The ICO is still booming; there’s a new way for companies to attract investment, while crypto holders know their “new money” now offers one more way to increase profits.
Feeding the Dream
Where there is demand, there is supply. The so-called “ICO full-range service” agencies promise the best quality, speed, and results with little or no input from the client’s side. All you need to do is pay.
I can personally vouch for the high interest in this type of service. I have tons of personal messages and emails from people asking to launch their ICO for a significant amount of money. But my response is always the same: there is no such thing as an “ICO turnkey project” and there never will be.
The thing is that if you could come to some company or agency with an idea and appropriate sum of money, and get a guaranteed outcome of $5 – 50 mln, I would do it myself! I would use my own money and launch three ICOs a week.
The crowdfunding mechanism works when you have a clear vision regarding your project and an experienced team able to execute it, not when your idea is sold in the right way. But with no talented managerial stuff or technical specialists, there might be no point in even discussing your project.
Full-range services for ICOs: Do they really exist?
There are differing offers for full range ICO services from marketing specialists, lawyers, and entrepreneurs, along with con artists willing to steal your money.
Every one of them has their vision of different aspects of the process. But how can a marketing specialist ensure all the legal aspects are covered? Or say, a lawyer manage traffic flow?
They’ll hire an expert in the relevant field using your money. In my personal opinion, there are no experienced “full service” teams of professionals on the market right now.
The unfortunate flip side of enormous growth in ICO activity is that the few experienced specialists out there will most likely charge very high fees for their services.
And if your project is not a tokenized Ponzi scheme, it might be a good idea to find another way.
And there is. What is it? It’s as simple as this: invite attorneys with relevant ICO experience and engage IR specialists with access to investor pools.
As for the rest of the ICO industry, social media marketing, traffic flow, media buying, and PR differ only by the platform you choose, settings, and professional contact list. Consider doing it yourself.
Almost all successful startups decided to go down this route once.
Ensure Your Transparency
Unfortunately, con artists have managed to undermine trust for some investors already. Those who are still interested demand transparency. This sounds fair, and you really need to invest in it.
The fact that ICOs and IPOs are becoming quite similar processes means that the market is maturing. There are even ICO ratings agencies.
You are fully capable of doing your own due diligence or getting help from experts. And if you have the community involved in your project, that will be a plus point for your potential investors. An involved community is always a good thing, so you should leverage them anyway.
I firmly believe that technology or a structure-based project will prompt industry growth. But I tend not to believe in fairy tales.
If you have serious intentions of launching a great project, hire professionals but manage the process personally. Make sure your investors’ money is safe.
This is an English translation. The original article was published on Forbes.ru September 25, 2017.
This article was written by Vladimir Smerkis, Managing Partner at The Token Fund.
What do you think about the best way of launching an ICO? Let us know in the comments below!
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