Pre-Proposal: Alt Thirty Six + Dash Sponsorships 2018

[ThirtySix]

Please select dropbox file link to view formatted version of pre-proposal and hyperlinks: click here!

1. Executive Summary
This business case outlines how the Dash + Alt Thirty Six co-branded marketing proposal will address current business concerns, the benefits of implementing the strategy, recommendations for implementation, and overall justification of the proposal. The business case also discusses detailed goals, performance measures, assumptions, and constraints.

1.1 Background/Problem
Given the current political, social, and economic climate, facilitating the adoption of Dash via the Alt Thirty Six platform faces several unique challenges. As we begin our initial go-to-market strategy in the cannabis industry, it is extremely important for Dash and Alt Thirty Six to maintain a strong and unified presence that is integrated into each and every one of our various marketing efforts. This is important now more than ever as several blockchain based payment solutions have popped up overnight claiming to solve the cannabis industry’s cash crisis, but very rarely have a reliable infrastructure capable of doing so.

Understandably, many within the cannabis space are now weary of entertaining new blockchain based payment solutions as it can be difficult to differentiate the good from the bad. Unlike its competition, however, Alt Thirty Six does not face the same limitations based on a platform supported by a large network with proven transactional capability. Although we know this to be true, the concern arises that without a strong push to showcase the Dash + Alt Thirty Six co-branded partnership, the platform’s true potential to be adopted and solve the cannabis industry’s cash problem may never be realized.

1.2 Anticipated Outcomes
Showcasing the Dash + Alt Thirty Six partnership through a series of strategic marketing efforts will empower both organizations to be seen as serious contenders within their respective spaces: cannabis and digital currency. Given the exclusive nature of Alt Thirty Six’s partnership with Dash, we believe mutual brand awareness will be key to the overall adoption and success of the currency. Through a unified effort, we aim not only to facilitate the adoption of the currency, but increase the rate exponentially by strategically promoting both the vehicle (Alt Thirty Six) and medium (Dash) as one single-entity in a $20+ billion cash-intensive industry.

1.3 Recommendation
In order to achieve the desired results, various alternatives were analyzed to determine the best co-branded marketing strategy. The approach described herein will not only allow Alt Thirty Six to leverage many of its current assets, but do so in a manner that promotes Dash as the top transactional cryptocurrency. If approved, the recommended marketing proposal will be methodically deployed to optimize exposure across several platforms. The proposed marketing initiative is as follows:

• Maintain a strong Dash + Alt Thirty Six presence via continued sponsorship of the largest, most reputable cannabis conferences throughout 2018

• Become supporting members of all the leading national and local cannabis industry associations under the co-branded Alt Thirty Six + Dash name
  • National Cannabis Industry Association
  • California Cannabis Industry Association
  • Canada Cannabis Association
  • Women Grow;

• Maintain a strong local presence within the AZ cannabis community through continued sponsorship of MITA and SWCC events.

1.4 Justification
Implementing each of the suggested recommendations we can ensure the Alt Thirty Six payment platform powered by Dash will gain the traction and competitive advantage needed to become the primary payment solution for the cannabis industry. This co-branded marketing proposal also aligns with the Dash mission, vision, and DAO fundamentals. It will be used to promote economic freedom in an unbanked industry constantly under threat from administrative regulation; AND it will highlight Dash as the only viable transactional cryptocurrency with the backing, governance, and speed capable of handling cannabis payments. When comparing this to the alternative, maintaining the status quo, we are faced with a very real risk that neither Alt Thirty Six nor Dash will be able to differentiate itself amidst an ever-growing body of competition. As new blockchain based payment solutions pop up overnight, with unfathomable marketing budgets funded by their ICOs, a failure to act (and soon) would result in an inevitable loss of market share. Conversely, with the full faith and backing of Dash, we are confident we would capture most, if not all, of North American market awareness by end of Q4 2018.

2. The Breakdown
The following proposal and associated costs will be best defined by breaking down the above recommendations in two distinct parts. The first part of this proposal will outline the costs of attending and sponsoring some of the largest industry conferences throughout 2018. The second part of the proposal will summarize the 2018 membership costs associated with joining several of the most reputable trade associations within the cannabis industry.

2.1 Cannabis Conference Sponsorship
Hyperlinks in dropbox link: click here!

Event
GardaWorld Banking 2018 Forum; # Attendees 500, Travel $ 2,800, Sponsor $ 0
Miami, Fl
4/12-13

4th Semi Annual Crypto Cannabis Conference; # Attendees 500, Travel $ 2,480, Sponsor $420
Denver, CO
4/23

MJ Biz Con Next; # Attendees 15000, Travel $ 3,500, Sponsor $ 40,000
New Orleans, LA
5/9-11

California Cannabis Awards; # Attendees 3,000, Travel $ 1,500, Sponsor $ 5,000
Los Angeles, CA
5/18

South East Cannabis Conference; # Attendees 7,000, Travel $ 3,280, Sponsor $ 15,000
Miami, Fl
6/8 -9

NCIA 5th Annual Cannabis Business Summit and Expo; # Attendees 6,000, Travel $ 2,640, Sponsor $ 20,000
San Jose, CA
7/27-28

MJ Biz Con INTL; # Attendees 17,000, Travel $ 3,280, Sponsor $ 40,000
Toronto, ON
8/14-16

Southwest Cannabis Conference; # Attendees 3,000, Travel $ 0, Sponsor $ 20,000
Phoenix, AZ
10/3-4

SWCC Dash /Alt36 Private Event; # Attendees 300, Travel $ 0, Sponsor $ 50,000
Phoenix, AZ
10/4

New West Summit; # Attendees 1,000, Travel $ 2,460, Sponsor $ 7,500
Oakland, CA
10/11-13

5th Semi Annual Crypto Cannabis Conference; # Attendees 500, Travel $ 2,480, Sponsor $ 420
Denver, CO
10/20

CannMed 2018; # Attendees 1,500, Travel $ 2,480, Sponsor $ 20,000
Los Angelos, CA (UCLA)
10/22-24

NCIA CA Business Conference; # Attendees 3,000, Travel $ 2,480, Sponsor $ 20,000
Anahiem, CA
10/22-23

MJ Biz Con; # Attendees 25,000, Travel $ 3,120, Sponsor $ 75,000
Las Vegas, NV
11/14-17


TOTAL # Attendees 83,300, Travel $ 32,180, Sponsor $ 313,340

2.2 Conference & Sponsorship Selection
Although there are several cannabis conferences held throughout the year, only a handful were determined to have positive benefit to cost ratios when it comes to event sponsorship and attendance. After careful analysis, the conferences listed above were deemed to have the highest potential return for both Dash and Alt Thirty Six based on several weighted factors. These factors and their associated weights are as follows:

• Overall Attendance = 20%
• Overall Reputation = 25%
• Geographical location = 10%
• Partnership Opportunities = 30%
• Organizational Alignment = 15%

2.3 Travel Cost Breakdown
The total travel cost for each event was based on the average Expedia price for airfare and accommodations for four at the time of this writing (3/09/18). Alt Thirty Six reps will share two rooms to reduce this cost. In addition, a food budget was calculated per the GSA.gov travel standards at the median rate of $60/rep/day.

Pre-proposal Continued in post below...

 

[ThirtySix]

2.4 Cannabis Trade Associations

Similarly, there were a large number of cannabis trade associations to choose from for potential 2018 membership. Yet again, after an extensive amount of research only the largest, most credible, and applicable were selected for further review. Premium membership to these associations includes, but is not limited to: Board membership and voting rights, exclusive networking opportunities, and private conference sponsorship opportunities. A list of these associations, a brief synopsis of their mission, and sponsoring membership dues are as follows:

ASSOCIATIONS
National Cannabis Industry Association
$5,000

To promote the growth of a responsible and legitimate cannabis industry and work for a favorable social, economic, and legal environment for that industry in the United States.

Marijuana Industry Trade Association (MITA)
$8,000

We are Professionals, Entrepreneurs, Educators, and Advocates united to build a strong and sustainable future for the cannabis industry in Arizona. Our work focuses on helping Arizona businesses stay informed, network, and thrive.

California Cannabis Industry Association
$10,000

CCIA was formed to unite the cannabis industry in California and to allow it to speak with one voice at the state and local levels. We strive to educate and act as a resource to lawmakers regarding all areas of the cannabis industry. We are also dedicated to addressing issues related to driving under the influence, unlawful diversion to minors, and substance abuse.

Cannabis Canada Association
$4,000

Our mission is to promote national standards and best practices by supporting the development, growth and integrity of the medical cannabis industry. We will act as a national voice for our members, and serve as a credible and trusted resource on issues related to medical cannabis industry.

Women Grow
$5,000

Women Grow connects, educates, and empowers diverse leaders in all segments of the cannabis industry. Together, we’ll start over 1,000 women-owned businesses in the marijuana industry. Founded in 2014, Women Grow is now the largest national network of cannabis professionals with Monthly Events for women & men in 45 cities across the US & Canada.

TOTAL $32,000

3. Assumptions, Goals, & Constraints
In order to ensure the success of the marketing strategy, it is extremely important to identify the assumptions, goals, and constraints of the proposal. By doing so will allow us to create a realistic plan of execution that can be implemented immediately upon approval. Furthermore, through elaboration of each variable we can proactively plan for any contingencies which will increase agility/reactivity in a rapidly evolving environment.

3.1 Assumptions
As with any new project, the basis of goal realization is built on the foundation of a few critical underlying assumptions. To maintain a strong and transparent relationship with the project stakeholders it is imperative that these be voiced prior to project approval. Therefore, the main underlying assumptions we anticipate executing under are as follows:

1. Regulatory Environment:
   1. Continues to favor the acceptance of both cryptocurrency and cannabis
2. Pooled Resources:
   1. Dash Core and Alt Thirty Six will continue to benefit from combined resources
3. Community Support:
   1. Alt Thirty Six continues to receive broad support from Dash Community

3.2 Goals
Ultimately, as with any marketing campaign, the end goal is market penetration and consumer adoption. However, this can be difficult to achieve without breaking down the fundamental steps along the way. Therefore, based on the underlying assumptions, a detailed list of SMART goals can be extracted that will be used to guide us along the path to increased market penetration. These goals are as follows:

1. Increase Brand Awareness
   • Increase organic leads by 20% per quarter starting in Q2 of 2018;
   • Measured quarterly through direct website traffic analytics provided via Hubspot CRM;
   • Accomplished through event sponsorship showcasing Dash + Alt Thirty Six as the premier payment solution to over 83,000 entrepreneurs and business leaders.
2. Grow Channel Partnerships
   • Grow number of channel partnerships by a minimum of 15% per quarter starting in Q2 of 2018;
   • Measured by calculating quarterly increase in integration/channel partners tracked via Hubspot CRM;
   • Accomplished through access to exclusive B2B networking opportunities gained through premium association membership, and sponsorship of top tier industry conferences.
3. Become Trusted Authority
   • Increase perceived trust in the Dash + Alt Thirty Six payment solution by 200% year end 2018;
   • Measured by quantifying and comparing results from initial industry feedback survey (Q1) with Q4 2018 industry feedback survey;
   • Accomplished through increasing industry influence by actively participating in speaking engagements, board discussions, and tactfully exercising trade association voting rights.

3.3 Constraints
In addition to breaking down proposal goals and understanding assumptions, it is equally important to identify any constraints that could potentially impact project performance. The following list of the constraints which apply to the Dash + Alt Thirty Six marketing proposal will be used to define a risk management strategy that optimizes the probability of success. The known project constraints are as follows:

• There are a limited number of sponsorship packages available;
  • In most cases must be reserved & paid for far in advance
• There are a limited amount of membership spots available;
  • First come; first served
  • Contingent upon application approval and payment
• There are a limited amount of Alt Thirty Six resources;
  • Only four dedicated team members
  • Educational materials + promotional materials not included in proposal
• Sponsorship of some events are contingent on association membership;
• Maintaining integrity of integral partnerships is contingent on event sponsorship.

4. Proposal Summary
If approved and executed according to this proposal, we intend to put the Dash + Alt Thirty Six co-branded name in front of every major player within the North American Cannabis Industry by year end 2018. Conference sponsorship alone will showcase us to over 83,000 attendees, but the real value is derived from exploiting the various marketing channels and networking opportunities exclusively offered to conference sponsors and trade association members. The total cost breakdown of the proposal is as follows:

CONFERENCE SPONSORSHIP + TRAVEL $345,520

ASSOCIATION MEMBERSHIP $32,000

USD TOTAL $377,520

DASH MARKET RATE $406.43
(calculated via coinmarketcap on 3/16/18 at 10:15am)

DASH EQUIVALENT 928.8

DASH PROPOSAL FEE 5

DASH TOTAL 933.8


Team
Ken Ramirez, CoFounder + CEO
Lauren Murphy, CoFounder + President
Don Schroeder, Chief Architect
Alex Glueckler, Chief Financial Officer
Ognjen Ikovic, Sr. Engineer
Phyo Kyaw, Jr. Engineer
Shelly Du, Market Research Analyst
Fan Wu, Senior Accountant
Josh Long, Account Executive
Richard Thorne, Business Development
Lexi Gallagher, Executive Assistant

Board Advisors
Nitin Gaur, Director, IBM Blockchain Labs
Jeff White, Head of U.S. Acquiring, MasterCard Worldwide
Dragan Boscovic Ph.D., Director of CASCADE, Arizona State University
Jared Bodnar, VP of Marketing, Attendify
Joseph Ciccolo, Founder + President, BitAML
Cory Skaaren, Principal + Creative Director, Skaaren Design
Daniel Berg, Regulatory Policy Analyst and Strategic Issues, U.S. Government Accountability Office.
Rick Oglesby, President, AZ Payment Group
Brandon Willey, CEO, FetchRev​

 

[Nuancer]

This is a reasonable proposal and is well thought out. My one request is that the approval of funds should occur over several months rather than in one lump sum payment. There should also be a mechanism to ensure that the Dash Treasury does not overpay if the price of Dash increases throughout this year. Any thoughts on escrow / plans for potential excess funds?

 

[JGCMiner]

Unless the price increases this needs to be multi-month proposal (and escrowed), but I yeah I would vote YES, wholeheartedly.

EDIT: To be clear, even if it is multi-month, if at all possible I strongly advise against submitting this proposal in the current cycle. The budget is already way over requested and you will greatly increase the difficulty in getting this through if you submit this month.

 

[ThirtySix]

Thank you for your comment. When developing this proposal we considered breaking up payments vs. a lump sum. The major constraints we found with breaking up payments are; the limited number of sponsorship packages and available spots for each sponsorship that will obtain the most exposure + benefit. Our goal is to solidify the packages with each conference as soon as possible to ensure we reserve the spots prior to them selling out. There is always a risk/benefit of accepting a one time payment for increase as well as decrease in Dash price. With sponsorship and marketing type proposals escrowing funds with Dash Treasury is not as feasible since most of these costs need to be pre-paid to lock down sponsorship and obtain affordable travel costs.

 

[Ftoole]

My only concern is when will someone be able to buy cannibis in a sore with dash?

 

[nodalsoup]

As necessary and well thought out as this may be, I wouldn't be voting on it until we can see a product form the first proposal

 

[TroyDASH]

As necessary and well thought out as this may be, I wouldn't be voting on it until we can see a product form the first proposal

Understandably, many within the cannabis space are now weary of entertaining new blockchain based payment solutions as it can be difficult to differentiate the good from the bad. Unlike its competition, however, Alt Thirty Six does not face the same limitations based on a platform supported by a large network with proven transactional capability. Although we know this to be true, the concern arises that without a strong push to showcase the Dash + Alt Thirty Six co-branded partnership, the platform’s true potential to be adopted and solve the cannabis industry’s cash problem may never be realized.

When comparing this to the alternative, maintaining the status quo, we are faced with a very real risk that neither Alt Thirty Six nor Dash will be able to differentiate itself amidst an ever-growing body of competition. As new blockchain based payment solutions pop up overnight, with unfathomable marketing budgets funded by their ICOs, a failure to act (and soon) would result in an inevitable loss of market share. Conversely, with the full faith and backing of Dash, we are confident we would capture most, if not all, of North American market awareness by end of Q4 2018.

This is starting to feel like a sunk cost... we've already spent over 6000 DASH in proposals brought forth by Alt36 and now we think the product might not even be in demand unless we spend even more?
I do want to give Alt36 a chance to succeed but I'm a bit concerned. We already funded a budget for Alt36 sponsorships/conferences (https://www.dashcentral.org/p/Proposal-36-Dash-ATM-Sponsorships). Were these not effective last year? Why will this new proposal be more effective?

 

[Stealth923]

I dunno, I am thinking this is the final proposal I would approve from alt36 without seeing the launch and final product. We have invested enough, but I think we are on a marathon and this is the final mile. We need to do everything we can to support this solution as it can transform Dash from a speculative investment to the first crypto with REAL WORLD USE.

I would vote yes but I would like alt36 to put some skin in the game and foot the bill upfront and have a multi month proposal approved so it is not such a burden on this months treasury.

All this effort from alt36 had better be worth the wait + investment!!!

 

[TheSingleton]

I will vote Yes on this if you don't submit a proposal for the whole amount this cycle the budget is just to strained already.

 

[GrandMasterDash]

I agree with others here, this is exhausting, just seems like you're sucking up money with very little to show.

Escrow and multi-month, and I want to see receipts and photos for all those conferences. Really.

And this is my last yes for you, so you better deliver.

 

[BoomStick]

@ThirtySix What is the reason for submitting this proposal before alleged launch of your platform on May ? You must understand that with so much money you already received from the treasury, community is hesitant to give you more without seeing finished product. To this day there were no demos showing your platform either.

I'd suggest submitting this proposal after you go live with your system, as I don't think it will pass in this and another budget cycle. Also I think it has small chance to succeed without escrow and breaking it on multi-month proposal. Anyway wishing the best for you and product36 after it goes live

 

[Ezio Rojas]

Personally I see that this is a good proposal because DASH could have a fairly large use in the market.
However, my advice is that you make a breakdown of this proposal and do it in multi-months.
In this way you could do updates to the community and we could all see what is being done with this project.

 

[ThirtySix]

Thanks everyone. Your feedback is genuinely appreciated, and it goes without saying that this forum has fulfilled its intended purpose.


Building a piece of technology of this magnitude has not been a walk in the park. Unlike traditional payment platforms which tap into legacy processing systems, we were challenged with the unique task of building an entirely new payment ecosystem from scratch. Inevitably, with any project of this scope there have been a few unforeseen obstacles along the way, but we chose this path and are determined to see it through.


With respect to previous proposals, these were primarily intended to build / acquire the technology. Noteably, a fair amount has also been dedicated towards legal, but in an uncertain regulatory environment, this was imperative in order to stay in the game. It is of no secret that we operate in two very volatile gray areas (cryptocurrency and cannabis), but as we now look to become licensed, we aim to solidify both Dash's + Alt Thirty Six’s position on the side of absolute compliance.


As for the total Dash received thus far, it is important to note that as one of Dash’s oldest partners, the bulk of this was funded at a time when the USD equivalent was a mere fraction of what it is today. Moreover, no prior proposals have included salaries and we've all made several sacrifices related to personal compensation. Although this may be of no consequence to us as we wholeheartedly believe in the potential of the platform, it is safe to say we do indeed have a fair amount of skin in the game.


It is also worth mentioning Alt Thirty Six has footed the bill for a multitude of marketing activities that almost exclusively aim to facilitate the adoption of the Dash currency. These can be consistently seen through our various press releases and social media campaigns, and will be further detailed in an upcoming release. On that note, we do attribute our most valuable ISV partnerships to be a direct result of the exposure gained from our Q4 2017 Dash + Alt Thirty Six sponsorship proposal. For this reason alone we were able to justify another proposal to continue sponsorship efforts throughout 2018.


Ultimately, we do understand that some notable community members would like to see this put off until the next budget cycle and broken down into several payments. Unfortunately, this would be at a great detriment to this proposal simply given its time sensitivity and scarcity of sponsorship opportunities. Although we recognize the concern with single payouts, Alt Thirty Six has demonstrated its ability to execute under escrow in the past, and will happily highlight this again in an upcoming release.


Regardless of the outcome, we fully intend on at least maintaining a small presence at many of industry conferences throughout the year. We have already arranged speaking opportunities for the Dash Core Team at several of the most reputable events, and will continue to work alongside them in representing Dash as the only transactionally viable cryptocurrency!


Again, your feedback is always welcomed here and the input from the community is much appreciated. As stated in the proposal, we base the overall success of this marketing campaign on the assumption that we continue to receive broad Dash Community support. The nature of our relationship is symbiotic, and we can only succeed when the network consensus remains favorable.

We will continue to monitor this thread, provide updates, and gauge our next steps accordingly.


Thank you for your continued support,


Alt Thirty Six Team

 

[CarlosTrujillo]

I'm thinking as a businessman and not as a conservative citizen, my conclusions are:

Indeed, Cannabis represents a big industry, which implies a great movement of capital and benefits for DASH. In addition, in marketing there is a principle:

"It does not matter if people speak well or speak badly, but they speak."

I think the moral scandal that would be generated for the controversial issue (because there will be some who mention it, even in our modern society), would make many people talk about DASH and this is beneficial for the currency because it is disclosed.

I definitely want see how does it work. It will be interesting. Good luck and success.

 

[Arthyron]

I believe I echo the general sentiment of the other MNOs and contributors to this pre-proposal. I'm excited to see what you folks will do...assuming we ever get around to seeing what you can do. I've been following your updates--and those are greatly appreciated by the way--and I understand you've run in to some regulatory and technical challenges, which is to be expected. Aside from those updates and a few demos here and there--which were very exciting from what I've seen--it's simply the fact that where you're at in reaching your and our mutual goals and how you're coming along is largely opaque to us. I think all of us understand the huge potential here and all of us desperately want to see you succeed, but as contributors to your project, I think a lot of us feel as though we're left out of the loop. We also felt this way with some of the Dash Core Development team's recent achievements for the past several months as they were securing their defensive patents and setting up the Evolution demos. Most of our concerns were completely dissuaded once this information was revealed to us, but there was a lot of nervousness in the weeks and months prior to those revelations. I see our relationship with you, @ThirtySix, in much the same light. Most of us generally believe you can pull it off, we want you to, but the lack of substantiation of that belief is worrisome given how much we are also invested in your project. I will definitely join the others in support your efforts, but just recognize that we can't be kept in the dark forever. We'll need to see some fruits of our contributions.

Also, seriously, the budget is overflowing at this point, I don't know how we're going to fund a lot of other worthwhile proposals, a lot of great projects this month but not enough to go around sadly. I hope yours makes it, but remember, we're counting on you as much as you're counting on us.

 

[nodalsoup]

Ultimately, we do understand that some notable community members would like to see this put off until the next budget cycle and broken down into several payments. Unfortunately, this would be at a great detriment to this proposal simply given its time sensitivity and scarcity of sponsorship opportunities. Although we recognize the concern with single payouts, Alt Thirty Six has demonstrated its ability to execute under escrow in the past, and will happily highlight this again in an upcoming release.

The treasury system has been taken advantage of a few times in the past - while I do not think that Alt36 is trying to do this, I couldn't bring myself to continue to vote on throwing money at a problem without seeing some results.
I say this while not for a second pretending to grasp a fraction of the complexities involved in this undertaking - and am well aware that there were always going to be unforeseen obstacles.
That being said - I think it would really help the cause if we could see something. Can you give us some sort of proof of work that isn't a 90 video advert the platform?

 

[The philosofers coin]

Being a full time investor in several crypto-currency's reading up an all sort of stuff, it have been increasingly clear how very little people understand crypto, I mean both users and Merchants. It would not be the first time that Dash is overlooked for something as silly as OmiseGo for instance. Dash is not flashy or fancy, as allot of these ICO coins out their, Dash plays it straight up, and its a disadvantage because of that. But I also understood that non of the Cannabis company's have adopted any form of crypto do to (extreme) regulatory difficulty's.
Questions:
1) Non- the less I wonder, how the outlook changed so much ? I thought AlT36, had already wheeled in a couple of big fish, that where just itching to get started.
2) Don't these company's have (extreme) difficulty's to use anything else than Cash, and without something like Product36 and the knowledge of ALT36 they will not be likely to be able adopt crypto at all ?

3) How many of these company's are hesitant to start using crypto thanks to the volatility of crypto ?
3(i(just a wild idea on my part) If this a big part of it, We build up up a fund (left overs budget each much, to build up a fund to protect against volatility (something similar to bitshares bitsUSD), assuming that would give a boost, it would also give a boost to the Dash price, the extra profits made would flow back, or worst case the fund gets depleted.

Lots of us really want to start the finished product, maybe show a beta show case similar to the recently release evolution demo. People are just starting to lose a bit of fate in you, seeing we are parterns, and your not just partners with Dash core group, your main partners are the Masternode owners, and in specif the ones that vote, you need to trow us a bone !
Questions
4) Why not wait a while ?, or show some of your good stuff ?
I understand their are some delay's but the delays are starting the become painful, and with crypto market and Dash being at a market-low, it is it seems to be the perfect time for the currency to be adoption by the weed-industry, because they can now both profit from the move from digital
5) How long before the finished product ?

Still a yes from me, but without seeing the power of Product36 and ALT36, this very likely going to be the last yes (please understand the tide is turning against you, MNO's don't have endless good faith)

 

[ThirtySix]

I believe I echo the general sentiment of the other MNOs and contributors to this pre-proposal. I'm excited to see what you folks will do...assuming we ever get around to seeing what you can do. I've been following your updates--and those are greatly appreciated by the way--and I understand you've run in to some regulatory and technical challenges, which is to be expected. Aside from those updates and a few demos here and there--which were very exciting from what I've seen--it's simply the fact that where you're at in reaching your and our mutual goals and how you're coming along is largely opaque to us. I think all of us understand the huge potential here and all of us desperately want to see you succeed, but as contributors to your project, I think a lot of us feel as though we're left out of the loop. We also felt this way with some of the Dash Core Development team's recent achievements for the past several months as they were securing their defensive patents and setting up the Evolution demos. Most of our concerns were completely dissuaded once this information was revealed to us, but there was a lot of nervousness in the weeks and months prior to those revelations. I see our relationship with you, @ThirtySix, in much the same light. Most of us generally believe you can pull it off, we want you to, but the lack of substantiation of that belief is worrisome given how much we are also invested in your project. I will definitely join the others in support your efforts, but just recognize that we can't be kept in the dark forever. We'll need to see some fruits of our contributions.

Also, seriously, the budget is overflowing at this point, I don't know how we're going to fund a lot of other worthwhile proposals, a lot of great projects this month but not enough to go around sadly. I hope yours makes it, but remember, we're counting on you as much as you're counting on us.

Thank you for the reply. We can understand the Dash community/MNO feel left out at times since they aren’t getting access to our everyday conversations and details on partnerships that are not openly published yet. We have struggled with how to be more open without sharing too many details in a public forum prior to launch. The approach we have taken is to put out updates with as much detail we can make public and have regular meetings with the Dash Core team on detailed progress, demos, any struggles and recent advancements. As a company we want to make sure all aspects of our company have a clear message and all due-diligence is complete prior to launching for long term success. Case in point, a recent article was published on Payza, that addresses money transmission requirements. While we knew we needed to be licensed for the Kiosk operations, we realized after receiving additional legal advice, it’s best that we apply now for the platform as well prior to launch. This licensing will protect ourselves and Dash’s investment in the long run. We are on track to launch May of this year, which will also include videos, website, and marketing efforts to increase adoption/use of the platform.

 

[ThirtySix]

Being a full time investor in several crypto-currency's reading up an all sort of stuff, it have been increasingly clear how very little people understand crypto, I mean both users and Merchants. It would not be the first time that Dash is overlooked for something as silly as OmiseGo for instance. Dash is not flashy or fancy, as allot of these ICO coins out their, Dash plays it straight up, and its a disadvantage because of that. But I also understood that non of the Cannabis company's have adopted any form of crypto do to (extreme) regulatory difficulty's.
Questions:
1) Non- the less I wonder, how the outlook changed so much ? I thought AlT36, had already wheeled in a couple of big fish, that where just itching to get started.
2) Don't these company's have (extreme) difficulty's to use anything else than Cash, and without something like Product36 and the knowledge of ALT36 they will not be likely to be able adopt crypto at all ?

3) How many of these company's are hesitant to start using crypto thanks to the volatility of crypto ?
3(i(just a wild idea on my part) If this a big part of it, We build up up a fund (left overs budget each much, to build up a fund to protect against volatility (something similar to bitshares bitsUSD), assuming that would give a boost, it would also give a boost to the Dash price, the extra profits made would flow back, or worst case the fund gets depleted.

Lots of us really want to start the finished product, maybe show a beta show case similar to the recently release evolution demo. People are just starting to lose a bit of fate in you, seeing we are parterns, and your not just partners with Dash core group, your main partners are the Masternode owners, and in specif the ones that vote, you need to trow us a bone !
Questions
4) Why not wait a while ?, or show some of your good stuff ?
I understand their are some delay's but the delays are starting the become painful, and with crypto market and Dash being at a market-low, it is it seems to be the perfect time for the currency to be adoption by the weed-industry, because they can now both profit from the move from digital
5) How long before the finished product ?

Still a yes from me, but without seeing the power of Product36 and ALT36, this very likely going to be the last yes (please understand the tide is turning against you, MNO's don't have endless good faith)

Thanks for your response. To answer your questions:

1) The Alt Thirty Six team has indeed lined up some very large partnerships. One of the biggest in fact, solidified as a result of our last marketing proposal, just recently started integrations within the last few weeks. As for our other channel partners, we are currently in the process of creating co-marketing strategies (custom event triggers, automated SMS/email campaigns, ect.) to get businesses on the platform and transacting as soon as we go live.

2) Not necessarily, Alt Thirty Six has conducted an extensive amount of market research over the last six months which includes a detailed competitive analysis. What we’ve seen are several others attempting to enter the space with varying crypto and traditional banking “pseudo cashless” payment solutions. At this point, none have been able to offer a viable solution. With the recent rescinding of the Cole Memo, traditional banking solutions have become very temporary at best. As for the fly-by-night MMJ crypto solutions, these are all built off their own tokens which neither have the backing nor speed capable of handling industry demand. Unfortunately, the market doesn't know this. Hence the need for this proposal.

3) Businesses that use our platform will by default not be exposed to price volatility. Each transaction will guarantee the USD value of the transaction through our built in "instant conversion" feature. Should the business start to get more comfortable with Dash, they can opt in to ride the market for any period of time they choose.

4) We will be able to take full advantage of capturing the market through this proposal. In order to reach critical mass adoption, we need to go into the industry full force. This marketing proposal will allow us to build awareness to ensure we are crossing the chasm from early adopters to late adopters.

5) In our last update we disclosed we are on track for a May release. Prior to that time partner integrations are taking place.