Together with an acquaintance, the former cleyond CEO Andreas Nold developed the idea to use an alternative form of financing for the cleyond go 2 market. A so called ICO – Initial Coin Offering.
OVERW8 Contribution
Doing what no-one else has done
How do you start something that hasn’t been done very much in general – and never before in Germany? You get as much information as you can from the market AND you work from the rough towards the details, bit by bit by bit.
Creating something from nothing
Parallel to developing the ICOs and tokens, the communication and strategic marketing of cleyond were still in limbo.
The challenge:
How exactly do you communicate this complex and necessary procedure in a way that potential token-buyers (in their character similar to the B2C target group)
a) understand it and
b) find it interesting ?
And then conceptialize a token that makes sense content-wise and is sustainable?
Sidenote: What is an ICO?
An ICO = Initial Coin Offering.
You develop a blockchain based currency, that is spent for the first time in the ‘initial offering’. In a certain way it’s a parallel to the so called IPO = Initial Public Offering, where the share is handed out on the market for the first time. With both, the appeal is that the buyer is hoping to get a great deal – and the seller has the chance to collect a good amount of money in a short time.
Step 1:
The Token & it’s Conception
Infographics at the core of communication
If it is complex but needs to look simple, infographics are the tool of choice.
A strong key visual to kick it off
Timing is everything
Wrong time wrong place? Or the contrary?
In this project what was special, was that timing played a particular role.
The developer who originally suggested the utilization of this mechanic was a burning fan of this financing environment, that particularly showed it’s charm in that year, 2018. At the same time a couple of market players, above all Savedroid with their scam that made it seem like they disappeared with their money, had sustainably damaged the environments reputation. That happened in Spring 2018, the CYO Token was supposed to be promoted from late August.
At the same time the topic of recycling had made it’s way into public awareness – the agenda setting that media and the EU had prepared was massive, and wouldn’t have been affordable any other way. But: would the people act on their supposed consternation? At OVERW8 we knew the topic very well, from the area of sustainable energy. We saw that people tend to talk about these things, but not actually change their behaviors (which makes a huge difference in market research and in the end in turnover). From this perspective, the moment seemed perfect.
Advised against it, decided for it
Overall our advice was to put the plan on ice. To look at more classical instruments and pick that topic back up in the new year with a fresh view (well knowing of the orders that would be missed out on).
cleyond decided to take the risk.
Which is absolutely fine, because entrepreneurial instinct and/or the willingness to take risks and priorities are very individual. In a case like this we do what we can: Advising with our best knowledge and conscience, giving input about the risk/chance structure and then stepping to the side.
Getting it done
After the decision was made to go through with it, we were determined to do anything to show:
“This is a really good token with German quality, substance and a future.”
And with a solid juridical base (a real challenge in itself in Germany 2018!). Of course, all the communication material needed to be flawless in terms of consumer protection laws.
IF we do a token, then an absolutely awesome one => the Branded Token.
Every human would get their ‘own’ one, engraved in the blockchain forever!
The Whitepaper
Built-in Multiplication-Mechanisms
2 Pager for Investors
Media Planning
Social Media – Specialty:
Telegram + Community
Proven strength of character
An immoral Offer
Even though in the personal networks everything in our power was activated, active outreach towards VCs and family offices was happening, in the end the telegram group with it’s over 10.000 member proved to be the most effective tool.
Through this Telegram group eventually an offer came in, regarding an invention that was potentially worth millions. The story that follows, is less showcase and more of a crook tale.
For the moment all they said was: The money is here. At a bar. At a strange bar in Milan in a dodgy area. A Tarantino movie could hardly be stranger than this.
Accepting this money would have been legally and morally impossible, but: In theory possible. Tempting, since the sum would have comfortably financed the Go2Market.
“The owners of cleyond didn’t budge for even a second, even though it must have been incredibly tempting. A real test of character that was passed here.”
Kristin Reinbach, CEO OVERW8
The perception of the risks /chances profile of the ICO vs. a classical instruments was shifting in favor of the latter.
For completeness sake, it must be said that this path wasn’t any less risky or bumpy in retrospect – but that’s another story.
The ICO, one of the first ever in Germany, was stopped before the coins were minted in late September.
That’s how it remained solely an experiment, but still: Someone always has to go first. He or she has the hardest time. Everything is still a jungle. The path has not yet been laid.
But for anyone to come later, it will always be a tiny bit easier building on more experience tan before.
This is entrepreneurship.
This is Innovation.
It can’t make a pretty PR story every single time.
But: If no-one ever dares to try, no-one can ever succeed.
What will you dare to try next?
Want to try something similar?
Every situation, goal, company is different. We are happy to advise you to whatever fits your company best.
