Fingerprints has been promoting networking among its members with annual meetings. In 2021, we hosted a members’ event during Art Basel Miami and in 2022, during NFT.NYC.
We had the impression that hosting our annual meetings during such events would help to increase attendance, but we realized that there is too much going on and members’ agendas are usually hectic.
Proposal
To host a one-day event in NYC on May 5th to Fingerprints members and guests.
One of our investors, USV, will let us use their new office. They have a nice rooftop where we can start the event in the afternoon and go into the night (maybe 4-9:00 pm). Please see the photos of their last event here (only available to Fingerprints members).
The venue holds up to 100 people. We are thinking of doing the first 1-2 hours to Fingerprints members only and then inviting people from outside the DAO. USV said it could invite people from their invested companies as well. It could be an excellent opportunity to make more people know about us and get new members. 2 invites will be granted per FP member.
Fingerprints’ members f1cken#7092 and Klamt.eth#3962 will coordinate the event with the USV team.
Ideas of how we could exhibit our collection are welcome. Some ideas are using the displays at USV, displays by Generative and a CNC plotter to print Autoglyphs on-site.
We would also like to take the opportunity to launch the Fingerprints membership NFT at the event.
Please find below the estimated budget based on USV’s past events. We haven’t included a DJ or sound equipment because USV said they usually use playlists and their own sound system. We could use apps such as Raina and Spotify and have members suggest songs for the playlist.
Item
Cost
Venue rental
free, courtesy of USV
Food
$5,000
Beverage
$3,000
Staffing (TaskRabbits to set up, serve drinks, help buss and clean, breakdown space)
I think we could do this for about 3000$, just a fun get together, we have the space, buy a few bottles of nice whiskey and bubbly, and chill. No need to make it crazy or spend 15k.
Shorten the time, and ppl can stay later if they chose. Lots going on so better to have a targeted time that’s shorter imho, as all of these conferences are really about after hours events.
We could do something cheaper, for sure. The proposed event could cost less than $15,000, but it’s better to be conservative in the budget. We don’t want to end up in a situation where we spend more than was approved by the DAO.
I believe we might be able to cut down costs to:
Booze: $2,000
Food: $1,500 (considering $5 a slice, three slices per person, and 100 people in the event)
Staffing: $2,500 (this is the minimum USV recommend, considering is their space, I wouldn’t change it)
Given that one of the goals of this event is also attracting new members, I would try to spend a bit more to make a good first impression. USV has a great network and there are a lot of NFT people in NYC. Collected artists could also attend.
So IMO spending a bit more to make the event really good (instead of a more laid back get together) would be ideal. This should be memorable.
Additionally, a nicer event will probably have a higher attendance.
Adding $6-8,000 to make the event unique, increasing our brand visibility and potentially bringing new members seems like it’s worth it.
Please find below a more detailed budget considering 75 guests. We will adjust the food and beverage orders once we know exactly how many people are coming.
Regarding the event date, we are trying to find one that’s not too close to NFT.NYC. USV recommended we avoid going way past the end of May because we might have people traveling for the holidays. May 25 might be a good option. Thoughts?
nyquist#2737 has also joined the team which is planning the event.
Total preliminary budget: $7,777 + taxes
Food – Eataly Catering, see the menu here – $1,995 + taxes
2 crudité platters (vegan and gluten free) - $260
2 Salumi & formaggi platters - $370
36 Assorted Paninis cut in half, 72 pieces in total (vegan option) - $585
5 Pizzas Alla Pala (vegetarian option) - $400
80 Salatinis (bite size, vegetarian option) - $160
Pasticcini Tray - $180
Beverage – Minibar, see the menu on the website here – $1,322 + taxes
180 bottles of Corona beer (12oz): $310
30 Bottles of white wine Bogle Chardonnay – $285
8 bottles of Tanqueray gin - $244
8 bottles of Stolichnaya Vodka - $155
78 cans of soda - $84
24 bottles (1L) of club soda - $60
15 bottles of Simply Orange juice - $66
20 bottles of San Pellegrino Sparkling Water (750ml) - $59
168 bottles of water (7 packs 24 7oz bottles) - $60
CNC plotter – $1,000
2 CNC plotters to print copies of Autoglyph in our collection and give to guests. The total cost also includes paper, frames and a person to run the plotters.
Staffing – $2,500
Photographer – $1,000
Exhibition – Generative.xyz will provide two displays to showcase our collection for free. One square and one rectangular.
Decoration – USV said they don’t usually have decoration additionally to what their office already has, so I’m considering we won’t need it.
Feels like every time I post in discourse it’s just to pose questions, so I have a few:
why are we avoiding the NFT NYC dates for this event?
what value is provided to the dao and its members by avoiding these dates?
what non-nyc based resident would attend the FP event and not NFT NYC?
From my view, if we are looking for a time when the most FP members will be in NYC; NFT NYC is it. Otherwise, this will be an event for USV employees who want some free beer and FP members local to the city. Not much else.
I understand not wanting to fight for attention. However, having a place people can come to in a central location (which union square is) before other events could be a great opportunity for FP and its members. I don’t know that a random weekend in June will see the same turnout even assuming most members already have plans on a given NFT NYC day (which is not a given).
I think there is value in being a part of the larger NFT NYC picture. Last event was a great time to put faces to members names and to coordinate. That was in large part due to the total turnout being centered around NFT NYC. We can not say the same for any given Friday.
If the goal is to expand membership: we could allow plus ones (which has been discussed) and have screens featuring the DAO treasury / holdings vs par value of $PRINTS. We could discuss the works we hold to NFT NYC goers who are interested in joining. We can show off the studio releases which have occurred and will occur. etc etc. all in a central location.
I think the value in this event is in its participation. That can be from the mindset of a member or from a potential member. Lacking that, we might as well chat in discord and save the money.
Originally I thought it was a good idea to make our event at a different time than nft.nyc… because the event is too hectic, and I agreed members would want to explore. But now I’ve changed my mind. I’m coming from out of town. I want to make the Fingerprints meetup a focal point, but I also want to explore other stuff too. And I agree there is value in being part of the larger NFT NYC picture. What if we had our meetup Tuesday, April 11th? The night before the big event starts?
