Thank you Dan! We’re super pumped for Mobi as well!
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Same here…initially I thought it was a project similae to another. Took me quite some reading to see that it is something different.
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This is an incredible concept. I for one know have at least one gift card in my wallet that i doubt i will ever use which will just turn into wasted funds.
Being able to convert this into something useful for me is awesome and I really hope this is successful!
Keep at it @Charlie_Muir and the team, you’ve got a great concept and definitely seem to be on the right track.
Thanks,
The Mobi Team
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Many thanks @Anthony_Mobi!
We’re super enthusiastic about Mobi, as well -> fewer cars + fewer pollution = lives saved = no brainer.
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brifs.co Project Update | 2018-06-14
brifs.co Between Two Updates
$5,000 USD prize pool
brifs.co’s Community Bounty Program is now live with $5,000 in BRIF mosaics to be given away to participants. Getting onboard, simply by joining our telegram is worth about $80, at the time writing. Don’t miss out; register now with this link.
brifs.co NCF Voting
The voting period for brifs.co’s proposal for the NEM Community Fund (NCF) begins 2018-06-18 and runs until 2018-06-25. Here’s where you can find the voting addresses on the 18th
NCF Proposal
In case you missed it, our NCF proposal officially went live on June 8th. Here is where you can find it
on the NEM Forum.
Focal Shift
In our last Community Update we discussed our long term fundraising strategy, which is mainly to develop and distribute content for the broader blockchain audience. These efforts revolved around creating a following for our Medium publication, but we have decided to narrow our focus to be more NEM-centric, instead. We did this by shifting content distribution from Medium to the NEM Forum, Telegram, and NEM’s Japanese Twitter audience.
Making Progress
Tons of forward momentum has been gained in our efforts towards securing NCF funding. We have received unequivocal support from practically everyone to whom we have spoken, including many of the most recognizable names in NEM. We are really grateful to be able to put our passion into our project and to see it embraced by the NEM community.
That support will go a long way, not only through voting, but afterwards, as we get further along on our roadmap.
Speaking of our roadmap, we are not waiting for the NCF voting to start. We are getting a jump start on our project milestones. We have completed animated user flows, which give a good sense of our UI/UX. Also, we have begun backend integration of Amazon, iTunes, Apple (store), & Starbucks, which means we will be able to support those gift cards in the coming weeks.
View from a Wider Lense
Rocky Market
The market has been taking a thrashing this week, with XEM dipping below $0.19 on some exchanges Wednesday. That is its lowest price since November of 2017.
This is a perdictable reaction following a hysterical bull run; particularly in light of the alleged manipulation that is believed to have occured.
Bear markets can be emotionally hard on anyone, but the fundamentals of blockchain and NEM have not changed. It has been said countless times that NEM wins because of its tech, but this tech only wins, if NEM’s successful dApps deploy it.
Fighting the Bear
Agonizing over the current price and obsessing about When $5? is a strategy of hope. Hope is not a realistic strategy. If you truly believe in NEM and want to make an impact; you can.
Get involved in NEM projects. Spend the time reviewing proposals. If you see something that you like, or don’t like; then say something. If something doesn’t make sense, or seems like a bad idea; ask questions.
Here are some NEM projects that you look into right now:
Sernez — Peer-to-peer Student loans with no middleman
Mobi — Ride Sharing for Commuters
RocketShoes Blockchain powered digital asset platform for the future of education and work
Our project: brifs.co — Gift card marketplace seeking to bring mass adoption of the NEM blockchain in the US
In Our Headlights
Rocking the Vote.
We are putting everything we’ve got into our NCF proposal and voter awareness initiatives. We take short breaks, every so often to work on product, but for the most part, it is all about the vote for the next few weeks.
Once voting has concluded on June 25th, our days will return to normal, as we redouble our efforts on building product. In our next community update, you can expect to hear about all of the milestones we have begun checking off from the project proposal, as well as the voting results and what we have learned along the way.
Thank you all again for all the support and wish us luck!
All the best,
The brifs.co Team
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Only 3 more days till voting starts! Let’s all make sure we start voting as soon as it’s released. It’s very important to have projects such as brifs.co as it helps create real world uses for NEM!
An excellent team backing the project! Wishing you all the best of luck and if there is anything the Mobi team can do to help please let us know
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Thank you Daniel!
We feel equally as excited about Mobi and offer the same help in kind.
Cheers, mate!
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The voting for this Project Proposal is now open. You may cast your votes now.
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A big Yes from me!
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I would like to appreciate your involvement in this topic, this is a really interesting project . Personally, I myself have tried to receive gift cards I never got redeemed and it is a shame.
What I feel is missing in your description of the project (in fact, it is a general thing in the suggestions put forward here) is a description of the challenges and risks associated with achieving your milestones. As a member of the NEM community and potential “investor”, I would like to know if the team knows its limitations, what potential treats are there, and what competitors are found in this huge gift card market.
/aenima
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Hello aenima!
I’m so happy that the use case resonates with you!
is a description of the challenges and risks associated with achieving your milestones
Our biggest challenges are the same that all startups face; really. Namely funding, hiring & retention, & user growth. Luckily we are very capable of hitting milestone 1 and most of 2 with our current capital reverses and our current team.
I would like to know if the team knows its limitations
Our limitations…let me think about that. I think we do know our limitations. I think the team is grounded and we are very scrappy. We know how to be resourceful, we know startup culture. I feel really confident in our ability to complete milestone , which will give us the runway (with enough breathing room) to complete the rest of the milestones and continue from there. I have no doubt about this. I would only seek funding for do a project that I have the full set of skills to accomplish the task at hand.
what potential threats are there
This is all pretty standard too. Competition is a threat. Escalating burn rate is a threat. There are macro-market concerns with crypto in general as well as regulatory. This is all par for the startup course though. We know this course well and it’s just a matter of running the playbook and being agile enough to keep trying new things. Fraud is a big risk, but that a core competency of our organization and it’s simply a matter of building systems to alert us to trouble and manage that risk.
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Thank you for the quick answer.
Who are your competitors? And what can you do better to make this a successful marketplace?
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cc: @aenima
[What] competitors are found in this huge gift card market.
Our biggest competitors are Raise and Blackhawk Network and the secondary gift card market is more or less dominated by these 2.
Raise is our closest competitor. They charge 12% on transactions, are not using blockchain [yet], and has $147.M in funding.
Blackhawk owns several web properties which focus on the secondary market which charge similar commission rates, don’t use the blockchain, and were just acquired by 2 private equity firms for $3.5B.
There are others companies which are in the gift card space but either don’t focus on the secondary market or are too small at this stage to pose and dire threat.
what can you do better to make this a successful marketplace?
Take commissions for 12% to 15% to 0%. The implications of that are covered in detail above in the The Economic Solution | Business Model & Strategy section.
Does that give you the insight you had been looking for?
Feel free to ask any more questions, followups or otherwise.
Cheers,
Charlie
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Thank you 
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Thank you aenima! Solid questions that I think will help others in making a voting decision.
Best,
Charlie
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Did you see that we have implemented this suggestion?
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Only about 48 hours left to vote — Tell your friends that we need more POI!
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Yes other Charlie! We do need more POI indeed!