There is no denying the fact that 2017 will well and truly be remembered as the “Year of the ICOs.” A mind-boggling $5.6 billion were raised through around 750 ICOs. However a close look at the statistics will paint a difficult picture. Out of the 902 ICOs last year, 142 of them failed even before their offerings, while a disturbing 276 projects fizzled even after raising their funds. Only 435, or 48%, of all ICO projects were deemed “successful.” 25% of the $5.6 billion raised through ICOs last year were raised by the Top 10 ICO projects alone.
This means that nailing an ICO is not as easy as it looks on paper. Now with the SEC also keeping a close watch on ICOs with a view to protect investors from frauds and scam ICOs that saw investors lose millions of dollars last year, the atmosphere has gotten even more competitive and difficult. The investors have become extremely picky and the lawmakers are getting impatient. So what does an ICO require to become successful in 2018? Here are 5 top characteristics.
1.Utility of token
The blockchain technology professed openness and democracy of a different kind. Developers cannot create “islands” and expect success. The token should find a wide user base and an even stronger use case. It should be stable, intricately linked with the Dapp and should fit seamlessly into a larger ecosystem.
2. A passionate community
A large community that is as passionate as you are as an entrepreneur/developer and that believes in your vision as fervently as you do is extremely vital to the success of your ICO. A loyal community is a result of focused and targeted marketing. If no one knows about, or finds out your idea or product, nobody will invest in it. An engaged community that constantly shares feedback to make the product/service/platform better is key to the success of a project. There has to be clear lines of communication between you and the community.
3. A strong dedicated team
With so much noise in the ICO scene, investors are looking at a vibrant and expert team that is good at what it does and how it does it. People look for team members who are experts in their chosen fields. You want to have a well-rounded team that takes care of every aspect of your project life cycle — from development to marketing and everything within. People also look for reputed names on the Advisory Board. Choose your Advisors carefully; those that will actually provide insights and value to your project rather than just be glorified names on your website looking to cash in on your success.
4. Reasonable hard caps
Transparency is the key to ICO success. If you are not transparent with the amount you wish to raise for your project, people will smell something fishy in the stew and, in all likelihood, back out from investing. Be clear as to how much money you really want to develop the platform, operational and marketing expenses and miscellaneous. Treat the ICO as an opportunity to raise funds for your project and not for yourself and your community will support you through thick and thin.
5. Partnerships and scalability
As mentioned earlier, blockchain projects cannot survive as islands. They have to reach out to complementary platforms and enterprises that can create a strategic partnership that will eventually be mutually beneficial. Also the project needs to exhibit scalability. The community needs to be explained clearly how and when the project can scale up to the next level. Scalability, to a great extent, also depends on the kind of strategic partnerships a project creates with other projects.
trade.io’s Investment Roadshow — the definitive guide to great ICOs
With the ICO market already heating up within the first half of 2018, investors should arm themselves with solid information on new projects entering the market. Market leaders like trade.io, who have themselves run one of the most successful ICOs of 2017, have launched an Investment Showcase Roadshow that provides investment opportunities to institutional, mid-range investors as well as the general public. It researches all ICO projects and displays exciting and completely legit ICOs that have a great product and a great team developing and backing it.
trade.io is now helping investors sail the murky waters of ICOs and scams by creating a Roadshow to arm investors. This Investor Roadshow will help investors choose wisely from the hand-picked projects that are selected by trade.io’s expert team after sifting through hundreds of ICOs. Only the best are selected and presented as genuine investment opportunities. So, whether you are a new investor or a seasoned player in the ICO market, you need to attend trade.io’s Investment Showcase Roadshow to get the inside scoop of the best ICOs in town!
Keep checking back for updates on how trade.io is continuing to further strengthen their position in the market, or if you’re looking for info on how to pre-register to the upcoming, exciting exchange visit: https://exchange.trade.io
