They're not doing this for the Kickstarter money. Even though they're fundraising for the project, they're already putting in more than they could ever hope to raise on Kickstarter.
This project is adjacent to their core mission of Asteroid Mining, this is to prove interest that the public is interested in this sort of project, and to give the public access to the sort of thing that was, previously, impossibly expensive.
For $25 you can get a picture of yourself in space. That's pretty crazy.
Personally I think this is an excellent idea. The picture in space is a great little incentive to get people to take a closer look at the project.
Of course, there is the risk of failure and the bad PR that goes with it. That said, the list of endorsements they have is pretty impressive, and pushing the idea that a first grader could in theory direct the satellite to take a picture of his or her choice could give them a huge boost in interest.
This is to pay for the launch of an extra one, that has little to do with their core mission of asteroid prospecting, and everything to do with inspiring and educating.
Well... A picture of a picture of yourself in space.
While I'm not going to dispute this, I do disagree with it.
> First of all why do they care if public is interested in space? Aren't they after all, looking to run a successful and profitable business?
These goals aren't distinct. What's hard for people to remember is that running a successful and profitable business is a means. It's a how; the real question is what the end goal is. For a painfully large number of businesses, the goal appears to be making the CEO rich. But some groups, some CEOs, some businesses have goals that a lot of us would consider better: actually advancing humanity forward or providing quality service or the like.