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Factor Based Guide to App Store Optimization

App Store optimisation

There are billions of smartphone users around the world, and that number continues to grow year after year, creating a huge market for creating and buying apps. There are over four million apps on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store today, which means you have to be strategic about marketing your app if you want to generate mobile downloads and engagement. With over 6 million mobile apps in the major app stores, finding your app is one of the biggest problems facing mobile app publishers today. This is why understanding App Store Optimization (ASO) is so important. But what is App Store Optimization, and how can you make the most of it? Here’s what you need to know to help your app rank well.

App Store Optimization (ASO)

App store optimization is the process of optimizing mobile apps to rank higher in the App Store’s search results. The higher up your app in an app store’s search results, the more likely customers will see it. This increased visibility translates into more traffic to your app’s page in the App Store.

“The main goal of ASO is to drive as much traffic as possible to your app’s page in the App Store, so that searchers can take a specific action and lead to download your app.”

The ASO process also requires a critical understanding of your target customer base, which includes the keywords your potential customers use to find apps like yours. When you learn more about which keywords are being used, you will be able to better understand the language of your potential customers so that you can improve upon the best keywords to use.

Importance of ASO

According to Google, 40 percent of apps are found through App Store search. The search in the App Store is one of the most commonly used methods for finding and downloading new apps.

In other words, it means, “If you’re not using ASO to increase your app’s search rankings, you’re missing out on the biggest discovery channel available for your app.”

With hundreds of thousands of apps in each App Store competing to rank above each other, the reality is that most publishers aren’t investing in App Store optimization. So here we have tried to make ASO your secret weapon. Spend time improving your ASO every week, and you’ll be able to significantly impact your app’s ranking and overall success. What we’re about to explain is really the basics of SEO to help your app rank by SEO. If you’re already familiar with these for web searches, the App Store still has some important differences. Let’s discuss the various factors that can affect your App Store Optimization:

  • Primary ASO Factor

These factors have the biggest impact on the rank of your app, so pay special attention to these factors. Under which the name / title of the app and keywords come. The keyword in the app name/title should be the keyword with the most search traffic. Spend time researching what that keyword is, as changing your title too often can be harmful. As your app starts to rank higher and gets more reviews, the news of your app will start spreading by mouth. Changing the title can make it difficult to spread the word about your app. Apart from this, Keywords to improve your search ranking you need to know which keywords are relevant and used most frequently by your target audience. Monitoring competitors is helpful to understand how you compare week to week. Apart from being the most important ASO factor, the title and keywords can be easily modified. That’s why you’ll want to optimize them regularly.

  • Secondary ASO Factor

Actually, the first impression matters but there are many other factors that have a huge impact on whether users tap that download button. This includes The number of downloads you have is important to ASO, but you don’t have complete control over them. Ratings and reviews are also critical and difficult to control. However, there are ways to encourage happy users to rate and review. Here is a complete analysis of all the factors to keep in mind while optimizing your app for better ranking.

Focus Include Key ASO Factors

There are seven basic factors to ensure that your app is optimized for the App Store. Following these tips will help you effectively market your app, identify your top competitors, and take your app to the next level. These factors have the biggest impact on your app’s rank, so these factors need special attention:

  1. App Title

The title is our first impression online. This is what attracted you to read this post, and it is what will attract users to your app. Optimizing with a keyword in the title leads to a 10.3% increase in search rankings for that title. Obviously, some limitations apply, as the App Store is heavily regulated. You’re only given 30 characters for a title at Apple, and keyword stuffing is a surefire way to risk getting banned. Users are also wary of downloading shady looking apps for privacy concerns.

Think about it, would you have “Evernote” or “Taking Notes App for Notes” on your smartphone? Be smart about how you customize. Pandora, for example, does everything right. Its icon is sleek and simple, and with an acronym, it was able to fit in three essential keywords. When searching the App Store for “free,” “music,” or “radio,” you’ll find Pandora at or near the top.

  1. App Description

Here is where things get a little hazy. Technically the App Store ignores algorithmic details. However, users have a different story. Instead of optimizing for SEO, focus on explaining the features and benefits of your product. While it may seem like you have a lot of room to do this, you really don’t.

The truncated snippets are shown on your product page, and some readers can sometimes click “More” to read further than what you see here. You have 252 characters to make your pitch and to convince someone you’re worth downloading. so. You’ll want to keep it short and sweet. There’s no room for fluff, and you may need to A/B testing several iterations to find what works best.

  1. Keyword Metadata

Apple gives you 100 characters to enter a comma-separated keyword. These help your app find itself through search and related content. There’s no need for duplicating efforts here, so choose keywords that you haven’t already used in the title. Some in-depth keyword analysis can be done using Apple Search Ads. This feature is only available to iOS app developers and is an essential tool for listing any project. You can also use keyword research tools like Ubersuggest to find and test common keywords.

  1. App Subtitles

You are given a subtitle below the title in the search results. It’s also limited to 30 characters. This gives you another chance to use more descriptive keywords. TypeShift, for example, uses space to input its main search term. This is a cleaner look and can work well. I’d still take the opportunity to use some of the keywords in the title, but that’s out of my control. Which is a great debate for my next topic.

  1. App Reviews & Ratings

Customer reviews and ratings are an important consideration for users, especially those unfamiliar with an app brand. Apps with higher ratings are also ranked higher. This creates a difficult dilemma: You want more ratings and reviews, but not if they are negative. Therefore, you need a way to connect with your customers inside your app, giving them a place to hang out and talk directly to the developer.

On the other hand, you want to guide happy customers to leave positive reviews for you. Top 100 free apps in the App Store have an average rating of 4 stars. Quality clearly matters. The lower your rating, the fewer consumers will be willing to consider downloading it. Think about it. When was the last time you downloaded a One-Star App? You may have rated an app one star, but when you downloaded it, it was likely given three or more stars. Ratings also affect conversions.

It is often easier to maintain a high rating than to raise one out of two or four stars. That’s why it’s important to solicit reviews from customers within the app. One time is all that is needed, and it needs to be done within the first 72 hours. That is, 77% of users will use an app before never restarting it. It is also important to wait until the customer has had a chance to use the app. Instead of basing it on a timer, consider a push notification when the client completes some task. Examples of great times to do this are after the first level of the game or after a customer has sent their first message through your encrypted messaging app. However, try not to be too spammy, and be aware that your app’s performance may affect its rating.

Lastly, don’t hesitate to respond to negative reviews. It is possible that a poor customer experience was caused by an error or glitch that has since been fixed. Whenever possible, thank users for their reviews, good or bad, and bring up the right issues. This is your time to collect valuable user feedback. This is your time to collect valuable user feedback.

  1. App Download

Ultimately it’s the download that matters. An app preview videos and screenshots to help convert indecisive users. Both the app and the Google Play store use the number of times an app has been downloaded to determine ranking. More specifically, it is the current download rate. For example, while an app might have a million total downloads, a new app could beat it by getting more downloads this month. Preview video and images can be a major factor in this.

Most of the top apps in the App Store use app previews to increase customer conversions. Once you have a user, you’ll need to keep them. It’s harder than it sounds, and Apple is paying attention. Improving your app optimization is a great place to start. In addition, work on marketing your brand and app to improve recognition, awareness and appeal, from app store descriptions to images, ratings/reviews and social media presence.

Retention Impact on App Store Optimization

Retention rates are important for mobile device ranking, but the bar isn’t set too high. The average app only has a 29 percent retention rate after 90 days. Breaking things down further, we can look at the retention rates by industry. Media/Entertainment, Lifestyle/Travel and eCommerce/Retail apps have the best three-month retention rates. There are so many apps available in the App Store that users download a lot to never use them. One study found that Americans use an average of 30 apps each month, about 90 of which they installed.

This means that even if your app is downloaded, it is unlikely that it will ever be used after the first 72 hours. How long is your app installed and how often it is used during the install? This can help with App Store search rankings. Now that you understand how search rankings work, it’s time to explore the best practices for publishing to ensure that an app is viewed and downloaded.

Do apps with higher ratings rank higher in search results?

Yes, higher rankings result in higher search results. Here a test is performed by taking a random sample of keywords and classifying them on the basis of difficulty related to ranking. A “easy” keyword results in fewer than 25 apps trying to rank for that keyword. “Medium” keywords are included in 25-100 apps, and “competitive” keywords are those that are in 100+ apps. Based on this test, there is a clear trend showing that apps with higher ratings also rank higher for keyword difficulty. Apps with better ratings rank higher.

App Store Optimization FAQ

What is the most important thing I can do to optimize my App Store listing?

The most important thing you can do to optimize your App Store listing is to research and use the best keywords to reach the target audience for your app.

What does it mean to customize my App Store listing?

Optimizing your App Store listing will help your app appear in search results for most users looking for apps that work like you.

How do I systematically increase my app’s downloads?

Optimize your listing through keyword research, choose catchy title names for your apps, ensure quick download speeds and great UX, run social media campaigns to get people talking about your app, and more.

How much can you earn from an app?

It totally depends on how much you charge for your app, its quality, its competition, its advertising experience etc.

Conclusion

Like SEO, ASO is a process that needs to be tracked and constantly changed over time. Your optimal set of keywords is rarely the set you choose to put in the App Store first. In most cases, there is little or no research on keyword searches prior to app submission, leaving most apps hidden, and the chances of discovery quite low. To reap the rewards of ASO, you need to put in the time and effort. If you do this, you will have a consistent channel driving traffic to your app. Being found is one of the most difficult challenges for mobile apps, but it is a problem that you can actively solve with the suggestions above.

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Benefits of Search Engine Marketing for Your Business

Benefits of Search Engine Marketing for Your Business

If you’re a marketer or business owner today, you’ve probably been told that you should use SEO (Search Engine Optimization) more than once or twice. This is because today, it has become an essential part of any successful marketing strategy. But if you’re not familiar with this strategy, you might not be sure if it’s worth your time or money. And that’s why on this page, we’ll discuss what SEO is in marketing, what role it plays in marketing, and five key benefits it can provide to your business.

SEO in Marketing

SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization, and it is the process of improving a website by helping users rank in search results when searching for specific words and phrases. If you’re not sure why this matters, just think about how you normally access the information you need in the course of your daily life.

For example, imagine if you needed to replace your TV and you weren’t sure which model to buy, what would you do? Or where would you look if you’re on vacation and need to find a restaurant for dinner? Additionally, if you want to learn a new language, how will you research your options for it? If you’re like most people, you’ll reach for your smartphone or sit at your computer and type a simple phrase into Google. You’ll find something like “best TV,” “restaurants near me,” or “how to learn Spanish” by typing it into a search engine. Then, you’ll scroll through the results and click on the one that best suits your needs.

These results are based on the keywords you entered to provide Google with the most useful information for you. But in many cases, the sites you see ranking on the first page don’t get there by accident. They use SEO to help explain to Google what their content is about. They also conducted extensive research to determine how users like you phrase your searches for specific topics so that they can customize their page accordingly. And if you want your target audience to easily reach your site, that’s what you’ll need to do.

Benefits of SEO to Your Business

SEO can help you improve your ranking through search engine results. It has the potential to have a huge impact on your company’s most important goals, such as increasing your leads and sales. But if you’re not convinced, search your site. The five biggest benefits of optimizing for are discussed below:

  1. SEO Targets Quality Traffic

One of the biggest advantages of SEO is that it is an inbound marketing strategy. Unlike traditional outbound advertising channels, which involve easy access to consumers, whether they want to hear from you or not. Inbound methods make it easier for your audience to find you when they want information. These traditional methods, such as cold calling, spam email, and interruptive advertising, are done with the advertiser’s goals in mind. And many users find them downright annoying.

On the other hand, inbound marketing is considered more customer-centric. Instead of interrupting consumers while they are watching TV or listening to the radio, it involves creating helpful resources and making useful information more easily accessible. Then, when users are willing to spend some time researching your industry or learning more about your options for a specific type of product, they can find you on their own. Not only is it more convenient for consumers, but it also provides more qualified leads for your business. In HubSpot’s recent State of Inbound report, 59% of marketers said that inbound practices provided the highest quality leads for their sales teams.

After all, who do you think could be more receptive to your marketing efforts? Someone who sees your ad on a billboard on their travels or someone who pops up on a list of tips you publish when searching for help online?

The answer to the above questions is clear that when you focus on attracting users who are actively looking for information related to your industry, products and services, you will be more effective in reaching your target audience. Plus, it gives you the opportunity to reach your audience while they’re already considering making a purchase or contracting a service. Increasing the likelihood that your marketing messages will turn into sales and leads.

  1. No Need to Pay for ads in SEO

Google’s organic ranking is based entirely on what its algorithms determine the best results for any given query. This means that once you’ve created a page that search engines will guide their users to deems worth directing, it can continue to attract traffic to your site for months (or even years) after you publish it. Of course, the process of researching and writing high quality content requires investment. That investment will either be in the form of time, if you choose to build it yourself, or money, if you choose to hire a digital marketing agency to build it for you. But once you’ve made that initial investment, there’s no continuing cost to attract traffic to your content.

Depending on the nature of the topic, you need to update the complete information page in a few months. If your competitors have decided to target the same keyword, you may need to add and improve it. But when it comes down to it, your valuable place in search results is free. This is a major difference from PPC ads, which include costs every time a user clicks on and goes to a page. To give you an idea of ​​how big a profit this is, just consider that the average cost per click (CPC) across all industries is roughly $2.32. With SEO, you have the option to avoid paying this amount and without The ability to generate traffic to your site at an ongoing cost.

  1. SEO Gets More Clicks than PPC

Although PPC ads appear above organic rankings, 71.33% of searches result in mostly clicks on an organic result on the first page. It’s hard to say why this is so, although the most logical conclusion is that users rely on Google’s algorithms. They know what places advertisers are paying for, and they instead choose to visit the pages that search engines have deemed the best. Of course, this is just conjecture, but regardless of the logic behind it, the fact remains that the majority of clicks for any given search go to an organic result.

  1. SEO helps PR

Although SEO and PR may seem like completely different marketing strategies, you can use them to maximize the results you see from each. The biggest connection between the two is in link building. Earning links from reputed websites is a core component of any SEO strategy. This means that the biggest part of an SEO professional’s job is identifying opportunities for placement or coverage on industry blogs, news publications and other relevant sites.

Given that PR strategy revolves around getting major publications and influencers to talk about your company, this presents a huge opportunity. When you use link building research to find new ways to get your brand in front of consumers, you’ll be more effective at delivering content to potential customers and customers.

  1. Get Ahead of the Competition

Today, SEO is widely considered a mainstay of any marketing strategy. In fact, it is said that 61% of marketers make improving their SEO and improving their online presence a top priority. This means that your competitors have already taken steps to establish a higher ranking in search results. And with an SEO strategy of your own, you can stay ahead and ideally stay competitive within your industry.

Difference between SEO & SEM

As you learn more about increasing your company’s visibility in search, you may see another term for this process, known as SEM. And while some marketers use it interchangeably with SEO, it’s important to understand the difference between the two in order to use the two properly.

SEM stands for “Search Engine Marketing,” and refers to anything you do to earn placements in search engine results pages. This means that it is an umbrella term that includes both SEO and PPC. Although SEO is a form of SEM, it is not the only strategy involved in SEM. Keeping this gap in mind as you learn more about search visibility, it will be much easier to find resources that focus on paid strategy. And determine if those are the resources you want to spend your time studying.

Job of an SEO Specialist

While some basic SEO tasks can be done in-house with the help of some online resources, the best way to maximize your results is to hire an SEO expert. But more importantly, what do these professionals offer that you can’t do yourself? And what exactly do they do that makes them a worthwhile investment to hire? Their primary goal is, of course, to increase the visibility of their customers in search results for queries related to their industry, products and services. But to accomplish this goal, an SEO specialist has to take some important steps:

  1. Site Assessment

The first step in the SEO process is a thorough evaluation. They will evaluate all the factors affecting its ranking, including whether a site has ever been optimized before, as well as where it stands in the results pages for the company’s most important target keywords. They will also look at any major issues affecting the user experience, such as page load times, navigation setup, and site structure.

Lastly, most SEO professionals will also take the client’s competitors into account during their site evaluation. They’ll identify other sites targeting similar keywords and similar audiences, then evaluate what they’re doing well. All this information will help them determine what changes need to be made. Then, they can prioritize these changes based on which will have the most impact.

  1. Ongoing Optimization & Testing

After their assessment, an SEO will work on the priorities set by them. They’ll do keyword research, optimize pages for the keywords they’ve chosen, and fix any usability issues. This initial adaptation process alone often takes a few months, but it is important to recognize that it does not stop there. This happens because SEO is the result that comes after making a long-term strategy. For example, take a look at the following graph of Kinsta’s year over year traffic.

While they saw some modest gains in 2015 and 2016, their traffic really started in 2017. And those results were completely based on the SEO strategy they ran. So when you hire an SEO specialist, they will regularly identify new opportunities to improve your site. They’ll optimize your on-page factors, look for ways to earn new links for your site, and continually test the changes they’re making. An experienced SEO professional will also make it a priority to keep up with industry changes so that they can ensure that your site stays ahead of algorithm updates and that other marketers are up to date with the strategies that are in effect.

  1. Reporting and Analysis

Lastly, an SEO specialist will regularly monitor and analyze their results. From a client’s perspective, it helps to make sure you know what kind of results you’re getting for your investment. But beyond that, regularly checking in on key metrics like traffic and conversions helps them understand what’s working and what’s not. So that they can continuously improve their strategy.

Regarding SEO 3 Myths Pervading

There is a wealth of information available online about SEO. Unfortunately, not all of that information is completely accurate. So as you learn more about this important marketing strategy. There are some common myths that you should be aware of so that you can stay away from any SEO professional who perpetuates them.

Myth 1: Keyword Optimization is a Part of SEO

The idea that keywords are the most important part of SEO is not an outright lie but it is certainly out of date. Since the rollout of Hummingbird in 2013, Google has increasingly prioritized user intent over the exact keywords it uses. This means that today you do not have to pay much attention to specific words and phrases.

To clarify, keywords still serve as an important part of SEO, and keyword research can help to guide your strategy. But when you do include them, be sure to do so naturally, and your content. Write in a way that prioritizes using the same exact phrase over and over on your page to address the intent behind them.

Myth 2: Optimizing a site is fast and easy

If you meet someone who promises to deliver SEO results in just a few weeks, consider this. Many of us wish this was possible, but it is not. In fact, it usually takes four to six months for an SEO strategy to start showing results. So, while the idea of ​​quick and easy results can be tempting, don’t fall for it. Find an SEO professional who provides a clear outline of their strategy and a realistic timeline for results, and you will be more than satisfied with the results.

Myth 3: Focus on Keywords with High Search Volume

Many site owners who are new to SEO make the mistake of focusing their efforts on keywords with extremely high search volume. After all, wouldn’t it be great to rank on the first page for a keyword that gets searched thousands of times per month? True, but for most sites, this is simply not a realistic goal. Considering how difficult it is for these keywords to rank, a strategy focusing on them is unlikely to generate any significant ranking or traffic at all. Instead, it is far more effective to focus on longer, less competitive keywords. And if you think these keywords are not worth your time, just consider that long-tail keywords account for 70% of searches.

So while each one may not have the potential to bring in thousands of visitors each month, a strategy built on multiple long-tail keywords certainly does. Since these keywords are easy to rank for, within a reasonable time frame The chances of seeing positive results are very high making them a better investment of your time and budget.

Google’s Ranking Factors

Today, Google’s algorithms take hundreds of factors into account when delivering ranking results for a given query. SEMrush’s research into ranking factors reveals some of the most important factors:

  • Direct Website Visits
  • Time on site
  • Pages per session
  • Bounce Rate
  • Total Referring Domains
  • Total Backlinks
  • Total Referring IPs
  • Total Follow-Backlinks
  • Content Length
  • Website Security (https)
  • Total Anchors
  • Keyword in Anchor
  • Keyword in body
  • Keyword Density
  • Keyword in Title
  • Keyword in Meta
  • Video On Page

This is just a general overview of the factors you will want to consider when optimizing your site. For more information, read our in-depth explanation of on-page and off-page ranking factors:

Quality Content

Another term that you often come across in the SEO industry is “quality content.” The meaning of the word is quite straightforward, but its importance really cannot be overstated. As Google strives to deliver results by focusing on providing the best possible results to its users, and at the same time great content is becoming increasingly important to the best results. While keywords still play a role in SEO, Google compares the quality of content related to particular keywords on a page. I am less worried And that means you should also be concerned with the quality of the ingredients. 

Getting high ranking is no longer as easy as writing keyword optimized page titles and titles. Actually, the average length of a first page Google result is now fixed at 1,890 words. So when you look for ways to improve your site, pay attention to your site’s content. Is it able to deliver real value to your target audience? If not, even the best keyword optimization won’t help you. Instead, it’s time to focus your efforts on improving your content, giving your audience the information they want.

Tips to Increase Organic Traffic with SEO

When it comes to increasing organic traffic, ranking is not the only consideration. Here are two tips you can use to increase your traffic level without changing your ranking:

  1. Find Ways to Increase CTR

Generally speaking, the first few results on a page will earn the most clicks. But this is not always the case. And if you can find ways to attract more clicks even if your pages rank lower than you’d like in search results, you can outperform your competitors and increase your traffic. First, especially for pages with high CTRs. Use Google Search Console to identify. Then, determine what you’re doing well with the title tags and meta descriptions of those pages, and adjust the rest of your pages accordingly.

  1. Find Ways to Earn Featured Snippets

In a HubSpot study, pages appearing in featured snippets saw twice as much CTR as pages appearing in regular results. So if you’re able to earn a spot in featured snippets, you can earn regular organic rankings. I can increase my CTR without necessarily climbing. And considering that 70% of snippets come from results that aren’t in the first place, this is a great way to boost clicks. And potentially even more clicks than the top result.

Conclusion

Today, SEO has become an essential part of any marketing strategy. So, “What is SEO in Marketing?” To answer the question, the simplest explanation is that it is one of the best ways to improve your online visibility and reach consumers as they are actively searching for information. It also offers a wealth of benefits that No other digital marketing strategy can offer. For many marketers, the biggest attraction is that it enables them to earn new customers without having to pay for ad space.

For others, organic results earn even more clicks and attention than ads. In addition, the right strategy can also help you improve your brand’s PR and stand out from your competitors. And given all these obvious benefits, there’s no reason not to optimize your site. If you’re ready to go straight to the technical explanation, you can check out our resource How to do SEO for Rank and Better Conversions. But we recommend that you get a solid understanding of how search engines work before making any changes. So if you want to get started from the beginning, you can find all the information you need to establish a strong foundation in our resource on how Google Search works.

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Complete Guideline to launch a Successful Initial Coin Offering

Complete Guideline to launch a Successful Initial Coin Offering

The initial coin offering (ICO), sometimes called the token generation event or token sale, is the subject of much confusion. We will discuss all these things about what types of companies can ICO be used for, and what is the project approach in launching ICO. It is not intended as investment or legal advice, but as a template to show the process behind an ICO, and what the stakeholders (team, board, stakeholders) of a project need to be considered while conducting an ICO.

In today’s time, the blockchain industry is relatively new, there isn’t much information on the subject from a project perspective, and with each new ICO, teams are learning best practices about what is right to do and what not to do. Below is a guide to all the information we collect about the ICO process, including input from people who have had direct experience with the process.

  1. Pre Planning

The first two big questions you need to consider under pre planning are: 1. What is the purpose of the token? 2. Are you sure you want to do ICO?

  • Token 

What is the purpose of the token? What function or utility does it perform? If your application does not need to be built on top of the blockchain protocol, you should think hard before proceeding. For example, the computational cost of building an application on top of Ethereum is much more expensive than something like AWS. You must have a strong reason to build a decentralized application versus a centralized application.

If you are not absolutely sure whether your application should be built on Blockchain or not, it becomes necessary for you to do more research and spend more time learning about Bitcoin and Ethereum. Building a decentralized application is fundamentally different from an application using a client-server architecture, and will require you to fully understand the components of a blockchain and what can be built on top of this new architecture.

  • ICU

An ICO is fundamentally different from raising funds through a VC or other traditional means. On the one hand, you are selling the future use of your platform and not giving up equity. On the other hand, you are working as a public company on the first day. If you have a large community that you may need to manage post ICO, in such a situation you need to make sure that you can deal with this burden well in advance. Here are a few things to keep in mind when thinking about whether it’s a good idea to ICO your project in the first place:

  • Everything you do and all actions you take will be reflected in the price of the token.
  • Your team will bombard you non-stop several times a day, with questions about the price of your tokens.
  • You will need to become an international company from day one.
  • All your internal team discussions are likely to be publicly pursued.
  • There will be a lot of stress in trying to make things worth short term versus long term valuable.
  • If your product is not already open source, then there will be a huge backlash for becoming fully open source. There is a strong expectation that many blockchain projects are open-source projects.
  • In general, cryptocurrency projects are more public/transparent than normal startups, or even traditional public companies.
  • In general, good blockchain projects look and function more like open-source software projects versus traditional tech businesses. You and your team both have to decide whether it makes sense for your application to be built on the blockchain and whether you want to operate as a transparent and open company.
  1. Planning

Once you are ready and committed to do an ICO, the key components in the plan are proposal, whitepaper, token design, legal, precautions against inevitable hackers and communication (website, slack, social, press, are set to be prepared for interviews, etc.).

  • Proposal

The most important question is, how much do you want to raise? And why? The second most important question is, what do you want to achieve with the particular delivery method you are choosing?

  • Ideas
  • For your ICO, are you trying to raise the most money? Are you trying to build a wider base of supporters? Are you thinking of trying to target a specific profile of potential users? Are you trying to encourage developers to build on top of your platform? etc.
  • Other questions to consider
  • For allocation, reservation for your team, investors, partners, ecosystem, what percentage are you giving to the company/foundation?
  • Where will the money you raise go to? For which you need to have an annual budget for the next 5 years.
  • Do you want a hat? If so, which hat would you wear? It depends on the amount you are aiming to increase.
  • Would you like to pre-sale?
  • Depending on your growth goals, pre-sales can be used as social proof and tokens to the people you want to align with the most in your ecosystem. The downside of a pre-sale is that it favors certain people/groups over the participants in a normal crowdsale.
  • If you are pre-sale, you should create a pre-sale booking agreement to reserve a specific amount of allotment for each pre-sale buyer and for those participating in the pre-sale. Be transparent about, at what cost.
  • If you decide to pre-sale, you also need to think about what % of the allocation is distributed in the pre-sale in relation to the % you are selling in the crowdsale.
  • For ICO Itself
  • Which currencies will you accept? Like BTC, ETH, anything else?
  • Do you want to do pre-registration? It is becoming increasingly common for crowds to do some form of “Know Your Customer” (KYC) for those who wish to participate.
  • Are you willing to do the KYC process yourself or use a service like Civic to complete the process?
  • Depending on your goals, do you want to split an even number of tokens to all registrants or first come first served? With a first come first serve, you run the risk of having most of your tokens bought by a small number of people.
  • Will you be rewarded for coming early? tiered pricing?
  • When will you meet? such as 1 day, 3 days, a week, etc.
  • Will you be doing geo-fencing? Barring specific countries from participating, such as approved countries – both US and Chinese investors are excluded from seeing more projects.
  • Will tokens be issued immediately after the completion of the token sale? If not, when?
  • Will you allow funds/institutional investors or only individuals to invest?

In general, you want a well thought out and prepared offer in which all the information is presented to anyone interested in participating in your ICO. The worst offenders are projects that obscure important information, for example hidden hard caps, or not being transparent about token allocation. And projects that change terms mid-fundraising. By doing any of these things you can get more money in the short term but in the long term your reputation of capital will be seriously damaged.

  • White Paper
  • The whitepaper is where everything above comes together and is synthesized into one major document. The whitepaper should cover all the internal workings of your application, how the entire system works, and how the token will be used within the system.
  • Normally, your whitepaper will include all technical information about your project, all information related to tokens, and all relevant information about your team.
  • This single document should give a potential contributor a complete picture of your application and give them enough information to make an informed decision.
  • Technical whitepapers are tough and can easily take 200+ hours of work from a whole team in a very short amount of time. It is also a document where your team takes ownership of creating this document, and much of it cannot be outsourced. Editors can help clear this up, but your team will have to write the bulk of the document.

Once you’ve completed your whitepaper, I encourage you to get detailed feedback from respected figures in the crypto space and the field you’re operating in, as well as the core demographic you’re looking for for your ICO. are targeting. And include the relevant changes before proceeding.

  • Legal
  • You will need a reputable law firm that has experience in incorporating blockchain companies/foundations and running the ICO process to advise you on your process.
  • The biggest legal question you will have to answer is: Is the token you are offering during an ICO a security or not?
  • What do you need to do to reduce concerns that the token could be a security?

Some other legal considerations are as follows:

  • Will you be using SAFT?
  • Are you fencing the offering?
  • Do you want to set up a foundation to be a token steward?

This guide is not intended to be legal advice, so be sure to speak with an attorney who has gone through this process before.

  • Communications

In general, the communication strategy for your team will include all the channels you will use to communicate about your project such as website, whitepaper, Slack, social, etc. All your channels need to be in sync, your entire team needs to be on deck, and you have to respond to people on time. It’s a huge job, of which here are some key components:

  1. Website, which includes:
  • Landing pages for crowd sales (separate from your main product page if you already have one)
  • Well designed pages in general perform better in ICOs
  • Team– Every team member needs a clear and updated LinkedIn profile because potential contributors will do due diligence on each team member.
  • Mentor– Every mentor needs a clear and updated LinkedIn profile because potential contributors will do due diligence on each member of the team.
  • A potential red flag for contributors is when there are more mentors than team members.
  • Budget– can be included in the whitepaper or as a separate section on the website. There is a need for clarity on where the funding is going, and how long it will be projected to last.
  • Depending on the feedback– the budget may be included in a “business whitepaper” (some teams have two white papers one technical and one business-oriented) or on the website. In general, the budget should be kept somewhere clearly and transparently with a record of any changes made to it.
  • Roadmap– can be included in the whitepaper or as a separate section on the website.
  • Depending on the feedback– the roadmap can be incorporated into a “business whitepaper”, some teams two whitepapers one technical and one business-oriented or website. In general, the roadmap should be clearly and transparently laid out somewhere along with a record of any changes made to it.
  • Token allocation– which can be included in the whitepaper or as a separate section on the website. You need to be transparent about what you are selling, the terms of the ICO, and the terms of the pre-sale (if applicable). At a minimum, potential contributors should be able to calculate their effective market cap and understand what will be circulating and total supply. Token allocation and sale information can be included in a “business whitepaper” (some teams include two whitepapers one technical and one business-oriented) or in a website – based on feedback. In general, token allocation and sale information should be clearly and transparently placed somewhere (ideally both the pre-sale terms and the crowdsale terms) along with a record of any changes made to it. Teams should be transparent about this kind of information with no hidden surprises. For example, early pre-sale investors get ridiculous bonuses etc.
  • Contribution Details– To be issued when ICO/Pre-ICO is ready. Be careful as this section can be hacked and the contribution address can be changed to the hacker’s address. See the “Security” section below.
  1. Github

A clean, updated Github repository is required. visit to- https://github.com/0xProject. Everything that is created should be in a public repository so that potential contributors can review everything in advance. Internal communication channels (Slack, Rocket Chat, Riot, etc.) need to be the main communication channel and the team needs to be active there. Consider hiring a full-time community manager to moderate your chosen communication channel. This community manager can also act as a bridge between the larger community and your internal team.

The channels need to be set up properly and moderated heavily. Example channels such as Announcements, Developers, General, Random, Support, and Scam Alerts (to be able to notify all users of potential scams) The main channel used by teams right now is Slack but for crypto projects about Slack There are some major cons.

1) Slack is not meant for large group communication.

2) Slackbots and scam users are easy to hack.

3) It’s easy to direct messaging users and send false announcements and contribution messages. Read more about the disadvantages of sluggishness for cryptocurrency projects here.

  1. BitcoinTalk

Create a bitcoin talk announcement of the token. Example: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=2009966.0

  1. Reddit

Own your own subreddit, brand it, and put up some posts. Example: https://www.reddit.com/r/district0x/

  1. Newsletter

Set up a newsletter on your website. Email is the best way to directly share important information with potential contributors on the day of the ICO.

  1. Blog

What is needed is a clean, updated blog, ideally with a history of posts already in place. Example: https://blog.district0x.io/ & https://blog.0xproject.com

  1. Twitter

Must have a clean and updated Twitter account. Example: https://twitter.com/0xproject

  1. Advertisement

Will you do paid advertising? This is an individual decision that your team needs to make. In general, advertising teams look weak.

  1. Public Relation
  • Press– Entering both crypto publications and general news.
  • Interview– Q&A, speaking engagements, technical talks, etc.
  • Events– conferences, meetings, technical talks, dinners, online Q&A sessions, etc.
  • Podcasts– Epicenter, Unchained, Ether Review, etc.
  1. Translation

Translation in a foreign language requires a genuine commitment. You not only need to translate your whitepaper and website, but you also have to translate all subsequent changes and announcements. You may need to hire someone to manage translations for Q&A and inquiries on various social channels. If you decide to translate, you need to target languages. By the way, Chinese/English seems to be the most common.

  1. Community Management

Additional people on staff need to be prepared at all times, across all channels, to answer questions. The more success your ICO achieves, the more community support you may need. In general, you want to have a constant presence on the web before your ICO, during your ICO, and even after your ICO. Potential contributors need to know that your team is serious and in it for the long haul.

  1. Smart Contract / Blockchain / Wallet

Which blockchain will you use? Are you looking for ERC20 tokens? The smart contract needs to be prepared in advance. If you do pre-sale and ICO, you may need two smart contracts and additional considerations and if you are planning to do reservation contract.

Security audit on a smart contract requires you to do it ahead of time and publish the results. Your entire fundraiser is based on this smart contract, so it has to be 100% accurate. If it’s only 99% correct, you leave yourself open to potential hackers. To be extra safe, some projects now have multiple parties conduct their own independent audits and all publish individual results. Set up a bug bounty. You need to set up a wallet that receives ICO payments. The safest options are hardware wallets or multi-sig hardware options. Depending on which currency you accept, you may need more than one setup.

  1. General Safety Tips
  • This is by no means an exhaustive list. If you are concerned you should consult a security engineer who has gone through the ICO process before.
  • Buy all website domains that look like yours and all the different TLD forms of your name.
  • Hackers will try to recreate your landing page with the same domain name as yours, using your own address instead. You also need to be on the lookout for any potential scams after ICO and ICO.
  • Register all social media accounts with names that look like you.
  • Like a website, hackers will also try to copy and spoof your social media accounts and point them to a different landing page than yours. You’ll still need to be on the lookout for it after your crowdsale is over. One trick scammers try to do is “expand their crowd” and deceive potential supporters.
  • Set up Cloudflare on your landing page.
  • Your website has a major vulnerability. Be sure to set up two-factor authentication internally to make changes to your website and monitor your site comprehensively.
  • Restrict the ability to change/commit your page/github/social media/everything. Keep two factor authentication setup on everything – even your own internal team.
  • Turn off Slack API. Slack isn’t set up for public groups raising funds. There are many scam attempts directly involving Slackbot messages, which despite all the warnings admins can’t stop and many people fall for. Even though Slack is the default communication channel, I would consider using another method of public communication or at least controlling the inflow to the token sale.
  • Ask people to bookmark your site, don’t click on links.
  • Do not release your wallet public address until the day of the ICO (simultaneous release on all your communication channels).
  • Remind people not to send their contributions from exchanges like Coinbase. They have to be from the wallet they control.

3. Before the ICO

  • For registration, if you are doing a registration system-based ICO, issue all the details and get people registered in advance. Example: https://blog.0xproject.com/0x-token-sale-and-registration-details-75d84af11c60
  • Create a tutorial for registration. Example: https://blog.0xproject.com/tutorials-for-the-0x-token-sale-registration-766064955d12
  • The release of a tutorial video and tutorial blog post on how to participate makes everything readily apparent.
  • Create an explanatory video to show you how to buy tokens. You need at least a semi-professional 2-3 minute video with professional voice talent. Set it to private and don’t release it until the day of the ICO. Example: https://blog.0xproject.com/zrx-token-sale-purchase-tutorial-612c2ffe1e0d
  • Beware of all potential hackers. Example: https://blog.0xproject.com/a-note-on-scams-and-phishing-attempts-e2d72577a470
  • Write a blog post about every step of the process.
  • Live Streaming Video Q&A
  • Community Management x100, be prepared – you will find a plethora of questions leading up to the ICO.

4. Day of the ICO

  • Community Management x1000, be ready. On the day of your ICO and in the days leading up to it, the entire team will need to be on call, basically 24/7.
  • Beware of all attack vectors and turn off Slack if necessary.
  • Remind people not to send their contribution from an exchange, they need to send it from the wallet in which they control the private key.
  • Keep sharing the tutorial videos you made for how to participate. Limit sources of truth to a place where people have the information they need to contribute.
  • Livestream on completion of ICO.

5. After the ICO

The top two questions you will get after ICO are:

  1. Where are my tokens?
  • This is easily the number one question. Create a tutorial video (for all combinations of wallets) and post it on all your channels.
  • For people who send their contributions from the exchange, you must reply to them. Unfortunately, his contribution is most likely because he needed to send his contribution from a wallet he controlled.
  1. Which exchange are you going to list? When?
  • Most exchanges have an application page so if you want to get listed on them, start building these relationships quickly.
  • At the same time, various exchanges will list your tokens for sale, whether you want to or not. For example, EtherDelta is a peer-to-peer exchange where anyone can offer any token or currency for sale without your permission.
  • Write blog posts later. Example: https://blog.0xproject.com/analyzing-the-zrx-token-sale-a94b8642c78e
  • Give an update as soon as your ICO is completed. Worst case scenario is you don’t communicate at all and look like you took ICO money and ran away, don’t do it.

6. Project Running

Now that you have a community of 1,000 people (if not more) with their own money invested in your project, you’ll be showered with questions daily. The blessing and curse of a community that really cares, you now have very high hopes for living.

  • Treasury Policy

The fiscal policy is to buy, spend, freeze, discount and burn tokens. If you keep a lot of tokens in the treasury, people will wonder when they will hit the market. If you pay people in tokens without vesting, they can dump them. If you pay in lock-up tokens, you will need to supplement them with some cash. All this requires clear communication, so that people know what is happening. Also, there is a need to inform soon about how tokens are taxed for the team, advisors, investors etc. You need to think quickly about compensation plans for employees and consultants.

Furthermore, if large institutional buyers participated in your pre-sale, there is a huge risk that they will dump a substantial portion of their holdings, depending on how well their ICO is going. If you allow institutional investors, you have to decide whether you will apply the lockup period for them or not. Above all, the most important thing is that you need to be transparent about what is happening.

  • Monetary Policy

Monetary policy is how many tokens there are, how divisible they are, and the inflation/deflation policy you set. You need to be clear and transparent with the policy you set, and if you ever make any changes to it.

  • Money Management
  • Once you’ve raised your funding through an ICO, you’ll need to decide how much of your contribution is cash in fiat, and how much remains in crypto (if any). This is what you should decide before completing the ICO.
  • You should also start negotiating with banks early so that you will have no problem converting funds from token sales into fiat or wiring for company expenses, taxes, etc.

Following all of this will not make the ICO a success, but hopefully it shares a better insight on the whole process from the perspective of the owners of the project team. Fundraising via ICO vs Fundraising via Equity is not any easier, it’s just different. As a team, you really want to make sure that a token sale is the best thing for your company because if you do an ICO for the wrong reasons, you will be stuck with the results for a very long time.