In developing your Initial Coin Offering (ICO), the marketing campaign in advance of the pre-sale or crowd-sale of the token is important for building awareness and growing the network of supporters.
The key is to identify your target audience and post in the forums that reach that audience. The campaign should run at least two months as it takes that much time to get around to all the contacts and groups.
There are several channels for your pre-sale campaign. Some channels reach a large number of supporters such as BitcoinTalk others are more targeted. These channels include:
- Classic PR – press releases that describe the upcoming launch of your token- you can use a press release service or send out the release directly yourself. It helps to create a compelling angle in the first paragraph. The PR campaign should start three months before the launch of the crowd-sale.
- Banner advertising – display ads for extensive reach on Google, Facebook, and more. This can generate more awareness of your ICO and drive some traffic to your site.
- Influential marketing – your best influencers are advisors to your ICO and their network of contacts. Reach out to them to see how you can best leverage their network and contacts.
- Social media – Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn are great sources to connect with those in the community.
- YouTube – an explainer video which shows off what your ICO product does can be very helpful in generating understanding and support.
- Bounty campaigns – referrals driving traffic to your site. A bounty program can activate your user base with incentives and drive referrals.
- Placements in blogs – posting in relevant blogs and websites. Find blogs that reach your target audience and use their influence to communicate your message.
- Viral media – If you want to get a community of supporters to get excited and share your message you need to give them a reason to. Competitions can generate a viral effect.
- Community marketing – posting in community blogs and podcasts. You’ll need to check to see if your chosen community allows for commercial marketing.
- Events – meet-ups, conferences etc. Events are a great way to do this but like all marketing is a balance between cost and return.
Hall T. Martin is the founder of TEN Capital and a builder of entrepreneur ecosystems by startup funding through angel networks, funding portals, syndicates, and more. Connect with him about fundraising, business growth, and emerging technologies.
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