How to Fail ICO pt.4 [In]efficiency of ICO Advisory
Practically any ICO you might look upon has at least a couple of advisors included in the list of team members. Advisors are aimed to affirm the integrity of the project and add more value to it. They all have available ratings, and any team can observe and make their choice.
How advisors actually work
At first, we opted for a standard approach, so we looked through several advisory services ratings and chose two candidates who promised to have the work done for an affordable price.
The first advisor was to provide the project with PR support. Some of the contract issues: social media, full content creation, PPC campaign, PR Publication and Distribution, top-tier site listings.
What was really done:
- Content: he shared a couple of our publications on his Linkedin profile;
- PR Publication and Distribution: he sent us a couple of media services with the prices. When we checked the prices on the website, it was 200%
- Listings: the advisor said he listed us on 15 sites, but we have never found Alphateca there.
The second advisor was intended to help us with an audit of legal and technical parts.
What was really done:
- The advisor performed an audit of the White Paper, gave us helpful advice for modifying it.
- Tried to convince us that we could not manage to run an ICO and had to request assistance from his company at the cost of $250 000.
One should clarify what the team needs from advisors: the sphere and the level of the involvement. Generally, advisors can be useful for legal, technical or PR representation. Concerning the extent of activity, there are three types of advisors:
- Those who have the top rating, big audience in social networks and recognition in crypto circles. The advisors charge big money and may attract some attention to your project via mention it in social media, showcases or expo.
- Advisors who charge less money, but have fewer followers and crypto community interaction.
- Advisors who fully assist the project and become a full member of it. We have not found them yet.
Mistake 7. Do not rely on the rankings only. Receive reliable information about the involvement of the advisor in the claimed ICOs and his expertise.
After the first experience, we changed our strategy and started searching for founders and top managers from the ICOs, which proved to be successful. It was clear that those people had come all the way and could contribute to the development of our project.
Some founders appeared surprisingly benevolent and supportive. They gave us some free advice, showed interest in the project, and the cost of their services was much lower than we would have to pay to the advisors.
Originally published at support.alphateca.com.
