BitShares Forum
Main => General Discussion => Topic started by: MktDirector on December 18, 2013, 08:33:34 pm
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Vegas Baby, Vegas: The Buzz About Bitshares by Brian Page
Like most of you, I first heard about Bitcoin in the news. As each month went by I found more articles popping up: A guy purchases $27 in bitcoin and forgot about only it to find himself a millionaire a short time later. I read about miners who were supposedly building money machines in their homes and the shutdown of silk road by the government. It kept coming to my attention until I couldn't ignore it any longer.
The more I learned about it the more it resonated with me - not just because of the potential to make money but because of what it could mean for privacy, freedom and the disruption of the status quo. The powerful idea that money can actually be separated from state and that financial power can be decentralized sounded like an idea who's time has come.
I heard from veterans in the tech industry that Bitcoin and the crypto-currency business was reminiscent of the early internet dot com boom. I didn't have an opportunity to participate in that historic event but I decided years ago that I wasn't going to miss the next big thing. Could this be it? I put everything on hold to spend months doing research. I ate, slept and breathed crypto-currency. I decided to put myself in front of as many experts as I could. This led me to the Inside Bitcoins conference in Las Vegas.
When I arrived the first day the mood was electric. There were venture capitalists mixing with private investors. I saw tech savvy silicon valley types chatting up the CEO's of new crypto currency companies as well as the just plain curious folks, like me.
I like to be curious. It allows me to get to the top of the food chain fairly quickly by simply asking quality questions. Questions like: Where is the greatest opportunity today? If Bitcoin was the answer to that question in 2009, what about in 2014? If Bitcoin was the Microsoft of the decentralized world, would there be an Ebay, a Facebook or Google? What opportunity lies just around the corner as a result of this paradigm shift? That was what I was searching for.
I've done this kind amateur investigating since I was very young, allowing me to meet and be mentored by some well-known leaders in personal development and business. Leaders who's names you'd recognize as new york times bestselling authors, international speakers and business visionaries. I found that these people are generally identifiable early on, if you know what to look for. I'm the kind of person who would seek out Satashi Nakamoto himself and camp on his front lawn if need be if it meant I could work with him. But sadly, he was not in Vegas...or was he?
I set out to meet as many people as I could in the industry. I asked nearly everyone this question: Where is the greatest opportunity right now in the crypto-currency industry? I heard a few companies get mentioned but the one comment I heard more than any other was some version of: "You should look at what Daniel/Invictus/Protoshares is doing." I heard it being discussed by groups of people in the hallway during the breaks, by some of the speakers, by miners and prominent bloggers. It kept coming up.
Throughout the next 24 hours I spent a lot of time within earshot of Dan, listening to him address groups of people who were either huge fans of Invictus or who wanted to learn more. People who mined Protoshares were coming up to him to tell him how much they admired what he was doing. Other CEOs asked to joint venture with Invictus, or suggested placing his future Bitshares on their exchange next year. There was a real buzz about us as we walked around MGM. One guy I met offered to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars with Dan and I watched at least two people each offer him millions. Seems the secret was out.
Earlier that morning I heard Dan speak on a panel of experts and I was one of the first to come up to him to introduce myself. He invited me to join him and some of his team for dinner. I peppered them with questions at Wolfgang Puck. I was looking at the next big thing and I wanted to be a part of it.
But as much as I was fascinated I was also honest with Dan. I felt that for a company with so many fans among the tech savvy and crypto-currency set, his company's marketing and image left something to be desired.
Now to be fair, things in this industry are happening at lightning speed and Dan and his team have so many hats to wear, that marketing/image/brand were not particularly at the forefront of their minds. After all, they seemed to be doing just fine with Protoshares. It was just launched Nov 5 and was already in the top 10 for market cap.
But I could see that the potential was huge. That they had just begun to scratch the surface. What they needed was a clear message. A brand with an edge, and a new website to help introduce the public at large to what they're doing, and in general, a strategy. He must have liked my energy and passion because he asked me to join the team that same day. I said yes.
So what's next?
Invictus is going to the tailor. We're taking off the baggy sweat suit and putting on a brand new tailored three-piece Armani. We're designing an image, a message and a true brand. We're producing quality videos to explain the concept clearly to the non-technical person, a new site, a strong presence on all social media, infographics and print media. We're getting this company ready for it's close up.
Within the next year we'll be in front of mainstream news organizations and creating one of the largest, if not the largest team in the industry. We'll form new channels of investment through our various Bitshares, building on our already solid buzz and support in the community. We are the first crypto-equity company in history, and we will change business the same way Bitcoin is changing money.
We want YOU to be a part of it. All of you. We look forward to your opinions and support as the largest community supporting, mining and buying Bitshares. We look forward to including you in an incredible opportunity to not only profit but to change the status quo. Be patient with our team as we implement these changes. Look for me to be a part of this forum, contributing to the ongoing discussion and making announcements as these changes take place over the coming months. 2013 has been the year the world woke up to Bitcoin. 2014 will be the year of Bitshares.
Sincerely,
Brian Page
Director of Marketing
Invictus Innovations
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Vegas Baby, Vegas: The Buzz About Bitshares by Brian Page
Like most of you, I first heard about Bitcoin in the news. As each month went by I found more articles popping up: A guy purchases $27 in bitcoin and forgot about only it to find himself a millionaire a short time later. I read about miners who were supposedly building money machines in their homes and the shutdown of silk road by the government. It kept coming to my attention until I couldn't ignore it any longer.
The more I learned about it the more it resonated with me - not just because of the potential to make money but because of what it could mean for privacy, freedom and the disruption of the status quo. The powerful idea that money can actually be separated from state and that financial power can be decentralized sounded like an idea who's time has come.
I heard from veterans in the tech industry that Bitcoin and the crypto-currency business was reminiscent of the early internet dot com boom. I didn't have an opportunity to participate in that historic event but I decided years ago that I wasn't going to miss the next big thing. Could this be it? I put everything on hold to spend months doing research. I ate, slept and breathed crypto-currency. I decided to put myself in front of as many experts as I could. This led me to the Inside Bitcoins conference in Las Vegas.
When I arrived the first day the mood was electric. There were venture capitalists mixing with private investors. I saw tech savvy silicon valley types chatting up the CEO's of new crypto currency companies as well as the just plain curious folks, like me.
I like to be curious. It allows me to get to the top of the food chain fairly quickly by simply asking quality questions. Questions like: Where is the greatest opportunity today? If Bitcoin was the answer to that question in 2009, what about in 2014? If Bitcoin was the Microsoft of the decentralized world, would there be an Ebay, a Facebook or Google? What opportunity lies just around the corner as a result of this paradigm shift? That was what I was searching for.
I've done this kind amateur investigating since I was very young, allowing me to meet and be mentored by some well-known leaders in personal development and business. Leaders who's names you'd recognize as new york times bestselling authors, international speakers and business visionaries. I found that these people are generally identifiable early on, if you know what to look for. I'm the kind of person who would seek out Satashi Nakamoto himself and camp on his front lawn if need be if it meant I could work with him. But sadly, he was not in Vegas...or was he?
I set out to meet as many people as I could in the industry. I asked nearly everyone this question: Where is the greatest opportunity right now in the crypto-currency industry? I heard a few companies get mentioned but the one comment I heard more than any other was some version of: "You should look at what Daniel/Invictus/Protoshares is doing." I heard it being discussed by groups of people in the hallway during the breaks, by some of the speakers, by miners and prominent bloggers. It kept coming up.
Throughout the next 24 hours I spent a lot of time within earshot of Dan, listening to him address groups of people who were either huge fans of Invictus or who wanted to learn more. People who mined Protoshares were coming up to him to tell him how much they admired what he was doing. Other CEOs asked to joint venture with Invictus, or suggested placing his future Bitshares on their exchange next year. There was a real buzz about us as we walked around MGM. One guy I met offered to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars with Dan and I watched at least two people each offer him millions. Seems the secret was out.
Earlier that morning I heard Dan speak on a panel of experts and I was one of the first to come up to him to introduce myself. He invited me to join him and some of his team for dinner. I peppered them with questions at Wolfgang Puck. I was looking at the next big thing and I wanted to be a part of it.
But as much as I was fascinated I was also honest with Dan. I felt that for a company with so many fans among the tech savvy and crypto-currency set, his company's marketing and image left something to be desired.
Now to be fair, things in this industry are happening at lightning speed and Dan and his team have so many hats to wear, that marketing/image/brand were not particularly at the forefront of their minds. After all, they seemed to be doing just fine with Protoshares. It was just launched Nov 5 and was already in the top 10 for market cap.
But I could see that the potential was huge. That they had just begun to scratch the surface. What they needed was a clear message. A brand with an edge, and a new website to help introduce the public at large to what they're doing, and in general, a strategy. He must have liked my energy and passion because he asked me to join the team that same day. I said yes.
So what's next?
Invictus is going to the tailor. We're taking off the baggy sweat suit and putting on a brand new tailored three-piece Armani. We're designing an image, a message and a true brand. We're producing quality videos to explain the concept clearly to the non-technical person, a new site, a strong presence on all social media, infographics and print media. We're getting this company ready for it's close up.
Within the next year we'll be in front of mainstream news organizations and creating one of the largest, if not the largest team in the industry. We'll form new channels of investment through our various Bitshares, building on our already solid buzz and support in the community. We are the first crypto-equity company in history, and we will change business the same way Bitcoin is changing money.
We want YOU to be a part of it. All of you. We look forward to your opinions and support as the largest community supporting, mining and buying Bitshares. We look forward to including you in an incredible opportunity to not only profit but to change the status quo. Be patient with our team as we implement these changes. Look for me to be a part of this forum, contributing to the ongoing discussion and making announcements as these changes take place over the coming months. 2013 has been the year the world woke up to Bitcoin. 2014 will be the year of Bitshares.
Sincerely,
Brian Page
Director of Marketing
Invictus Innovations
Wow this is fantastic. You're really good. Multiple thumbs up!
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Hi Brian,
This is exactly what everyone here wanted to hear and I think you're really the type who can get a whole crowd behind an idea, thumbs up, I can't wait for what's going to happen next year! If you have some tasks which involves web(sites/apps) or clean UI design I would be happy to take them on. Cheers and keep up the good work!
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I found the explanation and website pretty clear, but I guess it isn't to non-technical people. Personally, I prefer the sweat pants to an Armani suit.
When I went to a Casey Phyle investment meetup last week, the speaker was showing a list of 9 alt coins and bitcoins. He desparaged PTS and Invictus web site web site as not making sense. I mentioned it was the most valuable one on the list.
I'm not in a hurry to see PTS go up as I want to accumulate, would actually prefer a correction at the moment, shake out the mass miners complaining about transition to proof of stake, move on to Mastercoin type funding and distribution of shares to finance creation of value through development.
Marketing is important to introduce the product to a wide audience, looks like Brian is a good choice to do it.
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This is great Brian. The future looks exciting !!! Let change the status quo !!!
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Great Stuff Brian!
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Wow! ;D
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It was a pleasure meeting you, and hope to see your magic soon :)
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I am yet to see anything major from you..so no "wow" from me just yet..
Can't help but wonder whats going on.
Our marketing strategy has been pathetic -in comparison to any other coin.
Even dogecoin could do better than us in terms of marketing -wtf is up with all of you?
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I am yet to see anything major from you..so no "wow" from me just yet..
Can't help but wonder whats going on.
Our marketing strategy has been pathetic -in comparison to any other coin.
Even dogecoin could do better than us in terms of marketing -wtf is up with all of you?
Every other coin is nothing BUT marketing and have no technical angle. Brian is new and still working to boil things down to something simple.
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Its been 5 weeks since our launch?
I expect SOME action to be taken - please stop with the BS already.
I had clearly demanded action 3 weeks back and nothing was done
I by no means am disrespecting you -just voicing the opinion of people in general. We are seeing very little in terms of action and lots in terms of talk. Now that keyhotee launch is nearing I think its high time we started with promotions.
Also I pray to god you have a press release strategy for Keyhotee..
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Its been 5 weeks since our launch?
I expect SOME action to be taken - please stop with the BS already.
I had clearly demanded action 3 weeks back and nothing was done
I by no means am disrespecting you -just voicing the opinion of people in general. We are seeing very little in terms of action and lots in terms of talk. Now that keyhotee launch is nearing I think its high time we started with promotions.
Also I pray to god you have a press release strategy for Keyhotee..
Keyhotee will be launched as an alpha test and will not be widely marketed until we have worked out all of the bugs that we are sure to find as part of alpha testing. The general public release and media push will be made once we have achieved stable operation.
A lot has happened in those 5 weeks including a major setback when our first Marketing Director resigned unexpectedly.
We have Super3 revamping the website and cleaning up our public face and all of these things should come together in time for a public push for Keyhotee.
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In case you'd like someone to help you with "press releases" and handling relations with journalists - Am glad to help.
Am not good in writing -but am good in handling relationships and if me or my associates can step in and help we'd be glad. My partner is a member of 2 major accelerators (one in london and one in Hong Kong) and I am well associated with one in India. We'd be glad to help in whatever ways possible.
I feel a small round of PR round-up will have our value soaring , more early adapters.
I feel having more adapters would also be good as it can push us to faster bug fixes.
Am just disappointed I haven't seen anything major so far and with the value of BTC hitting a rock bottom (considering the rate at which its going) - I fear the trust people have in PTS could also diminish.
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In case you'd like someone to help you with "press releases" and handling relations with journalists - Am glad to help.
Am not good in writing -but am good in handling relationships and if me or my associates can step in and help we'd be glad. My partner is a member of 2 major accelerators (one in london and one in Hong Kong) and I am well associated with one in India. We'd be glad to help in whatever ways possible.
I feel a small round of PR round-up will have our value soaring , more early adapters.
I feel having more adapters would also be good as it can push us to faster bug fixes.
Am just disappointed I haven't seen anything major so far and with the value of BTC hitting a rock bottom (considering the rate at which its going) - I fear the trust people have in PTS could also diminish.
I will have Brian contact you.
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In case you'd like someone to help you with "press releases" and handling relations with journalists - Am glad to help.
Am not good in writing -but am good in handling relationships and if me or my associates can step in and help we'd be glad. My partner is a member of 2 major accelerators (one in london and one in Hong Kong) and I am well associated with one in India. We'd be glad to help in whatever ways possible.
I feel a small round of PR round-up will have our value soaring , more early adapters.
I feel having more adapters would also be good as it can push us to faster bug fixes.
Am just disappointed I haven't seen anything major so far and with the value of BTC hitting a rock bottom (considering the rate at which its going) - I fear the trust people have in PTS could also diminish.
I will have Brian contact you.
His personality is far too abrasive to contribute effectively in marketing in my opinion.
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Or maybe I was just frank enough to raise concerns unlike some others here who've been desperate to impress and gain positions within the board.
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In case you'd like someone to help you with "press releases" and handling relations with journalists - Am glad to help.
Am not good in writing -but am good in handling relationships and if me or my associates can step in and help we'd be glad. My partner is a member of 2 major accelerators (one in london and one in Hong Kong) and I am well associated with one in India. We'd be glad to help in whatever ways possible.
I feel a small round of PR round-up will have our value soaring , more early adapters.
I feel having more adapters would also be good as it can push us to faster bug fixes.
Am just disappointed I haven't seen anything major so far and with the value of BTC hitting a rock bottom (considering the rate at which its going) - I fear the trust people have in PTS could also diminish.
I will have Brian contact you.
His personality is far too abrasive to contribute effectively in marketing in my opinion.
I agree, I guess we're all in this together and we should not point fingers at people who are involved and doing everything they can 24/7. Development takes time and it's no use to start worldwide promotions without having a solid product which is released into the market. These things will backfire on you because if the first impression is bad you have to double your marketing budget to convince people to have a second look.
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I think people may need to adjust their expectations a little. Protoshares is less than two months old, Bitshares doesn't even exist yet. Most people are under the impression that protoshares is just another alt-coin, it will take some time for that to change even with brilliant marketing.
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Yes, releasing a user-friendly product with least possible amount of bugs will do much more for the long term success than any marketing campaign or press releases. Was there any "media push" when Google first came online, for example?
Keyhotee will be launched as an alpha test and will not be widely marketed until we have worked out all of the bugs that we are sure to find as part of alpha testing. The general public release and media push will be made once we have achieved stable operation.
A lot has happened in those 5 weeks including a major setback when our first Marketing Director resigned unexpectedly.
We have Super3 revamping the website and cleaning up our public face and all of these things should come together in time for a public push for Keyhotee.
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One guy I met offered to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars with Dan and I watched at least two people each offer him millions.
:-\
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When investing in the mind blowingly fast growing cryptospace we tend to get spoiled by our returns.
If we were investing in unit trusts we would celebrate a 20% annual growth but in cryptospace we get unhappy if we dont double our money in a month. I am guilty of this impatience at times too.
PTS is very new and Keyhotee and BitShares will have to go through various developmental and adoption stages.
Prototypes will have to be launched and iterated on.
The final product will be popular among the tech savvy people.
Once more people find out and it becomes more user friendly, we will have early adoption.
The problem with revolutionary ideas such as Bitcoin, Keyhotee and BitShares is that they require knowledge and understanding for mass adoption.
Currently there is no real market for BitShares, bankers dont know that they are paying high fees to middle-men. Traders dont wake up thinking "I wish I didnt have to trade using the centralized, trusted, corruptible third parties. When will someone create an unmanned, decentralized, un-corruptible company for me to trade in."
This market needs to be created through understanding. But when understanding comes, the masses will come flooding in. And we will be there waiting patiently to sell them our BitShares at mindblowingly high prices, and then we will be spoilt rotten by the returns.
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When investing in the mind blowingly fast growing cryptospace we tend to get spoiled by our returns.
If we were investing in unit trusts we would celebrate a 20% annual growth but in cryptospace we get unhappy if we dont double our money in a month. I am guilty of this impatience at times too.
PTS is very new and Keyhotee and BitShares will have to go through various developmental and adoption stages.
Prototypes will have to be launched and iterated on.
The final product will be popular among the tech savvy people.
Once more people find out and it becomes more user friendly, we will have early adoption.
The problem with revolutionary ideas such as Bitcoin, Keyhotee and BitShares is that they require knowledge and understanding for mass adoption.
Currently there is no real market for BitShares, bankers dont know that they are paying high fees to middle-men. Traders dont wake up thinking "I wish I didnt have to trade using the centralized, trusted, corruptible third parties. When will someone create an unmanned, decentralized, un-corruptible company for me to trade in."
This market needs to be created through understanding. But when understanding comes, the masses will come flooding in. And we will be there waiting patiently to sell them our BitShares at mindblowingly high prices, and then we will be spoilt rotten by the returns.
A very good post.
I think we're all pretty excited about the things to come, and naturally we clamor for more information. While the lack of information can be a bit disconcerting, I'd like to imagine that mktdirector is taking his time in order to create a cohesive marketing plan.
In the meantime, I am really enjoying watching Invictus grow, and if nothing else, this entire experience has been a great entrepreneurial ride along. We are still on the ground floor and it is a fascinating (and rare!) opportunity to witness a skyscraper being built.
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Should someone from Invictus be doing a TED talk?
I would say that Keyhotee and BitShares are 'ideas worth spreading'.
Brian,
Should things like this be done now in order to create buzz before launch.
Or should these things happen after a polished product exists.
MrJeans,
A TED talk would certainly be something worth looking into in the future. I'm a huge fan of TED and I've been involved with TEDx at a local level. But keep in mind that getting invited to be a part of the main TED talks is an extremely competitive proposition with its own complex politics to navigate. At this point our main focus is to craft the brand and message and to release the upcoming products and services on time. My thought is that the media will come to us as these are released and refined. One doesn't need to overtly sell an idea who's time has come, as is true of Bitshares. Great idea for down the road for sure.
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Bytemaster,
I am sure that you realize this, but be very wary of people demanding marketing at this point. Stay the course and focus on the fundamentals.
PS. Please change this CAPTCHA, it is limiting my posting greatly. Thanks
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Bytemaster,
I am sure that you realize this, but be very wary of people demanding marketing at this point. Stay the course and focus on the fundamentals.
PS. Please change this CAPTCHA, it is limiting my posting greatly. Thanks
I think the Captcha goes away after your 3rd post.
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When investing in the mind blowingly fast growing cryptospace we tend to get spoiled by our returns.
If we were investing in unit trusts we would celebrate a 20% annual growth but in cryptospace we get unhappy if we dont double our money in a month. I am guilty of this impatience at times too.
PTS is very new and Keyhotee and BitShares will have to go through various developmental and adoption stages.
Prototypes will have to be launched and iterated on.
The final product will be popular among the tech savvy people.
Once more people find out and it becomes more user friendly, we will have early adoption.
The problem with revolutionary ideas such as Bitcoin, Keyhotee and BitShares is that they require knowledge and understanding for mass adoption.
Currently there is no real market for BitShares, bankers dont know that they are paying high fees to middle-men. Traders dont wake up thinking "I wish I didnt have to trade using the centralized, trusted, corruptible third parties. When will someone create an unmanned, decentralized, un-corruptible company for me to trade in."
This market needs to be created through understanding. But when understanding comes, the masses will come flooding in. And we will be there waiting patiently to sell them our BitShares at mindblowingly high prices, and then we will be spoilt rotten by the returns.
A very good post.
I think we're all pretty excited about the things to come, and naturally we clamor for more information. While the lack of information can be a bit disconcerting, I'd like to imagine that mktdirector is taking his time in order to create a cohesive marketing plan.
In the meantime, I am really enjoying watching Invictus grow, and if nothing else, this entire experience has been a great entrepreneurial ride along. We are still on the ground floor and it is a fascinating (and rare!) opportunity to witness a skyscraper being built.
Lets just say that as a company we never dreamed we would have this kind of attention this quickly. We expected PTS to be a slow launch that would give people an opportunity to mine over 6 months while we built out our products. It is clear now that there is huge demand. Our biggest challenge is getting the division of labor in place. As a software developer I can write code faster than most, but I am still only one developer. My job goes far beyond writing code these days so we are going through the difficult process of recruiting talent. Unfortunately, there is almost no talent out there that is already familiar with Bitcoin, Blockchains, Cryptography, and economics. The talent that does exist is already employed in high paying jobs.
We are doing our best, but these products are still in the prototyping proof-of-concept phases and there is a lot of work ahead. We will get there and are putting plans in place to accelerate the process.
Thanks for all of your support.