The event industry plays a crucial role in fostering connections, culture, and education. However, it faces ongoing challenges that affect its effectiveness and reputation. One such challenge is ticket fraud, which continues to be a problem and is expected to double in 2023.
Another pressing issue is the difficulty in engaging attendees in a meaningful way. With digital interaction and content consumption surpassing traditional methods, many events struggle to capture and maintain the attention of their audiences. This is especially evident in the lack of compelling pre-event anticipation, live interaction during the event, and post-event conversation.
Traditional ticketing systems also contribute to these challenges. They are often inefficient, with slow response times and a lack of flexibility. This leads to frustrating experiences for users, including cumbersome purchasing processes, entry delays, and a one-size-fits-all approach that doesn’t meet the diverse needs of event-goers.
To address these problems, the integration of blockchain technology holds promise. By leveraging the power of nonfungible tokens (NFTs), Belong, an app that provides access to events, conferences, and content, offers a solution that revolutionizes access to a wide range of experiences. Belong introduces token-gated access, where event organizers can sell NFT passes that serve as keys to exclusive offerings. These passes are issued as NFT tickets, ensuring verifiability and preventing ticket fraud and duplication.
In addition to enhancing security, Belong’s platform enhances attendee engagement by integrating features such as private chat rooms, personalized event schedules, and community connectivity. This fosters a sense of belonging among event-goers and goes beyond the limitations of traditional ticketing systems.
For organizers, Belong charges a minimal 2% fee on ticket sales, allowing for instant payouts and fundraising opportunities. Tokenized access also enables increased profitability through royalties from secondary sales, enhanced marketing efforts through data collection, loyalty rewards, and seamless integration with modern technology.
Belong has recently joined the Cointelegraph Accelerator program, which supports promising Web3 startups. With its innovative solution, Belong aims to address the challenges faced by an industry projected to reach $2 trillion by 2028. Currently available on iOS and the web, Belong plans to expand to Android. The platform has shown significant growth, with a 50% month-over-month increase, 20,000 users, and over 1,000 communities.
In summary, Belong’s use of NFTs and token-gated access offers a transformative solution to the challenges faced by the event industry. By enhancing security, engagement, and profitability, Belong aims to replace traditional keys, tickets, and memberships with unforgeable NFTs that benefit creators and eliminate speculators.