first crowdfunding marketing agency in history.
Rise & Shine: The Jay DeMerit Story
The true story of a young American's fight for his dream and his impossible journey, one never heard of in professional soccer. After college, Jay's dream of playing pro soccer in Europe seemed unreachable. Sleeping in an attic, painting houses and eating beans and toast to survive, Jay took the most unlikely route to the top. After not making the professional leagues in the U.S., Jay left for Europe at the age of 21 without any professional experience - only a passport, $1800 and a backpack full of dreams.
Jay started from the bottom, playing in Sunday park leagues and semi-pro London clubs, and rose to playing in the English Premier League, and starting in the 2010 World Cup.
The #1 Most-Funded Film of All-Time on Kickstarter in 2010
$223,422
Agency 2.0’s Likelihood of Kickstarter Success Was Much Like Jay’s Own Story.
“Smiling… For me it was that moment, that ‘I deserve to be here’ smile, that ‘I’ve been preparing my whole life for this moment’ smile. Are you ready for when your sunny day comes?” - Jay DeMerit
All or Nothing Kickstarter
$215,000
Campaign Crowdfunding Goal
Average Campaign Funding
$4,388
Amount in 2010 on Kickstarter.com
All or Nothing Kickstarter
60 Days
To Achieve the Impossible Dream
Agency 2.0
Our Journey & The Road to Success
Celebrating 10 Years of Excellence in Innovation
Founded in 2010 as the first crowdfunding agency in history, Agency 2.0 has continued to lead the pack in the crowdfunding game, namely on Kickstarter and Indiegogo. Now, over 10 years later, we are still proud to provide top of the line campaign services to each and every one of our valued clients.
September
2010
2010
Agency 2.0 is Founded by Chris Olenik
After a smash record success of raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for the Jay DeMerit project, Agency 2.0 becomes the 1st Crowdfunding Agency in History.
May
2013
2013
Pebble Watch Launches on Kickstarter Breaking Ceiling for Million Dollar Campaigns
Crowdfunding came to prominence when creatives started seeking funds for their films. This led to Agency 2.0's receipt of many inquiries from filmmakers with a noticeable increase in the amount of tech related projects. Our campaigns were mostly film in the beginning and then switched to tech. Being a technology geek, this was a welcomed transition, where Pebble's success changed Kickstarter and venture capital forever.
July
2013
2013
Agency 2.0 & Indiegogo's First $1,000,000+ Campaign
The 'perfect storm' for the future of crowdfunding came and Agency 2.0 was the pioneer in this growing space. Over the course of a few months, Agency 2.0 retained numerous tech clients to implement a now refined crowdfunding marketing strategy. Kreyos Smartwatch launched on Indiegogo, and shortly thereafter became the #1 Most-Funded Indiegogo Campaign ever and the only $1,000,000+ campaign on their platform in 2013.
September
2013
2013
Jonathan & Chris' Increasing Crowdfunding Talks
Chris and Jonathan met in 2010 when working on the Jay DeMerit Story. The two kept in contact, talking and discussing crowdfunding and it's future. Their long talks about the market opportunity and prospects of expanding Agency 2.0's successes became more frequent as new clients poured in and funding results increased rapidly.
January 2015
2015
2015
Agency 2.0 Launches the 1st Ebike on Indiegogo raising $1M+ on first day.
Just months before launch, Jonathan and Chris drove out to Malibu, CA on a sunny workday to discover and test ride the very first Storm Ebike (now Sondors) by creator Storm Sondors. The electric bike debuted on Indiegogo for $499 and changed the electric bike market in the US forever.
August
2015
2015
Agency launches the #1 funded Drone on Indiegogo of All-Time
Micro Drone 3.0 by Extreme Fliers went on to break all records on crowdfunding with an astounding $3,500,000.00+ raised and changing the perception of affordable and easy to control drones. Vernon Kerswell launched 4.0 years later with Chris Olenik and raised another $1.75M+ on Indiegogo.
June
2017
2017
Agency 2.0 Moves to Silicon Beach, CA
From its humble beginnings in Chris’ small apartment in San Diego, Agency 2.0 relocated to Hollywood and then to Santa Monica, CA where major startups like Bird Scooters called home. Agency 2.0 built a full service end to end solution to help clients all over the world strategize and execute product launch campaigns.
January
2018
2018
Coming Soon Studios launches in LA
With his 10 year background in the film industry, Jonathan founded Coming Soon Studios as the go-to solution for product launches under the company banner. The company has shot over 50 commercial productions, 100s of products, and works with major brands on content creation including Aukey, Amerisleep, and Duracell.
March
2020
2020
Austin welcomes Agency 2.0
As a thriving tech community and commonly listed as one of the “Best Places to Live” in the US, Agency 2.0 found Austin as its new HQ in Jonathan’s home state of Texas. With Apple, Tesla, Amazon, and many other top tech companies driving talent to Austin, Agency 2.0 continues to build and recruit top talent for our global product launch teams.
August
2020
2020
New City, New Look
We have some exciting news to share with you very soon!
