On the 28th September, the Sharpe team attended the BLOCKCHAIN Live London conference. We have summarised our thoughts and takeaways from a market analysis and marketing perspective below.
BLOCKCHAIN Live from a marketing perspective:
I joined the Sharpe team at BLOCKCHAIN Live from a content and marketing point of view, looking into exhibition opportunities and to seek out what conference goers in this industry want from exhibition stands, and the companies exhibiting. The conference was great from a content point of view from presentations about smart contracts and the current crypto landscape to the influence of blockchain technology on the UK, and the UK’s parliaments opinion on the current use of the technology. From an exhibition point of view, there were very few stands that I was drawn to or I could draw inspiration from. There was a lack of that ‘innovators’ atmosphere that you would expect to experience at these types of conferences. The content and presentations saved the day, with valuable contributions from a handful of the presenters.
What I found particularly confusing was the use of questionably dressed models and a car give-away as brand associations and so called perks of visiting an exhibition stand. It is unfortunate as it is these associations that fuel the stigma that cryptos and blockchain falls within the gambling bracket. We are in the industry of using and incorporating new, modern and effective technology to create shared value, efficiencies in outdated systems and an inclusive economy, none of which is reflected in a car give-away or a half dressed model.
As we mentioned in our re-brand post, one of our reasons for re-branding Sharpe was to better define the Why? element of our business. A number of businesses within the fintech and crypto space are seen as simply jumping on the hype bandwagon, not clearly articulating their drive for their business. It is easier said than done, but adding ‘The world’s best’ ‘The worlds only’ or ‘The first’, won’t answer why you started the business in the first place. The exhibition area lacked the brand element that leaves you feeling envious and immediately emailing your team with ideas on how you can somewhat replicate what you have seen and experienced, perhaps, it is a result of the current landscape. It is evident that the businesses that have clearly defined their point of differentiation and strategy, as well as, have a evidential growth plan, have held their ground in an ever increasing competitive market and stand out at these types of conferences/exhibition.
Conferences are a must in terms of keeping up to date with industry peers, competitors and remaining inspired. As a start-up, they are essential for developing an interest in your product/service and marketing in general, but I can’t help but think, whether exhibiting or attending — do you really get the return on investment you should? And, should you rather attend and expect the return to be the insight you get from the presentations? Conferences are quick to sell you space but don’t spend the time really thinking about your strategic fit within the exhibition space — could this be the problem? Should conference companies choose exhibitors more carefully to create a competitive environment where conversation and the want to network is better stimulated. Are conference companies responsible for your value take-away?
In my opinion, organising, taking part in or attending niche meet-ups with companies and individuals truely passionate about the topic and industry, will result in better, more useful brand exposure and growth returns.
Brittany Marshall — Marketing Manager
BLOCKCHAIN Live from a market analysis perspective:
Blockchain Live was a good learning experience all in all; I was especially there to hear from thought leaders in the space and understand where sentiment sits currently in the industry.
Important to note though that the conference was very much a PR exercise for the emerging EOS ecosystem. As you can see from the speaker list, we had a diverse set of influencers but a lot were top figures at Block One: Daniel Larimer (CTO), Michael Alexander (CEO of EOS VC) and Brendan Blumer (CEO). From a balance perspective, it was also great to hear from the likes of Nick Szabo, Tim Draper and Joseph Lubin who represent other well known personalities in the space.
A key takeaway from the whole conference was a feeling of emptiness amidst the industry and strong need for leadership and redefinement. A few people proclaimed that the ICO model was effectively dead; I agree with this sentiment mostly but it’s important to note that EOS is attempting to redefine this fundraising mode. The CEO of EOS VC, proclaimed in juxtaposition to ETH, that they wanted to see real businesses with revenue, customers and a use case for a blockchain before an illegitimate and unwarranted token offering was put forward.
This comparison between the failures of Ethereum / ICOs and the new benefits of EOS was the overriding theme at the conference. Although I agree 9 out of 10 projects launched on Ethereum will crash and burn, this is not entirely the fault of the ecosystem that has higher fees and latency than EOS, rather, it is mostly a product of greed and bad actors within the industry that created unrealistic expectations of the technology and subsequent use cases whilst preying on vulnerable ‘get rich quick’ investors.
Taking a further step back we see the overriding market continuing to underperform people’s expectations over the coming months, with a slower than expected recovery of 12–24 months before we can expect valuations close to those seen during the peak of 2017. Although the industry is evolving, instead of shameless ICO shilling, the main area of focus is actually building the high performance infrastructure that will support DAPP usage acting as a proper foundation for further user growth.
EOS certainly seems to be positioning themselves as the viable leader in moving the everyday uses cases forward for blockchain based businesses running high performance smart contracts. They have been able to fill a void of professionalism and accountability that has been lacking in the entire industry and for this I am happy.
But more importantly the whole conference reminded of the genius of the anonymity of Bitcoin. By having no means on which to scapegoat through an individual or corporate entity it will continue to cement its position as the unrivalled market leader when compared with the more personified faction like protocols of EOS and ETH. By removing ego from the equation ‘Satoshi Nakamoto’ did a very admirable thing; they avoided the possibility of a battleground as seen between between EOS and ETH, and so created a truly autonomous market leader that will continue to be unrivalled in its uncontrollability and resistance to censorship.
Max Thornton — Market Analyst
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