CREATOR FIRST: Creator-Focused Media Platform, Ensuring SAND Dominance in Professional Communities

[Geraldine]

TLDR

What

CREATOR FIRST is a media and talent platform that informs, educates and builds a community of like-minded creators united by common aim to improve creator economy through decentralized incentives.

With Creator First we aim to change the current balance of power in the creator economy space. We strive to provide game content creators, video gamers, and users of virtual currencies and items with a trustworthy community portal that helps them grow, monetize and collaborate.

The main goal of the Platform is to build the infrastructure for the portal that creator activity, yielding several important benefits for SAND:

• Enhanced The Sandbox media visibility, resulting in increased demand for SAND, Unique Active Wallets (UAW) and transaction volumes,
• Cultivation of top creators to enhance content quality and generate potential leads for DAO funding.

The Creator First Platform encompasses:

• Phase 1: Current Proposal - A Collaborative Portal for creators and users,
• Phase 2 and 3 : Further Proposal (not included in the budget): SAND-powered Monetization Tools for Platform content creators, and Events focused on content creation and indie game development.

Why

To master the minds of the creative community, you need something more impactful than financial incentive.

Creator First builds one of the most important elements currently absent in the market: trust in a new way of pursuing creative endeavors supported by clear and transparent token and reliable financial technology.

Our work is guided by the following principles:

• Creator first - we believe in the power of creativity and are putting the interest of the professional community above everything else.

• Security and inclusivity - we strive to create a space, where a new generation of builders can interact in a safe and secure environment in terms of collaboration and financial security.

• Cultivation of top creators to improve content quality and media visibility for Sandbox.

How

The first phase of the project entails building the Platform (3 months) and 3 months of operating. To execute this phase, a budget of $154k / 385k SAND is required.

When

The platform launch is expected by the beginning of Q4’2024.

The development phase is planned to last 3 months from the very beginning to the first article publication.

Who

Kirill (Kyrylo) Tokarev - experienced media executive, founder of 80.lv, Harvard Business School alumnus, Stanford Business School Emerging CMO. 20 years of experience in game development and media. Built 80.lv from 0 to 1 million unique users per month within Xsolla, 150 signed clients from Adobe to NVIDIA, 8000 creative connections on Linkedin. LA-based.

SIP Details

Background/Context

For the last couple of years media platforms have been fighting for the eyeballs, masked by the constant pushing of new information that possesses no relevance to the audience and by most part builds on sensationalism. The nature of the media platforms serves one master - Google AdSense, limiting the earning potential of news organizations and jeopardizing the whole idea of free exchange of opinions.

The goal of Creator First is to create a new kind of platform, that does not rely on traditional monetization mechanisms, but instead is based on three main ideas:

• creator comes first,
• collaborative and safe space is required to boost the content quality and monetization options,
• unified economical backing by an organization that supports our values and helps build a better future for creators.

Description

Creation of a web-based community platform for professional creators that helps inform, educate and help them monetise their creative endeavors.

The final result of this activity is the creation of a robust and growing group of professional creatives that trust SAND and utilize it on scale to build and create new exciting projects in entertainment and beyond.

Rationale and benefit

The proposed project builds trust, increases engagement and facilitates the narrative around SAND and The Sandbox, building a great independent source of knowledge that encourages the utility of SAND.

The portal contribute to increased creator activity, yielding several important benefits for SAND:

• Enhanced SANDBOX media visibility, resulting in increased demand for SAND,
• Cultivation of top game creators to enhance content quality and generate potential leads for DAO funding.

Risk analysis

Risks are assessed as low. The most significant one is the Competition Content Risk (Operating phase): potential emergence of competing platforms (such as Roblox and Fortnite Platforms) offering similar or more attractive services.

The risk will be mitigated through continuous market analysis and adaptation of services to stay ahead of competitors.

Implementation Plan

The intermediate milestones (with a projected completion timeline of the first quarter from initiation) are as follows:

• CMS and the platform development,
• UX/UI design,
• Team forming and training,
• Content Policy forming,
• Publication channels and newsletters integration,
• The platform launch.

Resources required

The first phase of the project entails building the Platform (3 months) and 3 months of operating. To execute this phase, a budget of $154k / 385k SAND is required. During this period, the project does not yield revenue or other benefits. A detailed breakdown of the budget is provided below:

1. Platform Building ($71.5k / 178.75K SAND) - during 3 months:

• Engineers: $24k
• Design: $9k
• Legal: $4k
• Management: $34.5k

2. Platform Operating ($82.5k / 206.25K SAND) - for 3 months:

• Lead Editor and 3 editors: $78k
• Platform & CMS maintenance: $3.25k
• Publication channels: $1.25k

Metrics for Success

1. Audience / Viewers,
2. Active Creators,
3. Top blog content views,
4. Engagement on blog content (comments / shares / reactions),
5. % read of blog content,
6. Clicks on blog content.

Voting Options

Yes, No, Abstain.
Voting Period: 14 days

APPENDIX

Further SIP (Not included in the budget)

The Creator First Platform encompasses:

• A Collaborative Portal for creators and users - within the SIP,
• Two SAND-powered Monetization Tools: paid subscription and user support for creators,
• Events focused on content creation and indie game development.

The second and the third steps (Monetization Tools and Events) are described here.

The main goals are:

• Building and implementation of a mechanism that facilitates incentivisation of valuable professional information sharing (Patreon-like support for any collaboration or project using SAND).
• Development of a robust sourcing mechanism that builds a flow of new exciting projects for DAO to invest in.

How

The implementation process can be divided into three main stages:

• The first SIP: MVP launch - 3 months

Further:

• Platform and SAND-tools development, DAO-leads generation- 2 years,
• Continuous improvement after the payback point.

Rationale and benefit

The Platform Monetization Tools and Associated events contribute to increased creator activity, yielding several important benefits for SAND:

• Financial benefits from the platform, including revenue from advertisements, commissions from paid subscriptions, and commissions from crowdfunding.
• Financial gains from events, including revenue from ticket sales and booth rentals.

Resources required

Subsequently, upon a successful MVP launch, an estimated additional $1,5M will be necessary for further feature development and tools within the first year of operation, including scaling, SAND-tools implementation, and events organization.

This investment amount can also be allocated across stages, such as platform scaling, event launches, and SAND-tools deployment, to ensure strategic and efficient resource utilization.

Following this, the project attains self-sustainability starting the second year.

Metrics for success

Long-run potential metrics of success:

1. Portal metrics:

• Audience (Active Users),

• Active Creators,

• New UAW (Unique Active Wallets) from the Portal,

• New DAO hot leads,

2. Events metrics:

• Visitors,

• New UAW (Unique Active Wallets),

*New DAO hot leads,

3. Financial metrics: Revenue

• Advertising revenue from Portal,

*. Revenue From SAND-powered tools,

• Revenue from events.

Contact Information

Kirill Tokarev

Email: kikatok@gmail.com

Phone: 818-877-3741

Alternatives Considered

Alternative path for investment through VCs and banks are not pursued due to time constraints, and lack of centralized financial goal that solidifies alignment between partners (no SAND - common currency value).

Amendments

If applicable, detail the process for making amendments to the SIP based on community feedback.

Additional Resources

Vision document and overview of the current media market

Creator First Financial Model

Tag @Mariia for any questions!

[VonFrontin]

Can you expand more on how this platform helps attract and develop creators in the space?

Love the intent behind it, but it’s unclear to me how this proposal executes on that intent.

[kikatok]

Our goal is to build a space that highlights and facilitates creative endeavours, by providing high quality media content, similar to platforms like TechCrunch and Patreon. People are reading the same stories, hearing about new technology use cases and monetization techniques, become part of community and start collaborating on their own incredible projects. That’s the vision.

[VonFrontin]

Got it. Thanks for the clarification.

[dankoyy]

Kirill Tokarev, @kikatok @Mariia
Questions:
1- Are you aware of the TSB Creators Forum?
2- What benefits does your project bring that the current Forum does not provide?
3- What are the biggest differences that attract creators which the current Forum does not provide and your project provide?
4- Could a portal like this be sustained solely by its community of creators, or would it require active involvement from TSB staff and the developers of tools such as GameMaker and VoxEdit to truly thrive and engage users?
5- Have you been in contact and talked to the Education, Development, and Content team at TSB about your proposal? What is their feedback on your ideas?
6- TSB Game Maker, mainly, is a tool with complications for teaching, given various adversities, the first being how to properly teach logic to the community. What specific solutions for teaching and sharing information and logic does your platform provide in practice?

My personal comment.
This SIP cannot be put to a vote without a serious discussion about the issues I raise, because currently we have the Creators Forum with a powerful framework, and it doesn’t make sense to create a platform that does something similar.

Another issue is understanding the teaching needs of GameMaker, and it should be one of the platform’s focuses. If the new updates of GameMaker and new features brought by the TSB GameMaker Development team are not integrated, this platform will not keep up with innovations, and it won’t make sense to develop a platform without contact with the GameMaker development team. There is no prior training in any college or university on the planet that prepares someone to deal with the TSB GameMaker Logic Arquitecture and the way the development team wants to use the game creation tool, so the GameMaker development team must be accompanying this platform project with full support to ensure that the ideas and plans are aligned on all fronts.

The way it is, without even mentioning the current place for Creators Forum, shows a lack of knowledge about the platform, creators, discord, twitter and doesn’t present any studies regarding GameMaker Logic or creators needs. The shortcomings in this SIP are many; here, I address only the most serious ones.

I hope these issues are discussed, especially by the Council Board and Advisers members who are genuinely concerned with the steps for Education for Game Maker, where a better discussion needs to take place.

With my two and a half years as a professional logic developer using GameMaker, I leave here my humble opinion on the matter. With all the care and love for the TSB Creators.
Dankoyy,

[kikatok]

Thank you so much for your insightful comment, @dankoyy. I want to clarify and explain the vision a bit more to help better understand the value provided by Creator First.

1. Creator First as the name implies is a media platform for creators, people who are building stuff on different platforms fueling the UGC economy. Our understanding of creators is everyone from YouTube book reviewers to game developers and filmmakers. We want to create a safe space that is uniquely designer to answer the questions that these creators have, and help them follow the latest trends not only in the creative, but also in the business aspect.
2. Creator First is an independent media. While it’s definitely supported by Sandbox, it is a separate entity. The reason for it being, that it’s here to create a trustworthy media channel that could share knowledge in a completely unbiased way. We’re going to talk about the challenges, we’re going to invite well known creators and showcase new talent. Our goal is to create the best place to learn about creative endeavors and creative economy.
3. Creator First is here to facilitate and guide. This is not an educational source, this is not a service tool to generate leads just for Sandbox. It’s a unique media platform, which is there to shape public opinion, to showcase the latest technological and business developments. It’s core goal is to preach the benefits of UGC-economy and help new talent monetize their unique creations in new and exciting ways.

We’ve discussed this vision with numerous members of the Sandbox community, and believe that this platform could be an incredible facilitating tool that pushes the mass adoption of new forms of creative expression.

[Bonano]

From my humble perspective, I consider it a good proposal, but not the right time to implement it. Currently, the main problem with TSB is that it is not a playable and entertaining platform for video game enthusiasts. Therefore, in my opinion, it is necessary to first improve the “playable and fun” aspect before thinking about implementing educational social platforms when they already exist.

I believe that essential aspects like playability should be prioritized, as that is what will generate real appeal. Without players, there is no community, and without a community, there is no attraction for investors.

[DrMetaverso]

I would like to start my comments by referencing Dankoy’s last comment. With all the care and love for the TSB Creators, I share the same assessment as Dankoy about the proposal. I also have many issues with the proposal; for example, the budget and continuous operation costs will significantly impact the DAO. Although I could go into detail, I’ll keep my points brief.

I’m a big believer in the saying, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Currently, Creators have a very safe space that is uniquely designed to answer their questions. We have the Forum and Discord, as well as the Official TSB Twitch channel and X accounts, which showcase talent and run events. These channels effectively inform, educate, and help creators monetize their endeavors.

Take this DAO forum, for example, it works exactly like some of the features in the proposal, and it works great!

Respectfully, I do not think this is a good idea to fund at this time. If the platform (Creator First) is built and proven to work as intended, then this proposal can be resubmitted. Funding a brand-new software company for a feature we don’t currently need may not be the best use of resources right now.

DrM

[kikatok]

Thank you so much for having a call with me @dankoyy. It’s been great getting to know you and learning about the challenges of Sandbox.

I really appreciate your opinion and value your support. On the call we’ve discussed an opportunity to schedule some session with other community members to talk a bit more about the opportunities that Creator First brings to the table.

I would love to participate in that and will be happy to invite anyone interested in further discussions. @DrMetaverso FYI

[dankoyy]

Heyy @kikatok
Welcome to The Sandbox community!
Thank you very much for your time and attention. It was a great opportunity to learn more about your project, which significantly contributes to access to web3 games. Your broad vision and extensive knowledge of game development are of great value to our community. I am preparing your request and will send it via email soon.

[Monkey]

Sounds like a great project, good luck with the initiative!

[Mariia]

Hello @DrMetaverso

It’s great that you have a forum and Discord where users can safely interact!

I would like to clarify, does your saying “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” specifically apply to the safe space for creators? It seems to me that Creator First aims for broader goals. In particular, it will help improve the media visibility of the game and the cryptocurrency. As I see from the official information, the SAND cryptocurrency rate is declining, which likely indicates low demand for the cryptocurrency. If you start googling information about the game, you’ll notice that its media popularity leaves much to be desired — mostly there are interviews with creators, but very little information about the game itself. Twitch and YouTube videos, despite having tens of thousands of subscribers, currently gather only up to 500 views, which seems quite low.

All of this suggests the need to improve the media presence and information field of the game.

The main goal of Creator First, alongside providing a safe space, is to establish itself in the media environment and systematically maintain its presence in the information field. This is planned to be achieved through regular posts and a focus on related topics to attract the attention of not only the current community but also potential new players.

Overall, it seems that what sets Creator First apart from existing tools is precisely its focus on enhancing media appeal and attracting people with relevant interests.

[Mariia]

Thank you @Monkey for these kind words!

[Mariia]

Hello @Bonano
We understand and share your concern about the current state of the platform not being very playable and entertaining. Currently, there’s low online activity, a lack of content, and even fewer new additions.

Certainly, when discussing playability in terms of mechanics and technical aspects, it’s incredibly important. However, for a multiplayer game, having lots of users’ content, active online users and an engaged community is equally crucial.

This is where we see the Creator First Platform making a difference for both the game and the community - attracting attention from new enthusiasts interested in video games, cryptocurrencies, and creativity, while also inspiring our current users. Despite the Sandbox worlds currently appearing almost empty, we hope to help breathe life into them again!

[Bonano]

Hi @Mariia ,

I completely agree with you.

Certainly, when you analyze certain metrics related to the “social” aspects of TSB on different networks, the platform’s reach is quite limited. I don’t dispute it; this project lives thanks to the tenacity, perseverance, and faith in its potential that its creators have, and secondly, thanks to its investors, among whom I include myself

That said, and agreeing with you, I believe there are clear priorities. According to the current state of the platform, there are aspects that are essentially necessary and others that are not.

In terms of community, for better or worse, there are already platforms where there is activity, mainly on Discord. I understand that it could be better, more accessible, and have greater reach, of course. However, I believe that now is not the priority; maybe it will be later.

At this moment, I think we should focus our attention on what is truly “urgent.” This involves supporting proposals that improve the gameplay to build solid foundations that attract new players. Proposals like yours would be interesting to expand the community, but without players, we can hardly achieve this.

The creators of TSB have given us a great responsibility with the creation of this DAO. Resources are finite, and making decisions is not easy. We have the responsibility to grow this project with the available budget. My contribution, in these terms, is to emphasize improving the gameplay aspects and attracting players to have fun and, secondarily, to make money. Only in this way will it be viable to build a community.

Games like Fortnite, Roblox, and Minecraft attracted their players because the platform was attractive. The community came later when people shared experiences on networks organically. I humbly believe that this is the best way to create a solid community for TSB at this moment.

Best regards!

[Krafter]

1. How does creating a new platform increase the media visibility of TSB? All the eyeballs are on the main social platforms (X, TikTok, Instagram, Youtube, Twitch, etc) Why would they come to a new platform?

2. How do you plan on cultivating top creators?

[cryptodiplo]

I agree with many above, this is a large budget line item when we could likely use existing resources. I would likely vote yes to a reduced budget proposal that leveraged existing resources, but as it stands it seems redundant.

@kikatok happy to discuss further if interested

[Mariia]

Hello @Krafter ! Thank you for your questions!

1. We’re planning to build a small team of editors who will regularly publish content, aiming to capture the attention not only of current players but also potentially those interested in related topics. We believe that comprehensive themes, engaging content, regularity, and high-quality material will significantly boost our media presence.
2. Cultivating top creators is a multifaceted process. It involves supporting like-minded communities, providing technical advice from more experienced peers, gathering inspiration and references from beyond the game environment, and recognizing quality content within the community. All of these elements can empower the platform even in its early stages! Moving forward, with successful operation, tools to assist and support top creators can be developed in various directions.

Let me know if there’s anything else you need!

[kikatok]

Thank you so much everybody for the discussion and valuable questions. Hope you had to check out yesterday’s stream with @Lanzer