The last couple of months have been a psychological roller coaster for many new crypto enthusiasts. One by one, people fell into crypto rabbit hole (or some were pushed as Alex said), only to find out that Wonderland is not so pink after all. It looks more like a construction site than a fairy tale.

We are creating crypto infrastructure, and I would argue that the single most critical machinery are ICOs.

Let’s be honest, sentence “We can raise millions in few seconds” creates this psycho-trip where you suddenly lose your mind and start thinking of where do you buy tickets for this show. And fast, as the seats are running out, or at least it seems like that.

Well, seats are not running out; instead, we are opening new theaters. Every day.

Before we begin, let me say that ICO (Initial Coin Offering) is also referred to as TGE (Token Generation Event) or TDE (Token Distribution Event). This naming convention is somehow believed will help keep regulators from ICOs back, but the reality is it won’t. So, with all due respect to people trying to rename ICOs, we’ll maintain the name for a little bit longer and see how it goes. And I will not talk about scams. That’s a different story.

Now, let me explain why I believe ICOs are the best thing that happened to crypto since the first pizza was bought with Bitcoin:

1. You need to put in some serious advertising money.

ICOs are expensive if you want them done right and if you want to reach your audience and stay in their sight long enough. GameCredits spent half a million dollars to raise 50M$. That is a lot of money just for advertising when most projects doing an ICO have no product, no users, and no market. But they are advertising. That means they are talking about their ICO, inviting people to join in. They are promoting not only their company but the very concept of an ICO. Every person they touch with their message is becoming initiated into this new reality. Multiply now this with a number of ICOs that are spending money on advertising. It’s like the biggest worldwide educational campaign about crypto, and it’s just getting started.

2. ICOs are spreading like wildfire.

That means people are talking. Best old-fashioned way — mouth to mouth. It’s almost like a viral video. But here’s the beauty of this virality: You need to dig into it to understand it. You need to buy crypto. You need to open a wallet. You need to research. You need to believe. Fear of missing out plays an important role too, thankfully. On top of that, here come the media, like a wind blowing into this wildfire.

3. People bought computers to be on Facebook

Seriously. What is that Facebook that everyone is talking about and how can I get in? Well, buy a computer and plug the internet and you can start stalking on your friends without them ever knowing. Sold. What are those ICOs that everyone is talking about that can get you funded quickly? Well, learn about crypto, buy some, invest some (money in case of investors, time in case of developers), and you might get lucky. Sold.

4. Do I need to be accredited investor to do this?

No. Anyone can jump in. You can invest a single dollar if you want. Well, technically yes, but some countries and regulators don’t think this is appropriate (Americans have especially hard time, and now Chinese too). But still, there are a lot of options that just never existed before. Now they do, and there is no turning back. The world of investing got disrupted.

5. Successful ICOs got a lot of money, and now they will start spending it

A couple of yachts and few Lambos give or take, a lot of money will be spent into crypto space. Here I believe lies one the most important actions that will take place in the near future. Companies that raised money through ICOs will invest substantial resources into getting the regulations right so they can continue their businesses. They need to do this to survive. They will be the power of change and will fight this uphill battle with regulators, banks and governments to get it right.

6. If we have crypto that is too volatile to become a currency, then what can crypto be used for? Well, ICOs

It’s a use case. The best we have so far. That’s why we see such rapid growth. That is why everyone is interested in crypto again. It finally has a use. Like a moment we invented the wheel. ICOs are tokenizing our world, and that is the wheel we invented, though we still have no idea how cars and trains will look like.

7. ICOs are giving institutional investors hard times

Investors are feeling the cold wind blowing in their face. Snow started falling. Winter is coming. The great game has changed. ICOs are a feature, not a bug. Investors should start writing new manuals on what to do with tens (or hundreds) of millions from ICOs and not judge entrepreneurs for seizing the moment. If you want to help, here is our new jigsaw, help. Sit down with us and play the new game, it has new rules, and it’s more fun than the last one. Admit it. Don’t scare us on how the dot com bubble rhymes with crypto bubble, maybe it does, maybe it doesn’t. Embrace the new reality and get on board, as the ship is not waiting. There is a feeling of freedom in the air. Equity freedom. And everybody wants in and wants to be free (read: independent).

8. ICOs started a new thought process. Regulators don’t get it.

I don’t see crypto enthusiasts complaining about putting crypto into other cryptos as an investment to get crypto. I don’t see crypto people demanding regulatory frameworks. It is our own thing. We are trading Monopoly money. Leave us alone. But regulators are coming asking what is this Monopoly money that gets you rich in Monopoly money? Well, it’s not only that, you know. We started thinking differently. We started imagining a new world where everything could be reorganized and build from scratch. Not only economy. Regulators are having difficulties with that. We will have to teach them. ICOs will have to teach them. ICOs are good.