Recently, aspiring chef Zack “Danger” Brown of Columbus, Ohio wanted to try making potato salad. His solution? Launch a Kickstarter campaign with a $10 goal for the culinary undertaking. The campaign has only been live for two weeks, and has raised a whopping $50,638 from more than 6,000 backers.

The Kickstarter has exceeded Brown’s wildest expectations, and it still has another 16 days to go. As the total amount raised has grown, Brown’s tacked on a few more goals: For example, he wrote that if the campaign hit $75, he would throw a pizza party. If you donate $1, and Brown will say your name while creating the potato salad and digitally thank you on the site. Give $20, and you’ll get a haiku inspired by the side, your name carved into a potato, a signed jar of mayonnaise, and the potato salad recipe.

We’re pretty sure this campaign is a joke, and it got us thinking about Kickstarter etiquette. Check out our list of the do’s and don’ts of crowd funding.

-The golden rule of crowd funding, of course, is that you donate to your backers’ future projects. Unless you’re morally opposed to the cause, backing the project with the minimum pledge is a courteous way to acknowledge their earlier support.

–Set a Realistic Funding Target. Your funding goal should be relatively easy to reach, but not too low that you’re not going to be taken seriously. Calculate a number that will allow you to move forward but is also low enough to meet at an early stage to get even greater support. Remember, there’s a large chunk of late adopters on Kickstarter who want to back projects that either have already succeeded or are likely to succeed.

–Don’t Complain That You’re Broke. Even if you’re not in a financial situation to make a video or offer thank-you gifts for donations, you should sound confident about your project. Avoid campaign language like, “I have no money” or “It will be a miracle if this thing takes off.” The last thing people want to invest in is someone who sounds desperate.

–Do Your Homework. Look at what successful projects have in common (a solid idea, a stellar video, captivating copy, appealing pledge rewards, etc.), but also examine the failed ones. Learn from crowd funding mistakes at TheKickbackMachine.com.

-Don’t Launch in the Summer. OK, Zack Brown is evidence that some rules are made to be broken, but most people take vacations during the summer months. It’s a fact that less people visit the Kickstarter site—which means that less people will see your project page.

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