Plats - A Comprehensive Cardano Event Platform - Increase Cardano Use Cases by NFT distribution & ADA Depositing and Rewarding

[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant

Marcus Nguyen

[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)

Entity (Incorporated)

[GENERAL] Requested funds in ada

258553

[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)

8

[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language

No

[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)

Plats provides a comprehensive event platform from invitation to post-event report and increases Cardano use cases by CrowdSponsor in ADA, ADA depositing & rewarding, and ADA NFT distribution.

[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

No

[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”

No dependencies

[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?

No

[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs

The source code of the event platform will not be open source. However, all the blockchain-related coding (smart contract, CrowdSponsor) will be open source.

[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution

Problems

Event organization demands are relatively high. In particular, there are approximately 1.8 million events and meetings held per year in the United States (US - largest event organizers in the world). However, Hosting an event requires several steps and tools. For example, the organizers need to use platforms like Eventbrite, Mailchimp, Facebook Event, or Luma to create event listings, sell tickets, and send invitation letters. Additionally, they need to utilize platforms such as Gleam to create social quests, like following someone on Twitter or joining Discord or Telegram. For interactive elements, organizers may employ tools like Kahoot for quiz games or random Lucky Draw Web Apps. They could use a random QR Code app as well, which might stop working or force users to watch an ad after 20 scans without notice. Moreover, if the organizers want to distribute rewards in native tokens like ADA to attendees, it must be done manually. Although 92% of marketers say event software helps them reach business goals. (Branka, 2023), fragmented tools or platforms takes them a lot of time and human resources.

Even if event organizers were pleased to use many tools or platforms at the same time, they would have to spend a lot of money on each of them. For instance, when it comes to event ticketing systems, Eventbrite is a popular choice for many. However, it's essential to consider the costs associated with Eventbrite's services. In the USA, they charge a 3.7% commission plus $1.79 per sold ticket, while in the UK, it's a 6.95% commission plus £0.59 per sold ticket.

We also do some research about event organization in Cardano ecosystem, and found that event organization in this ecosystem is relatively high. During the whole time of Cardano monitoring, 162 events were added (coindar.org). Cardano Summit 2023 has over 20 community-led events across the world and a full day both dedicated to community projects building on Cardano and forged by the community with over 30 thousand global attendees (Cardano Summit 2023). In Vietnam, 19 Cardano events organized by Mie - a Cardano ambassador in Vietnam (13/8/2022 - 12/8/2023) (For example: Cardano Blockchain Vietnam, Cardano Submit,...). 23 sessions of Cardano Coffee Lounge organized by cardano2vn.

Solutions

Our solution to this problem is to create an all-in-one event platform to support event organizers comprehensively. Applying technology into organizing plays an important role, 68.7% of event professionals agree that using technology to improve the attendee experience is a trend with staying power (Knowland, 2022). 

We will offer two main products:

1. A Web Service for Event Organizers and Sponsors.

• Link to test our previous MVP: https://cws.plats.network/auth/cws (feel free to create an account and tinker with the MVP as you wish)
• MVP Included Event Creation, Tasks Creation, QR code Creation

(picture of previous MVP)

2..A Mobile App for Event Organizers, Attendees, and Sponsors.

• Link to test our Mobile App MVP of previous iteration: Android & iOS (with QR code scan, check-in at location) (feel free to create an account and tinker with the MVP as you wish)

(picture of previous MVP)

Detailed functions we expect to develop with Project Catalyst Funding

1. CrowdSponsor in ADA:
2. Organizers can create and customize a Sponsorship Section to attract sponsors within the Cardano Community. (ADA CrowdSponsor works globally in theory but will need to comply with the region's legal system before being applied.)
3. ADA Depositing and Rewarding:
4. ADA rewards are distributed on-chain. Organizers deposit ADA into a smart contract, and winners of minigames receive their rewards automatically to their wallets. Plats integrates with wallets like Yoroi or ADALite.
5. ADA NFT Distribution.
6. ADA NFT will be distributed for people participating events. Organizers deposit NFT into smart contract, participants can receive NFT to their wallet by taking part in the event.
7. Customized Invitation Links with Analytic Tools:
8. Organizers can generate unique links for different communities, allowing them to assess community activity for future events. Attendees who register using these links receive Invitation Letters with QR codes as their tickets.
9. Social Tasks for Marketing:
10. Event organizers can set up social tasks such as Asking attendees to follow their Twitter, retweet a tweet, tag a friend, join a Discord, or Telegram Community. Organizers could also customize the eligibility of attendees to participate in the minigames via these social Tasks.
11. In-person Tasks with QR Code Set up and Management:
12. Organizers can easily generate QR codes for each session or booth. They can set conditions for attendees to participate in minigames, such as requiring them to scan a specific number of QR codes. This engagement strategy enhances attendee attention and involvement.
13. Integrated Minigames:
14. Plats offers in-app minigames, including Lucky Draw and Quiz. Organizers can define the criteria for participation, and eligible attendees automatically receive lucky numbers."
15. Attendees Management:

• Comprehensive attendee management function including:
• Attendee list page
• Search attendee
• History of attendance

Miro board link

[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

Plats is closing the business gap between Sponsors and Event organizers, as well as promising to reduce the costs for Event Organizers by 50% while promising to bring more global users to Cardano Ecosystem. Our research shows that the biggest labor cost is not the day of the event, but the preparation time. For example, preparing and selling tickets, raising money (sponsors, etc.), preparing and inquiring about event halls, etc. If this tool can be thoroughly addressed after this fund, our cost reduction target is 80-90% for human resources and fees for many tools/platforms.

Plats addresses the F11: Cardano Use Cases, particularly product track because it creates value for the Cardano community and wider ecosystem by solving event business problems through a comprehensive set of event-specific tools, offering more use cases to ADA with the use of ADA in CrowdSponsor, depositing & rewarding, and ADA NFT distribution.

In details, the benefits that Plats will bring to the Cardano Ecosystem include:

Event platform with integration into the Cardano Ecosystem:

• Plats will help save a lot of time and effort to organize a hybrid event, integrating in-person event elements with Cardano Blockchain on-chain data access, for all classes of events from small (<50 attendees), to medium (50-200 attendees), and large events (over 200 attendees).

• Those who host Local Cardano Events such as Cardano Coffee Local events could use Plats as their one-stop solution for everything related to event-hosting and Cardano Blockchain.

• Currently, no other blockchain or blockchain community has an event platform dedicated to them yet. This would be a big plus for the Cardano Community.

• Our previous MVP iteration has successfully shown the capability of serving an event with over 1000 attendees.

Onboard more Web 2 users to Cardano Ecosystem:

• Billions of people are attending traditional events every day. With the capabilities of supporting both Web 2 and Web 3 events, Plats can reward native tokens like ADA, as well as NFTs, directly to new users' wallets without a hassle. This would benefit walk-ins, as well as those never heard of Cardano. This would increase the number of new users and new wallets.

• Aside from supporting a global audience and customers, Plats will be able to attract Vietnamese and Japanese users by offering the platform in Vietnamese and Japanese alongside English. The Vietnamese Market ( ranked #1 in Chainalysis Crypto Adoption 2022 Ranking) is a very potential market for Cardano Blockchain. Vietnam, yet the Cardano Blockchain community in Vietnam, namely Project Catalyst is not yet well-known to Vietnamese. Meanwhile, the Japanese Market is also where Cardano held its ICO.

• The Plats Team's CEO is also the founder and CEO of VAIX Group, an outsourcing company based in Vietnam with strong connections in Japan, South East Asia and East Asia region. Therefore, we have the resources to attract users in the South East Asia and East Asia regions.

ADA Usage in Plats Events will increase liquidity, trading volume and use case for ADA;

• The use of ADA as fuel for rewarding and sponsoring will increase the liquidity and trading volume as more participants engage within the platform.

Fluid and Uninterrupted Brand Recognition for Products built on Cardano Ecosystem as well as traditional non-blockchain brands.

• Plat's built-in Web 2 Social Tasks (QR code generation, minigames such as Quiz, Lucky Draw, check for Twitter follow, retweet, tag, Telegram, Discord onboarding...) and built-in Cardano Blockchain Tasks (NFT generation, native-token hold check, and reward distribution...) plays a crucial role in boosting brand value for products on Cardano Ecosystem.
• With Plats, Event organizers do not have to switch and use multiple, unreliable and fragmented platforms anymore.

Strengthening Cardano Communities Connection in all over the world

• Plat's ADA CrowdSponsor allows anyone to sponsor an event from anywhere in the world, as long as it accepts ADA. Interested parties from developed countries could sponsor Cardano Local events in developing countries, and vice versa.

If you are a business selling Cardano-related merchandise based in the US and you want to sell globally to customers in Vietnam, or in Tanzania, you could sponsor a Cardano Local Event in Vietnam or in Tanzania with ADA and showcase your company in that Event.

• By breaking down geographical barriers and facilitating direct connections, ADA CrowdSponsor strengthens the collective efforts of Cardano communities, fostering a vibrant and inclusive ecosystem that thrives on collaboration, innovation, and shared success.

Positive Perception and Reputation for Cardano Communities:

• The integration of ADA as fuel of all the system enhances the perception and reputation of Cardano Ecosystem. It showcases the platform's versatility and ability to be used in real-world applications, adding credibility to Cardano's ecosystem.

[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

These are some of our capabilities to deliver the Cardano Event Platform with high levels of trust and accountability:

A Talented and Dedicated Team of Builders with Expertise in both Web2 and Web3:

The Plats Team was founded in December 2021, by our founder and CEO Marcus Nguyen, the founder and CEO of VAIX Group, an IT outsourcing company in Vietnam with strong ties with Japanese Clients. He invited Thomas Le, the man behind the backend infrastructure of Topica, Vietnam's largest EdTech Group, to help as the CTO.

Plats was their first product in the Blockchain x Event Industry. Plats's initial mission was to build an Event Solution that could integrate Blockchain Technology, allowing attendees to receive NFT rewards while attending events.

Plats Team has been working on this product ever since.

We never called for VC funding, never ICOed or IDOed. All of the development was done part-time with money out of hackathons and out of our own pocket. All members of the team are volunteer contributors and not paid for by VAIX Group or any organizations. The team has a great passion for this product and believes in its ability to serve a wide range of audiences.

Minimum Viable Product Released and Tested by real customers. One of the missions of our project is to bring transparency to event organizations with blockchain technology. To do that, we are also aiming for transparency in every aspect of our project. We are already providing free testing for all of the released functions of the system. We have released our early iterations prior to Project Catalyst and have received valuable feedback from our customers.

Now you could also test them and try them out:

• Mobile App MVP of previous iteration: Android & iOS (with QR code scan, check-in at location) (feel free to create an account and tinker with the MVP as you wish)

• Web Service MVP: https://cws.plats.network/auth/cws (feel free to create an account and tinker with the MVP as you wish)
• MVP Included Event Creation, Tasks Creation, QR code Creation

• Event Feeds Website (Where all events created on Plats will be shown): https://event.plats.networ

[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Milestone 1 - 1 month - ₳38728 - 15,00%

Client Web Service

• Attendee Management (Attendee list page, Search attendee, History)

Mobile App for Attendees

• UI/UX Design

Mobile App for Event Organizers

• UI/UX Design

Website Design

• Mockups

Basic Marketing (Product Update on Social Media Outlets)

Milestone 2 - 2 months - ₳64638 - 25,00%

Client Web Service

• Invitation
• Standard Ticket
• VIP ADA NFT Ticket

Mobile App for Attendees

• Coding 
• Testing

Website Development

• Coding

Basic Marketing (Product Update on Social Media Outlets)

Milestone 3 - 1 month - ₳38728 - 15,00%

Client Web Service

• In-person tasks integration (Session/booth QR Code Scan) 
• Online Tasks (Twitter, Telegram, Discord)

Mobile App for Event Organizers

• Coding 
• Testing

Website Development

• Coding
• Testing

Basic Marketing (Product Update on Social Media Outlets)

Milestone 4 - 1 month - ₳38728 - 15,00%

Client Web Service

• Lucky Draw Game integration (Lucky Draw Game has been finished in the MVP Version, just need to integrate into the whole system)
• Quiz Mini-game UI/UX Design
• Quiz Minigame Coding
• Minigame Testing

Basic Marketing (Product Update on Social Media Outlets)

Milestone 5 - 1 month - ₳25855 - 10,00%

Client Web Service

• ADA Depositing & Rewarding
• Reward Management

Basic Marketing (Product Update on Social Media Outlets)

Milestone 6 - 2 months - ₳51710 - 20,00%

Client Web Service

• ADA Crowdsponsoring
• Testing of the whole system

Basic Marketing (Product Update on Social Media Outlets)

[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

Marcus Nguyen- Project Manager

• Founder of Vaix Vietnam Co., Ltd, an IT offshore company specialized for the Japanese market.
• Extensive leadership and management experience
• Strong spirit of web3 true builder

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nguyen-plats/

Thomas Le - Chief Technology Manager

• 10 years of experience in the information technology industry with many different positions from developer to CTO.
• 3 years of experience in programming on blockchain
• Blockchain Mentor of Vietnam Blockchain Innovation (VBI)

https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-le-3b3498146/

Harrison Nguyen - Business Manager

• Strong foundation in Programming and Computer Science.
• Extensive experience in marketing, development consulting, digital strategy and business development.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/nguyenhoanghn/

Rose Duong - Business Analyst

• 2 years of experience in Business Analyst
• Communicate effectively in English

https://www.linkedin.com/in/haplats/

[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Product Management: ₳ 76974

Mobile App (iOS & Android) Development: ₳ 25263

Web and backend development, DevOps: ₳ 34737

Blockchain development: ₳ 39474

UI UX Design: ₳ 22895

Testing & Business Analysis: ₳ 25000

Infrastructure (8 months): ₳ 13158

Marketing Package: ₳ 21053

=> SUM: ₳ 258553

Detailed Answers with hourly rate and a Tentative Statement of Milestones will be provided in this Google Sheet: here

This budget is designed with the exchange rate of ₳1 =$0.38

It would still be feasible when the ADA price fluctuates around $0.38 to $0.45

If ADA price plunges below or above thresholds and stayed there stably (for at least 1 month):

Below $0.2:

• Report to Catalyst to postpone SOM's deadline.

Above $0.5:

• Hire more people to work on functions previously in Future Plan.
• Report to Catalyst to change SOM

[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

The cost of the project is determined by estimated hours of work for each department.

Project Management - 450 hours - $65/hour

Mobile App (iOS & Android) Development - 240 hours - $40/hour

Web and backend development, DevOps - 330 hours, $40/hour

Blockchain development - 250 hours, $60/hour

UI/UX Design - 290 hours - $30/hour

Testing & Business Analysis - 380 hours - $25/hour

• This is the average cost of outsourcing development in Vietnam.