- Referenda/
- Medium Spender/
- #669/
Polkadot Drone Shows Over VELD Music Fest (100K+ Attendance) - Brand Awareness + PR Campaign
**Introduction**
Hello Polkadot Open Gov.
We are Toros, a marketing agency specializing in high-impact experimental advertising for technology brands.
**Our Proposal**
We seek funding for a brand awareness and public relations campaign designed to elevate Polkadot's presence in the public eye and increase the value of DOT. Our campaign would consist of two elements:
- 1.) Sponsorship of three drone light shows over Canada’s premier electronic music event Veld Music Festival (100k+ attendees). Each show would feature attention-grabbing messaging followed by the Polkadot logo.
- 2.) A corresponding public relations and social media push aimed at enhancing the visibility and impact of the drone shows by generating online engagement.
**Drone Show Details**
We have contacted VELD and negotiated a sponsorship deal that includes three 10-minute drone shows (one per night of the festival). The final 2-3 minutes of each show would feature our custom messaging followed by the Polkadot logo.
Custom Message
To grab the attention of festival-goers and attract media coverage, we're proposing a thought-provoking and enigmatic message: Wake Up ⇒ The System is Rigged ⇒ QR code to Polkadot site ⇒ Polkadot Logo
This is our initial concept, however, we are open and actively encourage discussion and suggestions surrounding the custom message being delivered.
Comment below if you have any suggestions or ideas.
Drone Show Proof of Concept
Full Video Render: https://vimeo.com/925062285/a49265c3c9
Full Video Render Alt: https://vimeo.com/925060260/6e8878bcea
Inspiration for drone shows here and here.
**VELD Music Festival Details**
- VELD is Canada's largest EDM festival
- Held in Toronto
- Attracted over 105,000 attendees in 2023
- Runs for three days.
- Coincides with Toronto's lively August long weekend.
- Other major events happening at the same time in the city (Caribana, OVO Fest, Boots and Hearts) bring in millions of tourists.
**Veld Sponsorship Details**
Additional Sponsorship Perks:
- Mobile advertising over the entire festival grounds (visible to all attendees)
- Logo promoted on the festival website (Ink Entertainment)
- Veld newsletter shout-out 2 dedicated social media posts - TikTok/Instagram/Facebook
- Instagram stories Logo added to Veld lineup collateral
**Public Relations Details**
Our PR strategy is focused on creating buzz around the drone show by drawing attention to its provocative messaging.
We will prepare press releases and media kits, and engage local and tech-focused publications to cover the story, highlighting the innovative approach Polkadot is taking to raise brand awareness. When pitching media, our story’s hook will focus on the fact that the mysterious drone show was commissioned not by a traditional advertising executive within a centralized corporation, but by the decentralized Polkadot community.
The story will not only signal the global influence of the Polkadot community but also lend itself to a media-friendly narrative likely to be picked up by journalists:
Drone Show Over VELD Warns Crowd ‘The System is Rigged’
Crypto Publications
We will specifically target top crypto publications to ensure the campaign resonates with the core blockchain and cryptocurrency communities.
Examples include CoinBase, CoinTelegraph, and Bitcoin Magazine.
Local Publications
We will tip off local publications in Toronto such as BlogTO to secure coverage, using the unique and sensational nature of the drone shows to capture a broader audience's interest.
Social
We will tip off recognized influencers within the cryptocurrency and blockchain space, encouraging them to share the story. This strategy will be most effective on Twitter where creators have the chance to go viral using our content (see example).
**Measurement and Evaluation**
What sets this campaign apart from traditional OHH initiatives is that its success can be measured via online engagement metrics.
Metrics we will track:
- Estimated drone show impressions Earned media hits using Syften
- Keyword search volume using Ahrefs/Google Trends
- Social mentions across Twitter/X, Reddit, TikTok, and Instagram using Mention
**Budget**
We are requesting a total of 21,557 DOT priced at 7.90 USD per DOT. This transaction amounts to a total consideration of 170,300 USD. We’ve applied an undermarket valuation of DOT to USD to account for upcoming market volatility during the Bitcoin halving. Any unused DOT will be returned to the treasury.
- Campaign Execution – $40,000 per show (total $120,000) as per Veld’s sponsorship rates
- Design and Creative - $10,000
- Canadian Taxes (GST): $5,300
- Agency fees: $20,000
- Maintenance and Incidentals: $15,000
*All prices in USD
**Conclusion**
By merging the real-world impact of a drone show with targeted digital PR tactics, we aim for this campaign to not only elevate Polkadot’s brand awareness and the value of DOT but also generate online conversation that can be measured. With approval, we'll proceed to fund conversion and vendor payments, ensuring a seamless rollout. Should plans change, we commit to returning unused funds to the treasury.
Toros is a marketing agency that wants to help Polkadot increase its popularity and the value of DOT. They have a plan to do this by having three drone light shows at a big music festival in Canada called VELD Music Festival. The drone shows will have special messages and the Polkadot logo at the end. They also want to share this event on social media and with the news to get more people talking about Polkadot.
Toros has already talked to the people who run the VELD Music Festival and made a deal for the drone shows. They will also get other things like advertising at the festival and posts on social media.
Toros has a plan to tell news outlets and people who write about new technology and cryptocurrency all about the drone shows. They want to show that Polkadot is doing something new and interesting to get people to know more about it.
Toros will also look at how many people talk about the drone shows and the messages on the internet to see if their plan is working.
To do all of this, Toros is asking for 21,557 DOT, which is equal to about 170,300 USD. They will use the money to pay for the drone shows, their work, taxes, and other things they might need. If they don't use all the money, they will give the rest back.
- 0.0%
- 0.0%
Threshold
- 0.0%
Hello from Polkadotters.
We are not sure that this initiative is worth that amount of money. In our opinion, this is not effective at all, even though from my personal feeling, it might be a nice event and show. NAY on this one.
I find the idea and how it's formulated interesting. And the idea of the cryptic message is particularly intriguing. However, I would suggest that you coordinate with the marketing initiatives in the ecosystem on that message, because as catchy as "Wake up -> The system is rigged" is, maybe it's not the message we want associated with the Polkadot brand.