Table of Contents
- 1. Executive Summary & Investment Overview
- 2. Pre-Launch Strategy (Days 1–45)
- 3. Phase 1: Web2 Build & Merchant Onboarding (Days 46–130)
- 4. Sales & Marketing Strategy – Merchant Acquisition
- 5. Sales & Marketing Strategy – Customer Acquisition
- 6. Phase 2: Early Traction & Revenue Generation (Days 131–220)
- 7. Phase 3: Scale Readiness & Web3 Transition (Days 221–350)
- 8. Financial Projections & Unit Economics
- 9. Go-To-Market Motion & Channel Strategy
- 10. Product Roadmap & Feature Releases
- 11. Competitive Analysis & Market Positioning
- 12. Risk Mitigation & Contingency Plans
- 13. Team Structure & Hiring Plan
- 14. KPIs, Metrics & Success Indicators
- 15. Appendix: Cost Breakdowns & Timeline
Executive Snapshot
Seed Round (Target)
$500K–$750K
Total 12-Month Costs
$533,500
Year 1 ARR (Moderate)
$450K
Merchant Target (M12)
100–150+
Merchant LTV:CAC
≈12–30 : 1
NovaVault is a Web2‑first, Web3‑optional loyalty operating system that starts as a ledger‑driven SaaS platform and later adds tokenization and network effects when the economics justify it.[file:81]
1. Executive Summary & Investment Overview
The Opportunity
The global loyalty software and services market is worth an estimated $10–12 billion and is growing at 10–12% annually, driven by ecommerce expansion, subscriptions, and the need for data‑driven retention.[file:81]
Traditional loyalty systems are expensive to operate, fragment data across tools, make ROI hard to prove, and add unnecessary friction when they start directly on blockchain rails.[file:81]
The NovaVault Model
- Phase 1 (Web2): Ledger‑first loyalty platform that merchants can deploy quickly on proven Web2 infrastructure.[file:81]
- Phase 2 (Web3): Optional Cardano‑based tokenization layer for vendors and customers once traction and economics are validated.[file:81]
Investment Ask & Use of Funds
Total Seed Funding Required: $490,350 (rounded to a $500K–$750K seed).[file:81]
| Category |
Amount |
Timeline |
| Pre‑Launch Marketing |
$25,000 |
Days 1–45 |
| Phase 1 Development (Mid‑range) |
$148,000 |
Days 46–130 |
| Phase 2 Operations & Scale |
$100,000–150,000 / month |
Days 131+ |
| Contingency (15%) |
$67,350 |
Across 12 months |
| Total |
$490,350 |
12‑month plan |
Key 12‑Month Targets
- 10–25 pilot merchants onboarded, with 43%+ lift in purchase frequency where programs are fully adopted.[file:81]
- $120K–180K ARR conservative, $300K–600K ARR moderate, with 10%+ monthly growth post‑launch.[file:81]
- Core team of 3–5 people initially, scaling toward 12–15 by month 12.[file:81]
2. Pre‑Launch Strategy (Days 1–45)
Objective
Build momentum, establish brand authority, and recruit the first wave of merchants and community members before the Web2 build completes.[file:81]
Timeline & Milestones
Week 1–2: Messaging & Brand Foundation
- Finalize brand narrative and value proposition.
- Create investor pitch deck and one‑pager.
- Launch high‑converting marketing website and email capture.
- Set up LinkedIn, Twitter/X, and Discord presence.[file:81]
Week 3–4: Community & Content Launch
- Launch Discord/Telegram with a goal of 500+ early members.
- Release a data‑driven whitepaper and 3–5 thought‑leadership posts.
- Publish a 2–3 minute explainer video and begin KOL outreach.[file:81]
Week 5–6: Whitelist & Partnership Campaign
- Launch merchant whitelist and early‑access waitlist with referral incentives.
- Secure 2–3 media or fintech/ecommerce publication partners.
- Begin outbound merchant recruitment to target segments.[file:81]
Pre‑Launch Budget
| Line Item |
Cost |
Notes |
| Website design & hosting |
$3,000 |
Professional Webflow or custom site |
| Content (5 posts + video) |
$2,500 |
Freelance writers and editor |
| Social media management |
$2,000 |
6 weeks at ~$300/week |
| Influencer partnerships |
$5,000 |
3–5 KOLs, mainly nano/micro‑influencers |
| Email platform (6 months) |
$600 |
ConvertKit/Mailchimp |
| Paid ads (Twitter, LinkedIn, Google) |
$6,000 |
Awareness and retargeting |
| PR & press outreach |
$3,000 |
Crypto/fintech media pitches |
| Community tools |
$500 |
Discord bots, moderation tooling |
| Design & graphics |
$1,500 |
Logo refinement, brand system |
| Contingency |
$800 |
Unexpected creative or media needs |
| Subtotal |
$25,000 |
|
3. Phase 1: Web2 Build & Merchant Onboarding (Days 46–130)
Objective
Ship a fully functional Web2 loyalty platform, onboard 5–10 pilot merchants, and validate early ARR and product‑market fit signals.[file:81]
Build Team & Core Features
- Full‑stack engineer, tech lead/architect, frontend engineer, DevOps, QA tester, UI/UX designer.[file:81]
- Features: vendor signup, customer accounts, product catalog, POS, payment integration, token balance, redemption, dashboards, admin console.[file:81]
Phase 1 Budget (Mid‑Range)
| Category |
Low |
Mid |
High |
| Headcount |
$55K |
$81K |
$197K |
| Infrastructure |
$1.6K |
$1.6K |
$1.6K |
| Software & tools |
$1.6K |
$1.6K |
$1.6K |
| Security & legal |
$4K |
$8K |
$42K |
| Contingency |
$12.2K |
$18.8K |
$31.6K |
| Phase 1 total |
$74K |
$111K |
$244K |
Merchant Onboarding
Phase 1 targets 5–10 pilot merchants across subscription boxes, indie ecommerce, SaaS, crypto‑native communities, and service businesses with a structured 8‑day onboarding and go‑live process.[file:81]
4. Sales & Marketing Strategy – Merchant Acquisition
Merchant Personas
- Growth‑Hungry Indie: $500K–$5M revenue, wants 3–5x repeat purchase lift.[file:81]
- Subscription Manager: $1M–$20M revenue, focused on churn reduction.[file:81]
- Marketplace / Platform: $5M–$100M+ revenue, wants white‑label loyalty.[file:81]
- Crypto‑Native Community: Web3 projects seeking tokenized loyalty.[file:81]
Channel Budget & Outcomes (Year 1)
| Channel |
Budget |
Expected Merchants |
Estimated CAC |
| Direct sales |
$40,000 |
30–50 |
$800–1,300 |
| Partnerships |
$25,000 |
20–40 |
$625–1,250 |
| Content / organic |
$15,000 |
20–30 |
$500–750 |
| Paid ads |
$20,000 |
10–15 |
$1,300–2,000 |
| Community / referral |
$10,000 |
10–20 |
$500–1,000 |
| Events & sponsorships |
$10,000 |
5–10 |
$1,000–2,000 |
| Total |
$120,000 |
95–165 |
|
5. Sales & Marketing Strategy – Customer Acquisition
Customers (end buyers) are primarily acquired through merchant promotion, making NovaVault a merchant‑driven network with very attractive customer unit economics.[file:81]
Year 1 Customer Budget
| Item |
Cost |
Driver |
| Marketing kit creation |
$2,000 |
Merchant‑side promotion assets |
| Email platforms |
$2,000 |
Merchant + customer messaging |
| Referral token incentives |
$10,000 |
Customer referral loop |
| Paid ads (seed customers) |
$3,000 |
Top‑of‑funnel awareness |
| Community & content |
$3,000 |
Discord, education |
| Customer success support |
$5,000 |
Help desk, email |
| Website & landing pages |
$2,000 |
Directory, signup flows |
| Contingency |
$3,000 |
Unplanned campaigns |
| Total |
$30,000 |
|