The topic of cryptocurrency and blockchain has been hot for the last few years. This is a new frontier in the Internet of Things, smart applications, and high-tech gadgets. These innovations offer solutions to problems that arise at the commercial standard of technological advancement (Artificial Intelligence. Augmented Reality. Virtual Reality. High-Speed Travel). One of these innovations is ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings).
What’s an Initial Coin Offering?
An ICO is essentially a crowdfunding round using crypto-tokens rather than traditional currency. An ICO (Initial Coin Offering) can be compared to an IPO (Initial Public Listing) but without all the regulations. This can lead to funding rounds of PS20M+, with only a whitepaper and a team.
Buying a token does NOT entitle you to a share in the company. This is a tradable Kickstarter pledge that indicates an early interest in a project or its application.
Anyone can claim a coin or token of value. People have been scammed by these fraudsters. These offerings are a great way for startups and small businesses to quickly test their ideas and find out how willing people are to pay for them. They also allow them to get an idea of what their target audience is willing to pay before spending hundreds of thousands on their final product.
Comparable to traditional funding routes (i.e. IPO, VC, loans, etc. Crowdfunding is easy to set up and can help you test market assumptions and interest, or generate enough noise to make marketing organic before your product is even completed.
An Initial Coin Offering, as its name suggests, is a method for companies to quickly raise capital without having to go through traditional regulation and auditing. Many people are concerned about the security of the ICO (Initial Coin Offering).
Initial Coin Offerings Security Problems
The user is responsible for protecting themselves and their investment. There are very few protections from banks and large institutions that offer safety nets, so you need to think about the price of Bitcoin, how much the token is worth, and “Will this project work?”
Cybercriminals are attracted to digital wallets and Initial Coin Offerings. A fund called the Decentralized Autonomous Organization lost $50 million in Ethereum after being hacked. The DAO had to request that the Ethereum network be forked (changes in the core code) in order to recover the funds. This was a tremendous vote of confidence by the Ethereum development team, despite the dire circumstances.
It is important to know that over 50% of ICO (Initial Coin Offering) funding rounds fail to meet their market capital. Fortunately, there are many options for dealing with funds if they do not succeed. Some systems work in the same way as Kickstarter: if you fail to meet your target value everyone gets their money back. There are many other options, such as Vickrey auctions or reverse Dutch auctions. You should also look into proportional refunds.
Another concern investors have is the ability to securely transfer their funds from cryptocurrency to digital tokens. This is a digital asset that you can own and transfer to another person. The most important innovation in this sector is the GUI (Graphical User Interface) wallets that allow coins to be transferred without entering long public keys.
Why marketers should be concerned
It is important to plan a marketing strategy from the beginning of your project. This is more than just about the product. While your product may change, the perception of your team and project will not survive.
The most important question you need to ask is “What does this token do?”
It is important to understand:
- What does it mean for your system?
- What problem solves it?
- This is the best way to go about it.
- What are your unique features of yours?
To ensure that your market is interested in your project, you can use methodologies like “The Lean Startup” and “Value Proposition Canvas”.
Building an Initial Coin Offering Marketing Strategy
Three elements should be the focus of your marketing strategy for your ICO:
- Invite potential investors to join your team
- Community Building
- Meet potential investors by “Getting out of the Building”.
Introduce potential investors to members of your team
A project that has an anonymous team is more scammy than any other. You can put your name on something you have built. Initial Coin Offerings typically list many layers of associates: advisors, team members, partners, and sponsors. Do you plan to launch in multiple countries? Do you have the right language-speaking team?
Advisors should be invested in your success and have a genuine interest in you. They should have their own Initial Coin Offering rounds.
A partner should be real, and work to create names that support you. To increase your credibility and position in the news feed, you can use influencer networks.
Create a community around your project
Being transparent is key to building brand awareness and community. This will help you overcome any fears or uncertainties potential investors might have. You should do things that are not scaleable, such as replying directly to potential customers at the beginning. This will ensure that your launch has the growth and champions it needs to succeed.
Meet potential investors
It’s crucial to get in touch with your target market, understand your customers and be able to raise funds via an Initial Coin Offering. There are many crypto meetups, conferences, and seminars all over the country. These events will teach you how to test your idea and allow you to ask cryptocurrency enthusiasts if they would be willing to use it.
Implementing an Initial Coin Offering Marketing Strategy
Blockchain and crypto are growing markets. Many tactics can be used that are not typical for SaaS models. Any marketing activity should focus on getting results through tests and then moving incrementally towards a goal. Then compounding those results by keeping the best and cutting the rest. Here are some ways to do it.
SEO-Optimize Your Website Build
In this unregulated industry, SEO is crucial. With a slight change to the URL, there have been instances where Initial Coin Offering brands and websites were cloned. It is dangerous to send potential investors to the wrong site. This can be detrimental to your security and reputation. It is best to rank your website higher in Google and Bing search results. Google can be contacted if you discover a fake website that infringes on your brand.
Create a technical white paper
A white paper is the foundation of any crypto-tech project. This is what investors will first look at to determine if your idea is viable. This document should include details about the technology and your business plan. Investors should read your whitepaper to understand why an Initial Coin Offering is right for your project, and how tokens will benefit end users.
Make a short explainer video
A short explanation video can say thousands more than a picture. To explain your solution to investors and users, create a short explainer video.
Banner ads in relevant publications
Banner ads can be used to build brand awareness and put your project on the radars of potential investors. A display network manages banner ads, but you might also need to contact the website administrator to get a quote on the price and metrics. You should also consider looking for packages for content releases and monthly ads, as crypto-news networks are taking advantage of the surge in Initial Coin Offering.
Community building
Since the beginning of crypto, most people started to use forums like Reddit and bitcointalk.org to discuss what works and what is new in crypto-currency. Your team should be involved in these discussions and create a presence. Be aware that participation and added value must be balanced against corporate shilling and overt advertising.
Create an email list
From Day 1, you should start building an email database. This is the ultimate form of communication for marketers, and it has been around since Day 1. You can use your email list to send updates and content to your users and to create ambassadors for your brand. These are the people who will make it 10x easier to launch your next version or product.
Utilize social media
It is important to mention social media if your product is good enough that it can sell itself. This is how people spread the word. There are many great uses for social media and lots of good data on a variety of platforms. All the tools available can be used to promote your launch: events, groups, messengers, stories, likes, shares and etc.
Tap into influencer networks
To get immediate attention and reach large audiences, you can tap into the influencers’ network to promote your product. Partnering with someone who believes in your product and is open to sharing it with their audience is important.
Conclusion
Errna offers multiple funding options to the investors, via fiat currencies like USD and Euro as well as cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, Dash, Litecoin, etc. These diverse currency funding options are provided to ensure payment convenience for the investors.