In case you haven’t noticed, cryptocurrency has become one of the most popular words in 2017. Bitcoin made a gigantic breakthrough, while digital currencies like Ethereum, Litecoin, and many others made their own contributions to this craze. Though still a relatively unknown phenomenon, cryptocurrencies proved that they are here to stay.
This is why people all over the world are launching initial coin offering (ICO) campaigns on an almost-daily basis, while all-time cumulative ICO funding is expected to approach US$4 billion by the end of the year. In this article, we will give you seven tips on launching a successful ICO.
HOW TO DESIGN A KICKASS ICO CAMPAIGN
ICOs are an unregulated means by which funds are raised for new cryptocurrency ventures. To put it simply, companies use ICOs to release and sell a small portion of tokens to investors, usually in exchange for Ethereum. This way, companies gain initial funds to develop their own products, and investors receive a percentage of the token shares.
According to cryptocurrency experts, ICOs are very demanding, and you’ll need to prepare a full set of tactics before actually launching your campaign. Here are seven of the most important elements of ICO strategy.
SET PRECISE GOALS
Every campaign has its objectives, and so does an ICO. It is your job to explain your project’s goals in its whitepaper and roadmap. If created properly, these reports can boost potential investors’ confidence.
Whitepaper: This document explains a problem and the way you plan to solve it. It’s a technical blueprint of your product in which you describe its systems architecture, anticipated growth, and many other details of the ICO.
Roadmap: This is a document which lays out the timeline of your ICO’s activities. A roadmap marks each stage of the campaign, from project launch and budgeting to seed rounds and security audits.
BUILD AN AUTHORITATIVE TEAM
Successful ICO projects always come from a team of professionals who have the knowledge and experience needed to manage such campaigns. By gathering a group of highly skilled individuals, you will increase the odds of not only making a breakthrough but also convincing investors that your product is reliable.
You should include profiles and resumes of team members on your website, emphasizing their former projects. Add experts’ photos and links to social media accounts to make your ICO more transparent. If you can convince partners to trust your team, you won’t have to worry about your crowdsale. This is exactly how the guys from Cashila convinced investors to support their new project ICONOMI – they knew that reputation is crucial in this business.
USE ICO TOOLS
Besides a great team, you’ll also need a reliable digital tool to support your crowdsale campaign. There are hundreds of ICO tools that you can choose from. For instance, ICOBOX is one of the best facilitators for new companies as it provides technical solutions, legal advice, as well as marketing and business consulting.
Another tool, BlockStarter, allows you to share your ICO idea with thousands of blockchain contributors worldwide. The platform presents all stages of the project to potential investors who can peruse the specifications and quickly decide whether to buy tokens or not.
PREPARE A PRICING STRATEGY
ICO pricing strategy depends on your goals and growth expectations. There are 4 basic pricing methods:
Undetermined price: The price is not set, and investors receive a proportional amount of coins according to their contribution to the project.
Fixed price: Investors can buy fixed-price tokens but trade them only after a freezing period.
Dutch auction: The first coins are the most expensive, but the price decreases gradually over the investment period.
Price rise ICO: The most agile investors get the best price for your tokens.
PROVE YOUR STATEMENTS
The vast majority of serious investors will not consider taking part in your campaign unless you provide them with a working, tested product. You should learn how to present your idea and ROI, but the product itself must be developed at least to the point where you can support your claims. How you do it depends on the nature of your token, but you’ll need to complete this task before inviting partners to take part in your crowdsale.
PROTECT YOUR INVESTORS
We all know that he who dares wins, but potential investors are not willing to take on too much risk. That’s why you’ll need to protect them using 3 precautionary systems:
Discounts: Investors who decide to support you at the beginning should always get some sort of discount or benefit.
Escrow wallet: This is a multi-signature digital wallet which displays the names of all key holders. Some key holders are project outsiders who serve as the guarantors of investments.
Fund return: There is no way to be 100% sure about the success of an ICO, and you’ll have to provide a mechanism for the return of funds to campaign supporters.
CREATE A PR CAMPAIGN
Due to the abundance of ICO campaigns, it is difficult to get your foot in the door without a good PR strategy before and during the project. Of course, blogs and social media are your battlefield in that regard. You should post high-quality status updates and comments to establish yourself as an industry leader and grab the attention of potential investors. You could utilize online communities to explain your ICO, and hiring a social influencer from the relevant field would give you an additional boost. Building online authority is the name of the game, and you should build a PR campaign around this idea.
CONCLUSION
ICO campaigns became very popular because of the overall success of cryptocurrencies over the last few years. They give companies the opportunity to create their own products and gain big profits in a relatively short period of time. However, success doesn’t come overnight, and you’ll need to design a good strategy for your project to succeed. In this article, we gave you seven tips on how to launch a successful ICO campaign. Don’t hesitate to use our suggestions, and let us know in the comments if you need additional information about this topic.