Community: The Key Ingredient To Every Successful ICO

There are many things that can influence an ICO directly. The technology the project, token or coin is based on being one. Another is the idea behind the use of the coin – if there is no utility (or very limited utility) it can impact the ICO negatively. Then there is the team behind the ICO, which is always a factor. However, one thing that many people do not take into account is the social side of things.

The community that is created around a project impacts the ICO more than many analysts would like to admit. The community is a key ingredient and the problem with many ICOs is that they do not work hard enough to build a strong community ethos. Let's take a look at some of the factors that influence and shape the community around a blockchain project.

Core Team: Strong individuals attract larger communities

Just like Cristiano Ronaldo brought millions of fans to Juventus, the same goes for blockchain communities. The reason EOS had such a fantastic ICO was due to Daniel Larimer being part of the core team. He is well known for inventing the Delegated Proof of Stake consensus mechanism. The more achievements someone has prior to joining a blockchain project, the more their social followers will flock to the project they find themselves in.

Partnerships: Showing your worth to people

Having partnerships already agreed with other projects can only be helpful with regards to the community. This also translates directly into a better ICO as you are able to leverage the success and community of another blockchain project in your ICO.

It also does not hurt to have institutional backing. Working with a well-known brand in the early stages of a project will give potential newcomers to your community a sense of legitimacy. Companies such as Fujitsu, Microsoft, and Google have partnered with projects before their ICOs and they have always brought more people into the ecosystem than anything else.

Communication: Your PR better be on point

People talk, people want information and people like it when you pay attention to them. Keeping your small, fledgling community in the loop and taking their advice (though not always) will help in building a robust and inviting community.

The more valued a community feels, the more they will evangelize on your behalf and the larger the community will grow.  Having a great community liaison can be the difference between an OK ICO and a great one.

Token Distribution: No whales, please

If the vast majority of your tokens are held by a small number of people (whales in typical crypto parlance), then why would your community have any reason to feel that it is part of the project? The better your token distribution, the better the community. It does not only help with increasing the size of the community; rather it can help with keeping the price and policies of your coin decentralized as well.

Social Media: Where best to engage?

Social media is a big part of any success these, be it an ICO or a football match. Where you engage with your community is as important as how you engage them. Forums and Reddit are the places you go for in-depth discussion – and many projects were conceived on such sites. Twitter is to go for community engagement, a coffee talk of sorts.

Author: Ali Raza for Crypto-Rating.com