When Facebook banned Bitcoin and ICOs (Initial Coin Offerings) from advertising in their marketplace, many players scrambled to redefine their user acquisition strategies.
What Does User Acquisition Mean For ICOs?
In ICOs, “users” means investors. Before a new coin can gain traction in the brave new world of cryptocurrency marketing, most will first have to gain the trust and financial backing of the public. This process amounts to investors crowdfunding the development of a project (in this case, a new currency), on the condition they will be allocated a certain number of coins once the crowdfunding round, or ICO period, ends.
This means that people are essentially purchasing a hold on these coins before they are a tradable commodity. It happens before the coins have any real value on the cryptocurrency exchanges, with the hope that one of these ICOs will take off.
ICOs can be an attractive investment because it typically only takes a small amount of money to get in the door, with the possibility of huge returns.
So, how does an ICO get these would-be investors to fund their new project? With Facebook advertising no longer in play, the answer is good PR and a cryptocurrency marketing strategy.
ICOs Must Bring Newcomers Into the Market
With the success of Bitcoin and Ethereum, the public is itching to understand how cryptocurrency works and how they can make money by investing in it. Some dismiss cryptocurrency as a fad and point out the legitimacy issues within the market. However, plenty more have seen the numbers and are curious enough to invest their money in the industry.
The role of PR in cryptocurrency marketing is to get the general public to understand what it is so they can start participating in the marketplace.
For an ICO, this means reaching out to mainstream publications like The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and The New York Times. These publications already cover cryptocurrency in a way that a general audience understands.
The strategy for this market explains key terms and outlines steps for setting up a wallet. It provides a high-level overview of Bitcoin, decentralization, and blockchain technology. The ICO should strive to cover all these aspects in a way that answers the reader’s questions and curiosity.
Many ICOs skip this part of their PR strategy because it’s easier to go straight to the people who already speak their language. However, this means missing out on a larger segment of potential investors. This makes it less likely that an ICO will meet its fundraising goals.
ICOs Must Stand Out Within The Crypto Community
The second prong of an ICO’s PR strategy should be to reach the eyes of those already in the space. The investors have researched many other ICOs and are looking for new projects to invest their coins.
ICOs can reach niche publications such as CoinTelegraph, CoinDesk, TechBullion, BitcoinMagazine, and HackerNoon. For this audience, it’s important to speak to them on their level. There is no need to go into great detail about what Bitcoin is or how the blockchain works. Instead, provide detailed information about how your project will work and what your vision is. For cryptocurrency marketing, discuss what makes your ICO unique.
To appeal to this audience it’s also crucial to delve into the conversations already happening in the crypto community via Telegram, Reddit, Steemit, and forums such as BitcoinTalk.
Members of these communities will often look to see if a member has been involved in previous discussions. Seeing a new user with no prior activity after their ICO launch will not make an impact like someone with a recognized handle. If the founders of an ICO haven’t made any contributions to these communities, they can always hire a community manager to represent them.
Separate Your ICO From The Negative Press
Due to a lack of regulation within the industry, plenty of ICO scams have hit the market over the past year. Such negative press prompted Facebook to shut ICOs out of its ad marketplace.
Because of this, it’s up to an ICO to clearly state who is on their team, and what the product is. How does it work (or how will it work)? Which member of their team will hold the collected money? Include any other information that will give your ICO credibility as a legitimate investment. There is never “enough” detail when seeking the public’s trust in such a project. This is why lengthy whitepapers (sometimes 100+ pages long) have become a minimum requirement for launching an ICO.
Nevertheless, ICOs shouldn’t expect a potential investor to go straight to their whitepaper. Transparency must begin with a PR and cryptocurrency marketing strategy. Any article, press release, or thought leadership piece should include in-depth details about the ICO.
Ultimately, it will be up to the market to decide if an ICO has enough merit to make it worth the risk of helping it fulfill its fundraising goals. The team behind an ICO should stay engaged in the community and make themselves available to answer questions. It’s also important for this team to be as transparent as possible about their plans. Focus on the roadmap, token distribution, KYC (Know Your Customer), and AML (Anti-Money Laundering Compliance). This, alongside effective PR, is the best way of ensuring that an ICO succeeds and proceeds to the exchanges.
ICO Assistance
In the ever-growing ICO marketplace, it’s more crucial than ever to stand out with a detailed whitepaper, cryptocurrency marketing strategy, and PR strategy.
If you need assistance with any of the above, contact us at Pressfarm for strategies to help you meet your fundraising goals.
