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Liberty Movement Conferences Sponsorship

thedesertlynx

thedesertlynx

Active member
Proposal is live here!

Top-tier sponsorship of three events targeting the liberty movement. This will include dominant branding and prime speaking slots at each, a Dash wallet setup and giveaway to attendees, and the simulation of a Dash economy at the events.

About the events

Full event breakdown

Libertopia

Libertopia is a conference dedicated to advancing the ideas of liberty, peace, and voluntary cooperation taking place in San Diego, California. It includes a heavy cryptocurrency and blockchain focus, and expects to draw about 1,000 attendees. The event organizers are very interested in a heavy Dash presence and have offered us (and only us) a discounted sponsorship rate.

Voice & Exit

Voice & Exit is an event located in Austin, Texas focusing on advancing liberty through creative means, both through the tech and art spaces. Its motto is to "criticize by creating," which is very much in line with Dash's approach to build a better financial future for the world rather than simply tearing down the old. The organizers are already Dash fans and are looking forward to having us there.

Freecoast Festival

The Freecoast Festival is a freedom, community, and entrepreneurship-based event taking place in the seacoast of New Hampshire. This year's Festival will take place in Portsmouth, which already has one of the highest concentrations of Dash-accepting businesses in the world, and easily the highest per capita. In contrast with other events where we simulate what a Dash economy will be like, here we can show attendees exactly how Dash is working in the real world today.

Benefit to the Dash community

Details on Dash economy simulation

The value for Dash in sponsoring and working these events is to grow Dash's acclaim and user base in one of the most high-value demographics. This is in line with the Core team's strategy of targeting payments conferences instead of pure cryptocurrency/blockchain events. The former have a lot of people looking to actually use what Dash is to offer, while the latter may be a more over-saturated space with more interest in fandom and speculation than daily use for payments.

The is why the liberty movement is so important. It's not a secret that nearly every single early Bitcoin pioneer is a strong libertarian, from Roger Ver to Erik Voorhees and countless others. These are people who not only have an ideological principle towards using something like Dash, but are supremely interested in using it for commerce, specifically to replace fiat currency as the money that the whole world uses. These aren't simply potential fans and investors, but users, entrepreneurs, and evangelists.

By not only educating this audience about Dash and the difference it's making around the world, but having them use it and experience first-hand what living on Dash can be like, we can create the army of first adopters who won't care about the newest tech hype or the market cap rankings, and who won't need to wait until Evolution comes out to start using Dash.

About Me

My name is Joël Valenzuela and I am a Dash Force partner and the chief editor of Dash Force News. I have spoken at numerous conferences about Dash in the past including the Texas Bitcoin Conference, the regional European Students for Liberty conference in Vienna, and the Freecoast Festival. I ran Dash's sponsorship of Liberty Forum this year and presented on Dash twice in addition to participating in the cryptocurrency panel, and am running the Porcupine Freedom Festival (PorcFest) sponsorship, where I also will be speaking (and which will include Ben Swann as the keynote speaker).


Funding Breakdown


Sponsorships:

Libertopia ($10k)

Voice & Exit ($18.75k)

Freecoast Festival ($10k)


Materials:

Promotional materials for the Dash table and swag for distribution/sale demos ($5k)


Travel for staff ($4k)


Subtotal:

143 Dash ($47,750 @ $400/Dash + ~20% emergency fluctuation buffer)

Giveaway:

10 Dash split among the three events

Proposal fee reimbursement:

5 Dash

TOTAL:

158 Dash


What if the price of Dash changes?

A 20% buffer is in place to guarantee against price drops. In the event of surplus funds, extra will be assigned to the giveaways and materials, or will go to future events where maximum value to the Dash network can be provided.
 
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It'd be great to have an informed Dash presence (and by that I mean not just a logo on a banner or in a program but that, coupled with a presentation and a giveaway) at these events.

Just a few questions:

- What is the expected attendee number at each of these three events?
- Do you intend to giveaway Dash to each attendee? If so, about how much? Will it be done via paper wallets or in-person transfers?
- What wallet(s) will you encourage those new to Dash to utilize?
- Can MNOs expect an event recap or debrief after each event? If so, where will that be posted and in what form?
- Who, in addition to the Joël, is part of the "staff" for this soon-to-be proposal?
- What exactly is meant by "the simulation of a Dash economy"? Will attendees be able to spend the Dash they're given on items from the Dash booth or something else?

Thanks in advance to your responses and for your effort to spearhead this proposal.
 
I am going to stick my neck out here and say that conferences like these are a complete waste of money.

They are a massive echo chamber, that does very little for actual dash adoption.

The REAL dash users are in developing countries, people buying and selling digital goods and services, the unbanked.

I will be voting No. Not just for this but for more or less all conference sponsorship proposals without a critical need.
 
Argon31 said:
I am going to stick my neck out here and say that conferences like these are a complete waste of money.

They are a massive echo chamber, that does very little for actual dash adoption.

The REAL dash users are in developing countries, people buying and selling digital goods and services, the unbanked.

I will be voting No. Not just for this but for more or less all conference sponsorship proposals without a critical need.
Click to expand...

In developing countries many people don’t have smart phone and computer and if they really want to use Dash, they still cannot use it.
 
TrustThyself said:
It'd be great to have an informed Dash presence (and by that I mean not just a logo on a banner or in a program but that, coupled with a presentation and a giveaway) at these events.

Just a few questions:

- What is the expected attendee number at each of these three events?
- Do you intend to giveaway Dash to each attendee? If so, about how much? Will it be done via paper wallets or in-person transfers?
- What wallet(s) will you encourage those new to Dash to utilize?
- Can MNOs expect an event recap or debrief after each event? If so, where will that be posted and in what form?
- Who, in addition to the Joël, is part of the "staff" for this soon-to-be proposal?
- What exactly is meant by "the simulation of a Dash economy"? Will attendees be able to spend the Dash they're given on items from the Dash booth or something else?

Thanks in advance to your responses and for your effort to spearhead this proposal.
Click to expand...

Sure, I'll be posting more detailed breakdowns about the events, as well as the economy simulation, here, and on the final proposal they'll be linked to. Those should answer half of those questions. In the meantime, I'll answer the other half.

-We intend to give away $20 in Dash to new users ($20 is enough that they will care enough to keep up but feel comfortable spending some right there). First, we ask if they have any Dash. If the answer is no, we set them up with a new wallet (Dash wallet for Android/iPhone, or depending on progress and performance we may switch to Copay for continuity when released, and naturally if Evolution is out in time we'll set them up with that). We give them the $20 and take a selfie with them and the new wallet. That way we make sure everyone is set up to use it, and it's tied to a personal interaction. We hustle to get as many new users as possible until the event's allotment of giveaway Dash runs out, or until we run out of new people who don't have any Dash, in which case we switch to people who have Dash but haven't gotten any at the event. Based on how many we reached at Liberty Forum (80), we can estimate that about 25% of each event's attendees will become Dash users. We take this approach because we want as many people as possible to become Dash users, and don't want to give it out to people who don't want or appreciate it.

-Absolutely, we've given recaps to the events on Dash Force News in the past (part of the reason for having them is for the news stories), and intend to keep doing so. In addition, we will be working with Dash Watch to report on the progress of the proposal.

-At the minimum, it will be myself and @FlyinFree running at least the first two events. Danny Sessom has also agreed to come out and bring a Dash ATM. FlyinFree is local to Libertopia, Danny is local to Voice & Exit, and I'm local to the Freecoast Festival. Assuming it's at least the three of us at each of the first two events (I'll fly solo for Freecoast Fest), that's two people flying out and having lodging at each event.

-As far as the Dash economy simulation, I'll answer in a separate post because I want to link to it in the main proposal, I'll finish that tonight.
 
Hi everyone. I really appreciate the comments.

I've been helping @thedesertlynx with some of the project management duties of this so far. I've volunteered at a couple of Dash sponsored events to date and the participants have been happy with my work. During my experience volunteering for Dash at Anarchapulco, I realized I could really help the Dash ecosystem using the skill set I've developed working in construction for 25+ years. Mostly in project management.

One of the contacts I made was with Sky Conway, the founder of Libertopia. We've been in contact ever since working on this sponsorship to make Dash's involvement great. The ideas have been growing ever since, including bringing in other events to grow the proposal in the present and into the future. I'd also like to mention that the conversations with Seth Blaustein regarding Voice & Exit put on by him and Max Borders, have been nothing short of inspiring.

I'm really hopeful that the MNOs will see that we need more liberty-minded people involved with Dash as we enter mass-adoption. In my experience, when explaining what's special about Dash, my insights as a voluntaryist have been profoundly helpful when talking about the unique properties of Dash. I'm driven to get more of us into the crypto space in general, and into Dash specifically, to help with the conversations that will come fast and furious as mass-adoption ramps up.

I'm also working with others (they'll comment here soon I'm sure) on developing teams that can help in many aspects of the ecosystem, especially in the project management realm, beginning with event planning and execution. Anyone interested in further details as they're developed is welcome to contact me privately.

There is so much more to say, but I think I'll leave it there for now. Thank you so much for reading.
 
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A reasonable budget and I can't think of any other community member more suited for and committed to professional representation of Dash at informational and networking events like these. These are demographics which are some of the most active in this space and as previously mentioned, also involved in business and other potential integration opportunities.

Onboarding the Third World is *also* important, but merely putting Dash in the hands of the People is not the only ingredient in mass adoption. We need a whole ecosystem or that Dash will just sit in wallets unused or be funneled straight to exchanges to be dumped. We need both merchants *and* users, and events like these are essential for securing both.
 
Dash Economy Simulation

To provide the absolute best value for Dash, we seek to create as many Dash users as possible at these events. In order to do this, we provide a complete localized ecosystem to simulate Dash being used in a real world advantage. This is because we believe that with Dash, experiencing is believing. Seeing how easy the wallets are to use, how low fees are, and how fast InstantSend is makes a big difference in believing in Dash as the currency of the future, and demonstrating a real situation of receiving, spending, and potentially acquiring more Dash solidifies this.

Information table

First step is the main information table, where conference goers get introduced to Dash and have all their questions answered. This is where they're set up with a new Dash wallet and given $20 in Dash. This amount is just high enough that they will be sufficiently incentivized to both keep it and feel free to spend some right there at the conference. New Dash holders are also given a DiscoverDash card that tells them how they can spend it or get more.

Merchant table

Next to the first table is a second table with Dash merchandise (t-shirts etc.). These will be for sale only for Dash, using the Anypay point of sale system. New users who just received free Dash will get the opportunity to spend some of it right there, and see how easy it would be to both use such a merchant setup, or, in the case of a potential business owner, how easy it would be to accept Dash payments. All proceeds from the Dash merchandise sales go right back into the giveaway, increasing the number of potentially reached new users.

Additionally, we will provide support and work with event organizers to enable as many on-site merchants as possible to take Dash as payment.

ATM

Finally, in order to capitalize on energy at the conference and minimize chances that new user won't follow up on their first experience, we will have a Dash ATM on site, allowing users to replenish their supply immediately. This removes the intimidating factor of never having bought Dash, and only ever received some for free.
 
Hello one and all, I'm Candice/Subspaced. I was asked to join Flyinfree's team due to my enthusiasm for executing detailed tasks, and my desire to help any projects of his thrive. My function will be keeping our tasks on point in the desired time frame, and general PM assistance.

I was once called the Dash cheerleader. I had an opportunity to meet the core team last April in Arizona, and have been a huge fan ever since. I was also able to work the Dash booth this last year at the Reno air races!

I'll be watching from the sidelines in hopes to be part of spreading even more Dash love to the masses in the near future. :)
 
While I agree that conferences might not be the most efficient use of funds it's still important for us to be persistent in this area. Also, there are only a few proposals that in my opinion spend their funds in a better way.

What I really like about this is the Dash Economy Simulation not just giving away funds but also giving people the opportunity to use it. And I would think somebody who has used Dash at least once will be a lot more comfortable with it in the future.
 
Event details

Libertopia

Libertopia is a conference dedicated to advancing the ideas of liberty, peace, and voluntary cooperation taking place in San Diego, California. It includes a heavy cryptocurrency and blockchain focus, and expects to draw about 1,000 attendees. The event organizers are very interested in a heavy Dash presence and have offered us (and only us) a discounted sponsorship rate. Libertopia will begin accepting Dash for ticket sales.

We have been offered three Dash speaking slots, two of which will be myself and Chuck Williams. Amanda B. Johnson will also be speaking about cryptocurrency at the event. We will have a vending table to conduct the Dash economy simulation, and other vendors will be given instructions on how to accept Dash, and encouraged to do so. A Dash ATM provided by Danny Sessom will be on site as well.

Voice & Exit

Voice & Exit is an event located in Austin, Texas focusing on advancing liberty through creative means, both through the tech and art spaces. Its motto is to "criticize by creating," which is very much in line with Dash's approach to build a better financial future for the world rather than simply tearing down the old. There will be around 800 attendees at the event, however it will be very influencer and media heavy, and will provide a much greater reach for Dash than a typical conference. The organizers are already Dash fans and are looking forward to having us there. Dash will be accepted for tickets at a 15% discount.

We will have two Dash speaking slots, one of which will of course be occupied by myself. We will have a booth to conduct the Dash economy simulation, and a Dash ATM provided by Danny Sessom will be on site.

Freecoast Festival

The Freecoast Festival is a freedom, community, and entrepreneurship-based event taking place in the seacoast of New Hampshire. This year's Festival will take place in Portsmouth, which already has one of the highest concentrations of Dash-accepting businesses in the world, and easily the highest per capita. In contrast with other events where we simulate what a Dash economy will be like, here we can show attendees exactly how Dash is working in the real world today, and provide a lasting example of the Dash economy that won't go away after the event concludes, allowing attendees to recommend other friends visit and experience it firsthand at any point during the year. A Dash discount for tickets will be implemented (still in negotiations as the event is many months away).

This is a smaller event of an estimated 300, however will be a much more intense Dash experience than elsewhere. There will be a Dash pub crawl to kick off the event, where attendees will be able to spend Dash at several real-world locations near the conference, not simply during the duration of the event. There will be off-site meals as well at several Dash-accepting establishments, as well as a local shopping map of Dash-accepting merchants. Several Dash ATMs are operational around Portsmouth as well. We will be running an entrepreneurship contest for the best idea for a business leveraging Dash, with a 2-Dash prize (included in the sponsorship amount) for the winner. I will be presenting on Dash at the event.
 
I'm excited about this proposal, although I am restricted from commenting on the proposal itself, I am watching it closely. The_desert_lynx has been a consistent force in promoting (and defending) Dash since the beginning. Liberty festivals are grass roots opportunities to spread Dash with like minded people, in LOVE. I really hope this proposal comes through with a yes vote! 309 yes and 6 no so far...yay :)
 
Candice (Subspaced) T said:
I'm excited about this proposal, although I am restricted from commenting on the proposal itself, I am watching it closely. The_desert_lynx has been a consistent force in promoting (and defending) Dash since the beginning. Liberty festivals are grass roots opportunities to spread Dash with like minded people, in LOVE. I really hope this proposal comes through with a yes vote! 309 yes and 6 no so far...yay :)
Click to expand...

Thanks again for your support! Hope to see you again soon at one of the events!
 
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