A Guest Post by Raphael R. Hauxley
Where can you honestly make money in cryptocurrencies?
Will you make it by buying and selling, holding or trading, these cryptocurrencies? Perhaps. Perhaps not. After all, it’s like the San Francisco gold rush of 1855 — it’s the wild west out there. And the people who made money consistently were not the gold panhandlers — they were the people creating businesses.
It’s the same in crypto: people creating businesses can make money. So, what are the 5 things you should know to create your own profitable cryptocurrency company?
1) Secure Your Idea
Securing your idea is essential to preserving your competitive advantage. A patent is a good place to start. And a patent can be secured for more than just a physical gadget — patents also exist for software and business methods.
The way to get started is by conducting a patent search first — see if anyone else might have had your idea. And the best place to get started with that is by searching for patents at the relevant patent office for your business.
- The U.S. Patent Office: https://www.uspto.gov/
- The E.U. Patent Office: https://www.epo.org/index.html
- The Worldwide Patent Office: https://www.wipo.int/portal/en/index.html
Since cryptocurrencies and business on them are such a new industry — you stand a good chance that your idea is unique and patentable.
If that’s the case — the next step would be to secure a patent. If you have the money, an IP attorney is your best bet for navigating the waters. If you don’t — then consider getting a “Provisional Patent” for your software or business method.
A provisional patent only costs between $65 to $260; it’s usually valid for only 1 year and simply means:
- You’re the first person with the idea.
- You’ll file a standard patent within that year.
You’d also be wise to learn about trademarks and copyrights. For example, did you know that the writing of a smart contract or content for your web/mobile app will automatically be copyright protected as soon as you publish it?
2) Write A Solid Whitepaper / Business Plan
An idea is great and all — but it’s like saying “here’s my idea for my dream house” versus actually showing the blueprints to build it. In the cryptocurrency community, we see a lot of “white papers” these days. But what is a white paper?
A white paper is an authoritative document intended to fully inform the reader on a particular topic. It combines expert knowledge and research into a document that argues for a specific solution or recommendation. The white paper allows the reader to understand an issue, solve a problem, or make a decision.
These days more and more white papers are also business plans. They’re the blueprint showing how you and your team will build this innovative idea of yours. They cover the essentials:
- A summary of your business
- Use-cases
- How the tech works
- Target market
- How funding will be raised
- Competition
- Team
- Roadmap
Writing a white paper not only helps showcase and market your idea to others — it also helps you clarify how your idea will become a functioning, profitable business.
Before you write your whitepaper, make sure to understand the cryptocurrency industry, including (but not limited to) the best ways to buy Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.
Get those basics of the crypto industry down before moving onto your idea. Once you know them — then you can begin looking for resources on creating a proper business plan.
3) Learn From Others’ Mistakes
The fastest way to success is learning from the mistakes of others. If you don’t, you’ll just make the same mistakes they did.
It’s happened to myriad people in every branch of business — including and especially in cryptocurrencies. People are making mistakes left and right. Learn from them. Apply them. And your business will grow much faster.
But the key is — and I can’t stress this enough — to actually apply the lessons you learned. From yourself, from others. You need to apply what you learned.
Once you secure your idea and write that white paper/business plan — research the common mistakes people in your particular business make. Print out that list. Refer to it often.
I’m serious. If you don’t — you’ll repeat their mistakes, lose money and waste your precious time. Who wants that?
Final Note: Make it happen
At the end of the day, the most important thing you must know, above all else, is simply to get started. This is the end of the article. What will you do? Read another? No. Get started. Write the first sentence of your white paper. Write more. Get started.
