Add ADA to 1st NFT Marketplace-MENA

[IMPACT] Please describe your proposed solution.

We are the creators of the first and largest NFT marketplace in the MENA (Middle East & North Africa) region. Our platform is currently available on the Ethereum and Polygon blockchains and offers the following services: minting, listing, auctioning, selling, buying, and collecting NFTs.

We are the only platform that offers NFT services in the native language of the region, which we believe is important for two primary reasons:

1. To create a space for local artists who may not be aware of existing marketplaces or who feel that existing marketplaces may not be conducive to showing and selling their artwork, and;
2. To engage this specific cultural region which is a largely untapped marketplace.

While Ethereum continues to be the primary blockchain of choice, we believe that expanding our platform to include Cardano will drive its adoption. Since there is no existing Cardano marketplace in the MENA region to mint, sell, and buy NFTs, adding it to our platform will give our users their first option to do so.

Nifty Souq has features that, when combined together, are not available in any marketplace globally. Our features have been adapted to the market based on feedback and surveys from current creators and collectors, including:

• Web3auth single sign-on feature
• Automatic non-custodial wallet creation with every sign-up
• Credit/debit card payments integrated using wert.io
• Wallet top-up using credit/debit cards
• Split revenue to aid creators collaborate on projects better
• Split royalties to ensure all creators on a project receive their royalties
• Multi blockchain platform
• Buyers of entire collections can share future royalty with the creator (Optional by the creator)

Media references:

• Al-Arabiya: launching the first NFT marketplace.
• Entrepreneur: NIFTY Souq’s benefits for art collectors
• AME Info: My Interview

In this proposal we want to demonstrate how our previous experience, current track record and future vision will provide value to the Cardano community in the MENA region and increase the adoption which results in a wider ecosystem. Adding Cardano to our platform will encourage people who trust our brand to buy and use Cardano, and in the process help create an even bigger awareness in the region.

[IMPACT] Please describe how your proposed solution will address the Challenge that you have submitted it in.

We are submitting to the Dapps, Products & Integrations proposal because not only are we delivering a Dapp marketplace, we are integrating Cardano to our platform in the spirit of interoperability. Nifty Souq allows users in the MENA region to interact with the Cardano blockchain which will lead to more feedback, growth and even more innovations.

The reason we believe Cardano integration is necessary is because it’s built on peer-reviewed research and developed through evidence-based methods. That is what we believe in, we have gone very early to the market with our MVP, tested, collected data, listened to feedback and we are now customizing and building our platform accordingly. 

We believe that this integration is suitable for execution right now because people in the MENA region are looking for a solution that allows them to use Cardano in the NFT space, in their language and respecting their culture. That is also why we are adding categories and filters customized for the region like Calligraphy, Islamic Art, Levant music, etc.

[IMPACT] What are the main risks that could prevent you from delivering the project successfully and please explain how you will mitigate each risk?

Challenge 1: Having other blockchains (Ethereum & Polygon) on our platform could cause a bit of confusion for the users on which blockchain to choose. 

Mitigation 1: Our team plans to tackle this challenge by framing our marketplace as a cross-platform NFT experience for the users (of course AB test this approach till we find the best one), which currently is not available in Cardano. We are also planning to educate our users by creating written and video tutorials, during our participation in events, exhibitions and panel talks and also on our Discord and social media channels to name a few.

Challenge 2: A lack of knowledge of users in creating an e-wallet, which causes less demand on Cardano. 

Mitigation 2: We plan to mitigate this by including Cardano wallets to our automatic non-custodial wallet creation at sign-up, in addition to links on the homepage and tutorial videos on how to set up a Cardano wallet for those who would prefer to create their own and add it to their profiles.

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed plan, including timeline and key milestones for delivering your proposal.

Our proposal contains three major components: 1) Integration of Cardano into Our Marketplace ; 2) Acquisition and Education of Users; and 3) PR and Marketing. For each step we plan to complete the following tasks and activities:

1) Integration of Cardano into Our Marketplace (September 2022 - November 2022)

Since we already have a working product that is being used on Ethereum and Polygon we do not need to create the entire marketplace from scratch (www.niftysouq.com).

The integration of Cardano into our existing marketplace requires the following steps:

• Plan:

In the planning phase, project leaders evaluate the terms of the project. This includes calculating labor and material costs, creating a timetable with target goals, and creating the project’s teams and leadership structure.

• Define:

Defining requirements is considered part of planning to determine what the application is supposed to do and its requirements. Requirements also include defining the resources needed to build the project.

• Design:

The Design phase models the way a software application will work and look like. Some aspects of the design include:

1. Architecture
2. User Interface
3. Platforms
4. Programming
5. Communications
6. Security

• Develop:

This is the actual writing of the program, the coding process includes many tasks. Developers and engineers need to brush up on skills or work as a team.

The development phase include the following:

1. Build the smart contract
2. Deploy on testnet
3. Test the smart contract
4. Build the backend code
5. Build the integration code
6. Build the frontend code

• Test:

It’s critical to test the platform before making it available to users. Much of the testing can be automated, like security testing. Other testing can only be done in a specific environment by creating a simulated production environment for complex deployments. Testing should ensure that each function works correctly. Different parts of the application should also be tested to work seamlessly together with performance tests, to reduce any hangs or lags in processing.

• Deploy & Maintain: The platform will be fully functional and available to users at this stage and maintained to avoid any issues in the future and to adapt to any changes required.

To complete this milestone we will need the following roles:

1- Project Manager

The role of the project manager is to plan and define project scope and objectives, prepare a budget based on scope of work and resource requirements, manage a detailed project schedule and work plan, and track project costs.

2- Smart Contract Developer

The smart contract developer will build and test the marketplace contracts and make sure that the platform is as interoperable as possible by designing clean interfaces.

3- Full-stack Developer

The full stack role is very critical where the developer will be responsible for designing and building client-side and server-side architecture, making sure that the APIs are effective, creating user-friendly web pages, and collaborating with back-end developers and web designers to improve usability.

4- UI/UX Designer

The UI/US designer is responsible for designing the graphic user interface, like menus, tabs and widgets, and developing UI mockups and prototypes.

5- QA Engineer

The QA Engineer will review requirements, specifications and technical design documents to provide timely and meaningful feedback. Create detailed, comprehensive and well-structured test plans and test cases.

2) Acquisition and Education of users (November 2022 - Ongoing)

We have had great success in providing onboarding and education services to the MENA community through our existing marketplace. To conduct this work we completed the following tasks/activities:

• Hosted online and offline workshops on Crypto and NFTs
• Spoke in several live events about the Crypto space
• Outlined the benefits of the blockchain technology to our users
• Gave away free NFTs for users who join our community
• Created educational tutorials and blogs on how to buy crypto, create digital wallets, and create/collect/trade NFTs.
• Created social media pages with inspirational and educative content.
• Started a discord server where people can ask questions and interact with the community.

We now plan to conduct a similar process on Cardano. This is a necessary phase as Cardano is still largely unknown in the region, with most users adopting Ethereum and Polygon. By connecting the MENA users with Cardano through our marketplace we believe that our educational and acquisition component will further drive adoption of Cardano. 

We propose to conduct the following acquisition and education activities:

• Activity: Host Twitter Spaces with the MENA Community.
• KPI: Number of Twitter Spaces hosted with MENA Community.
• Activity: Host workshops on Cardano.
• KPI: Number of workshops hosted on Cardano.
• Activity: Create educational tutorials and blogs in the region’s language on how to buy Cardano, create a Cardano wallet, and create/buy/sell NFTs on Cardano.
• KPI: Number of tutorials and blogs created about Cardano.
• Activity: Create exclusive educational content about Cardano on our social media pages.
• KPI: Number of posts on our social media pages about Cardano.

To complete this milestone we will need the following roles:

1- Content Manager

The content manager will develop a content strategy aligned with short-term and long-term goals, collaborate with the content writer and designer to plan and develop content, style, and layout, and create and publish engaging content.

2- Content Writer

The content writer will be responsible for researching topics, creating style guides, and writing content that helps drive conversions based on the goals of this project.

3- Graphic Designer

The designer’s role includes the entire process of defining, visualizing and creating graphics, and the shaping of all visual aspects related to the content and events.

3) PR and Marketing (November 2022 - Ongoing)

Since we are already working on public relations and marketing for our current platform, the infrastructure for this phase has already been built. We have reached out to many creators and artists since we have launched and established a special community. We were featured in several media reports and articles, and made connections with leaders in the crypto industry in the region. Our marketing team has done a great job in attracting enthusiasts and new users to use our services.

Our platform and team are considered as pioneers in the region when it comes to crypto and NFTs. We plan to keep the same pace and continue growing in this field, and we would love to have Cardano with us in this journey. Therefore, the following activities will be done:

• Activity: Search Engine Optimization and Marketing (SEO & SEM) (Google)
• KPI: Keyword ranking
• Activity: Social media marketing (Twitter, Linkedin, Instagram, Facebook, and Tiktok)
• KPI: Engagement on social media posts
• Activity: PR events
• KPI: Number of media mentions
• Activity: Influencer marketing
• KPI: Conversion rate
• Activity: Email marketing
• KPI: Clickthrough rate

To complete this milestone we will need the following roles:

1- Business Developer

The business developer will implement and coordinate the PR and marketing plans above, develop short-term and long-term visions, and ensure that Cardano reaches its potential in the region.

2- SEO Specialist

The SEO specialist’s role includes the process of identifying strategies, techniques and tactics to improve our website ranking on search engines thus increasing the number of visitors to our platform and potentially Cardano users.

3- Social Media Expert

The SM expert is responsible for planning, implementing and monitoring the social media strategy in order to increase brand awareness, improve marketing efforts and increase sales.

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide a detailed budget breakdown.

1) Build of Marketplace to include Cardano

• Project Manager = 320 hours x $40 = 12,800 USD
• Smart Contract Developer = 320 hours x $70 = 22,400 USD
• Full-stack Developer = 320 hours x $50 = 16,000 USD
• UI/UX Designer = 160 hours x $60 = 9,600 USD
• QA Engineer = 320 hours x $50 = 16,000 USD

Sub Total: 76,800 USD

2) Acquisition and Education of users

• Offline workshops = 3 QTY x $2000 = 6,000 USD
• Online workshops = 10 QTY x $500 = 5,000 USD
• Video tutorials = 5 QTY x $500 = 2500 USD
• Blogs = 5 QTY x $300 = 1500 USD
• Social Media Content = 50 posts x $50 = 2500 USD

Sub Total: 17,500 USD

3) PR and Marketing

• SEO & SEM = 3,000 USD
• Social media marketing = 5,000 USD
• PR events = 3,000 USD
• Influencer marketing = 4,000 USD
• Email marketing = 2,000 USD

Sub Total: 17,000 USD

Total: $111,300

[FEASIBILITY] Please provide details of the people who will work on the project.

• Nabil AlSayed:

Nabil is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Nifty Souq. He is a serial entrepreneur and a father of three. He is on a mission to establish, build, educate and grow the NFT industry in the MENA region. Nabil has over 23 years of experience and hustled in the tech startup world when it first started in the region. His background in leadership and blockchain technology allows him to drive the team and this project to success.

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

https://twitter.com/NabilAlSayed

• Talal AlAfghani

Talal is the Co-Founder and Chief Strategy Officer of Nifty Souq. He is a pioneer in the combination of media and technology. His target is bringing NFTs to the region, allowing artists and creators to issue and sell their assets digitally. Talal is responsible for driving overall product strategy and development. His background in sales and management makes this project even more attainable.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/talal-alafghani/

https://twitter.com/Talal_Afghani

• Zuhair Abdein

Zuhair is the Operations Manager at Nifty Souq. He is an entrepreneur and has experience in multiple industries. He is dedicated to bringing new solutions and technologies to the region. Zuhair has a good background in NFTs and has been working closely with many NFT projects and creators lately. He is responsible for managing this project and ensuring that it is successfully implemented.

https://www.linkedin.com/in/zuhair-abdein/

https://twitter.com/AbdeinEth

[FEASIBILITY] If you are funded, will you return to Catalyst in a later round for further funding? Please explain why / why not.

Ideally, we aim to be self-sustaining, and this funding round will help us reach there. We believe that if we are funded and Cardano was added to our platform with its current features, we will be able to sustain ourselves. We are the largest NFT marketplace in the MENA region and our plan for the long term is to maintain this by continuous development and improvement.

[FEASIBILITY] Are you or any member of your team working on any other proposals in this Fund9?

[FEASIBILITY] Are you or your team working on any other proposals from previous Funds?

[AUDITABILITY] Please describe what you will measure to track your project's progress, and how will you measure these?

• User activity data reports through existing tools, such as Google Analytics, to collect and track traffic .
• The total number of visitors to our website after deployment (baseline user count created before integration goes live) 
• The total number of users who opened new Cardano accounts on our website after deployment (baseline user count created before integration goes live)
• Number of transactions performed on our website using the Cardano blockchain.
• Number of workshops held
• Number of educational materials developed
• Conversion rate from marketing activities

[AUDITABILITY] What does success for this project look like?

• First 45 days
• Github, website, and test environment (links above) are connected and available for the community to play around with and give feedback so we can act accordingly.
• First 60 Days 
• Fully functional platform where users can use Cardano to mint, buy, and sell NFTs on our marketplace within 60 days from receiving initial funding. Minimum of two rounds of community and professional testing where participants are chosen according to their experience.
• Three months after deployment 
• Based on previous track record with consideration that we will be introducing Cardano as a new blockchain to the region, we expect to reach the following numbers after building the platform, educating the users, and marketing:
• 81,000 site visits
• 1620 new wallets @2% conversion
• 5000 NFTs minted on Cardano
• 3240 transactions using Cardano based on 2 NFTs/Wallet projection

[AUDITABILITY] Please provide information on whether this proposal is a continuation of a previously funded project in Catalyst or an entirely new one.

Entirely new one.

Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Rating

SDG9 (industry, innovation, and infrastructure):

We address SDG 9 through the creation of novel, accessible, and enabling infrastructure that will allow a variety of diverse participants to participate in the blockchain sector. Blockchain offers the following benefits to users: product authentication, supply chain visibility, and product transparency. Our project specifically offers an exciting and enticing method to introduce users through the collection, buying, and selling of NFTs.