Please describe your proposed solution.

Our proposed solution is the creation and maintenance of an NFT Help Desk, a dedicated platform designed to aid newcomers, developers, and project creators in navigating the Cardano NFT ecosystem with ease. This Help Desk will provide accessible information about technical aspects, standards, best practices, and even specific issues pertaining to NFTs on Cardano.

We perceive the problem as a barrier to entry and successful participation in the Cardano NFT ecosystem. With the rapid growth and evolution of the NFT space, there's a significant amount of information and knowledge required to operate effectively. For newcomers, and even for those already active in the ecosystem, staying informed about the latest standards, best practices, and technical considerations can be a daunting task. This barrier can inhibit the growth of the ecosystem and restrict the inflow of fresh ideas and innovative projects.

Our approach leverages the diverse skills and backgrounds of the global NFT Guild team. Our team members, spread across various time zones, offer a broad spectrum of expertise in Cardano, covering areas like development, stake pool operations, art, NFT project creation, community management, organization and project Catalyst. This diversity enables us to cater to a wide range of inquiries and provide relevant, informed assistance.

Our primary engagement will be with Cardano NFT developers and project creators interested in the NFT space on Cardano. Our services will be available to the entire community and anyone interested in learning more about NFTs on Cardano.

The impact of our solution will be evaluated through user feedback and the level of engagement with the NFT Help Desk. We plan to run this as a 6 month trial. We will measure the number of inquiries processed and the variety of issues addressed.

What makes our solution unique is our hands-on approach to fostering growth in the Cardano NFT ecosystem. While there are plenty of resources for general NFT information, a dedicated Help Desk for Cardano-specific NFTs, manned by a team with a broad range of expertise, is a novelty.

The Cardano ecosystem will benefit from this solution as it will facilitate more informed and effective participation in the NFT space. By making it easier for individuals to understand and navigate the ecosystem, we can foster a more vibrant and innovative community. Furthermore, it emphasizes Cardano's commitment to community engagement and support, promoting its reputation as a welcoming and collaborative environment.

The NFT Guild is dedicated to developing standards and building tools for the Cardano NFT community.

In the last year, the NFT Guild has successfully organized over 20 roundtable events, bringing together prominent developers and thought leaders in the Cardano NFT space. These events have provided a wealth of information and deep insights into the evolution of the Cardano NFT ecosystem. For a full presentation of that project see our Developer Community Initiatives proposal <https://cardano.ideascale.com/c/idea/102361> and the Roundtable Archive on our website <https://www.nft-guild.io/the-nft-roundtable> .

How does your proposed solution address the challenge and what benefits will this bring to the Cardano ecosystem?

Our proposed solution directly addresses the challenge by providing a much-needed support structure in the form of a dedicated NFT Help Desk. This is in line with the challenge's aim of equipping and supporting developers with tools and working infrastructure to make Cardano the first choice for building dApps and innovating.

Our solution will have a significant impact on the Cardano ecosystem in several ways:

1. Lowering the Entry Barrier for Developers: Our NFT Help Desk will serve as a go-to resource for developers, offering them valuable guidance and information about Cardano's NFT ecosystem. This lowers the entry barrier by providing readily available support and clarifications on technical capabilities, standards, and best practices.
2. Boosting Developer Productivity: With the help of our Help Desk, developers can quickly find answers to their queries, saving them time spent on researching and troubleshooting. This allows them to focus on what they do best - building and innovating.
3. Attracting Developers from Outside: The presence of a dedicated Help Desk can act as a magnet for developers from outside the current Cardano community. The assurance of readily available assistance makes Cardano an appealing choice for developers new to the ecosystem.
4. Community Engagement and Growth: By providing a reliable platform where inquiries are addressed effectively, we're fostering a supportive environment that not only retains current community members but also attracts new ones.

In terms of quantifiable metrics, our project's impact can be measured through:

1. Number of Inquiries Processed: This provides a direct indicator of the number of developers and community members we are assisting.
2. Variety of Issues Addressed: This metric gives insight into the diverse range of queries and problems we help solve, indicating the breadth of our support.
3. Number of Active Users: An increase in active users signifies that the help desk is beneficial and actively used by the community.

Overall, our NFT Help Desk contributes to the strategic goal of Cardano by nurturing a vibrant developer community and paving the way for an increase in open-source projects, particularly within the NFT space on Cardano.

How do you intend to measure the success of your project?

The success of our project, the Cardano NFT Help Desk, will be evaluated based on both quantitative and qualitative measures.

Quantitative Measures:

1. Number of Inquiries Processed: Tracking the number of inquiries our Help Desk handles gives us a straightforward metric to quantify the direct assistance we're providing to the community. This serves as a numerical performance indicator for our Help Desk's activity and effectiveness.
2. Variety of Issues Addressed: This metric indicates the breadth of our Help Desk's expertise and utility. By categorizing and keeping track of the different types of issues we address, we can measure our success in providing comprehensive assistance on a wide range of topics related to the Cardano NFT ecosystem.
3. Number of Active Users: Tracking the growth in the number of active users using our Help Desk will allow us to measure the increased engagement and reliance on our services, indicating our contribution to supporting the Cardano community's growth.

Qualitative Measures:

1. Community Feedback: We will actively solicit feedback from the users of our Help Desk to understand their experiences, the quality of assistance provided, and the areas where we can improve. This feedback is essential in determining the perceived value and efficacy of our Help Desk.
2. Use Case Stories: Successful resolutions to complex or non-standard issues often lead to compelling use case stories. Documenting and sharing these success stories not only validates the Help Desk's effectiveness but also serves as educational material for the community.
3. Increased Understanding and Adoption of Cardano NFT Standards and Best Practices: While this is more difficult to measure directly, signs of increased understanding and adoption can be inferred from the nature of inquiries over time, community discussions, and the number of NFT projects successfully launched following Cardano's standards and best practices.

These measures provide us with a good overview of our project's success, offering insights into not only the numerical performance but also the qualitative impact on the Cardano ecosystem's growth and productivity. Short term, our Help Desk will directly assist developers and the community, thereby facilitating more effective and efficient development within the Cardano NFT space. Long term, by increasing understanding and adherence to standards and best practices, our project contributes to the robustness and maturity of the Cardano ecosystem.

Please describe your plans to share the outputs and results of your project?

We want to ensure that the Cardano NFT Help Desk's existence and free availability are well communicated and shared with the wider community. Here's our plan to accomplish this:

Initial Publicity: Upon the launch of the Help Desk, we will make an announcement via all of our existing communication channels, such as our website, social media platforms, to inform the community about this new service. This will include clear instructions on how to access and utilize the Help Desk.

Regular Updates: We plan to provide monthly or bi-monthly reports about the Help Desk activities to maintain transparency and keep the community engaged. These reports will contain anonymized and aggregated statistics about the types of inquiries received, number of users assisted, and a selection of use-case stories that highlight complex problems solved. These reports will serve as a constant reminder of the Help Desk's availability and a testament to its ongoing value to the community.

Collaboration with Other Entities: We will also work closely with other organizations within the Cardano ecosystem to help spread the word about our Help Desk. This could involve joint announcements and guest posts.

As for further research and development, the data and insights collected from the Help Desk will be invaluable. We will use insights from the Help Desk inquiries to identify common issues or misconceptions within the community and develop our other Guild initiatives with a consideration for these observations. We will use this information to identify gaps in knowledge or resources within the community, areas of high interest or complexity, and potential improvements in Cardano's NFT standards and best practices. This can feed into the ongoing work of the NFT Guild and also guide the development of new tools, resources, and services that address these needs.

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability?

The NFT Guild is dedicated to developing standards and building tools for the Cardano NFT community.

Founded by the Cardano Foundation in November 2021, the NFT Guild is now spearheaded by dedicated Cardano community members. Our team stands out because of its diversity, boasting a range of backgrounds and areas of expertise that include developers, stake pool operators (SPOs), artists, NFT project creators, community managers, and organizers. (More details below)

We have a proven track record of successfully organising events for the Cardano NFT community for over a year and a half. We started hosting the NFT Guild Open Community Weekly Calls in January 2022 and the NFT Roundtables in May 2022.

We were successfully funded for two standard setting proposals in Catalyst Fund 8, which we have successfully delivered on and closed out.

Standard for verification of NFTs:

<https://projectcatalyst.io/funds/8/f8-open-standards-and-interoperability/standard-for-verification-of-nfts>

NFT Royalty Standards:

<https://projectcatalyst.io/funds/8/f8-open-standards-and-interoperability/nft-guild-nft-royalty-standards>

We have robust processes in place to ensure proper management and accountability of funds. We have created a dedicated system for tracking the contributions of each guild member. All fund movements are transparently tracked in dedicated channels in our Discord server: <https://discord.gg/7HCxDryPHk>

Our operations are transparent, and we maintain an open line of communication with the community and stakeholders at all times. This approach has earned us the trust of the Cardano community, and we remain committed to maintaining these high standards on this new project.

What are the main goals for the project and how will you validate if your approach is feasible?

The overall goals of the NFT Guild is to encourage and assist in developing standards and building tools for the Cardano NFT community.

The specific goals of this project are:

Establish and Maintain the NFT Help Desk: The core objective is to set up and sustain a fully functional NFT Help Desk to serve as a reliable information resource for the Cardano NFT community.

Provide Timely and Quality Assistance to the Community: The Help Desk should deliver high-quality, relevant, and timely assistance to all users. This means resolving inquiries to the best of our abilities, ideally within a reasonable response time, and providing clear, comprehensive solutions to the problems presented.

Promote the Accessibility and Awareness of the Help Desk: The Help Desk should not only exist but should be widely known and utilized within the community. This means successfully publicizing the service, and actively encouraging its use among community members, especially those new to the Cardano NFT ecosystem.

Identify and Act Upon Common Themes or Issues: The Help Desk should also serve as a source of insights about the most common or pressing issues, misconceptions, or areas of interest within the Cardano NFT ecosystem. The NFT Guild should use this information to inform its ongoing and future initiatives.

Validation of Feasibility:

Set Up and Sustain the Help Desk: The launch of the Help Desk and its sustained operation over the six-month trial period will be the primary indicator of the feasibility of this goal.

Quality of Assistance Provided: By recording the nature of inquiries and the solutions provided, we can evaluate the effectiveness of the assistance provided. Success stories, where complex issues have been resolved, can serve as qualitative indicators of the quality of assistance.

Track the Usage of the Help Desk: We will monitor the number of inquiries received and handled by the Help Desk. A consistent or increasing volume of usage over time will indicate success in raising awareness and promoting the Help Desk's accessibility.

Analysis of Inquiry Data: By categorizing and analyzing the data collected from the inquiries, we can identify common themes or issues, and track how these evolve over time. This will indicate whether the Help Desk is fulfilling its role as a source of community insights.

These validations will involve both qualitative assessments (such as the evaluation of the quality of assistance provided) and quantitative metrics (like the number of inquiries handled). This comprehensive approach will ensure that the project's success is evaluated thoroughly over the entire time of the project.

Please provide a detailed breakdown of your project’s milestones and each of the main tasks or activities to reach the milestone plus the expected timeline for the delivery.

Milestone 1 - Set Up, Initial Operations and Promotion (Months 1 & 2)

Key Activities:

• Internal project roadmap and coordination within the NFT Guild Team: Initial team meetings to produce a clear and actionable plan for the operation and management of the Help Desk.
• Set up the necessary infrastructure: This includes establishing the help desk platform and preparing the necessary resources and materials. (Currently we are looking at offering the Help Desk both in Discord, as tickets, and as a standalone service via Freshdesk)
• Develop a promotion strategy: Create a plan to publicize the Help Desk through our website, social media channels, and collaborative efforts with other entities within the Cardano ecosystem.
• Launch the Help Desk: Make the service available to the community.
• Initiate promotion activities: Execute the promotion plan to raise awareness and encourage the use of the Help Desk.
• Initial operations: The first 2 months of operations.

Success Criteria:

Successful coordination and planning within the team.

Successful setup and launch of the Help Desk.

Successful execution of initial promotion activities.

Number of inquiries received and addressed in the first 2 months of operations.

Milestone 2 - Continuation of Operations, Further Promotion and Initial Report (Months 3 & 4)

Key Activities:

• Continued operations: Maintain regular Help Desk operations, answering queries and assisting users.
• Further promotion: Continue executing the promotion plan, with possible adjustments based on feedback and observed trends from the initial two months.
• Preparation of the initial report: Analyze data collected from the first two months of operation, prepare an initial report detailing the activities, successes, and challenges encountered.

Success Criteria:

Continued functioning of the Help Desk.

Increased awareness and usage of the Help Desk, as measured by the number of inquiries.

Successful preparation and publication of the initial report.

Milestone 3 - Continuation of Operations, Further Promotion, Intermediary Report & Final Report (Months 5 & 6)

Key Activities:

• Continued operations: Maintain regular Help Desk operations, continuing to address user queries.
• Further promotion: Continue executing the promotion plan, making adjustments based on the insights gained from the initial report.
• Preparation of the intermediary and final reports: Analyze data collected over the period, prepare reports detailing the activities, successes, challenges encountered, and insights gained.

Success Criteria:

Continued functioning of the Help Desk.

Increased awareness and usage of the Help Desk, as evidenced by the volume of inquiries.

Successful preparation and publication of the intermediary and final reports.

The exact timeline and cost to achieve each milestone will be provided in the next questions.

Regular meetings will be held to review progress and make any necessary adjustments. The project will follow an iterative process, allowing for regular feedback and adjustments to optimize the performance and impact of the Help Desk.

Please describe the deliverables, outputs and intended outcomes of each milestone.

Milestone 1 - Set Up, Initial Operations and Promotion (Months 1 & 2)

Deliverables & Outputs:

1. A fully functional Help Desk platform.
2. Evidence of Help Desk promotion.
3. Initial usage data collected from the operation of the Help Desk.

Intended Outcomes:

• An operational Help Desk service, ready to assist the community with NFT-related issues.
• Increased awareness within the community about the Help Desk through our promotion efforts.

Tracking Progress:

• We will measure the progress through the successful completion of key tasks like Help Desk setup, and the implementation of promotion strategies.
• We will also monitor the number of inquiries received by the Help Desk as an indicator of community awareness and engagement.

Milestone 2 - Continuation of Operations, Further Promotion and Initial Report (Months 3 & 4)

Deliverables & Outputs:

1. Ongoing operation of the Help Desk.
2. An initial report containing data analysis of the first two months of operation.

Intended Outcomes:

• A well-functioning Help Desk that continues to provide value to the community.
• Transparency regarding Help Desk operations and insights shared with the community through the initial report.

Tracking Progress:

• Continuity of Help Desk operations and the volume of inquiries will be key indicators of progress.
• The successful preparation and sharing of the initial report.

Milestone 3 - Continuation of Operations, Further Promotion, Intermediary Report & Final Report (Months 5 & 6)

Deliverables & Outputs:

1. Ongoing operation of the Help Desk.
2. An intermediary and final report containing data analysis of the entire period of operation.

Intended Outcomes:

• A well-functioning Help Desk that adds value to the Cardano community.
• Transparent sharing of insights, challenges, and successes through the intermediary and final reports.

Tracking Progress:

• The continuity of Help Desk operations and the volume of inquiries will continue to be key indicators of progress.
• The successful preparation and sharing of the intermediary and final reports.

Across all milestones, we will measure the project's progress by tracking the completion of these deliverables and outcomes.

Please provide a detailed budget breakdown of the proposed work and resources.

All received funds will be fed into a project's Treasury. From there the funds will be distributed to project contributors.

The NFT Guild will coordinate all project-related activities and operations and will ensure a fair reward to participating contributors.

Given that this proposal is attempting something without precedent it is a very hard to accurately estimate the number of cases and inquiries the help desk would process in the first six months of operations. Consequently we decided to rely on establishing an average monthly pot, from which we will pay any and all NFT Guild core members who take up and process cases during any given month. After the first months of operation we expect to be able to estimate the volume of cases and of time needed to address them much better. However for the first 6 months we decided to set the average pot amount at 10000 ADA/month.

In addition to the Help Desk inquiries the project will also require a series of extra tasks:

• Help Desk infrastructure setup
• Promotional plan preparations and coordination
• Execution of the initial promotional campaign and continued promotion throughout the first 6 months
• Data collection and analysis report x 3
• Catalyst Administrative Tasks (monthly reports + milestone proof of achievement submissions + closeout report)

Total: (10000*6)+28400 = 88400 ADA

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

The NFT Guild core team is a global team comprised of individuals with a diverse set of skills and backgrounds. Our team members are spread across various time zones and can offer a broad range of expertise in Cardano and NFTs, covering areas like development, stake pool operations, art, NFT project creation, community management, organization and project Catalyst.

The NFT Guild Core members are:

CENT

<https://github.com/cent-development>

Stake Pool operator of the pool CENT since December 2019. 20 years of experience in software development. Creator of the community tool Cardano Blockchain Intelligence. Graduate of the Plutus Pioneers Program cohort 1, 2021. Project Catalyst funded proposer since F6.

Anamaria Kövesdi (New Mindflow)

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/anamaria-k%C3%B6vesdi-354649106/>

Rares Kövesdi (New Mindflow)

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/rares-k%C3%B6vesdi-551260106/>

New Mindflow [https://www.newmindflow.com] are:

Artist and entrepreneur, in the Cardano NFT space since Day 1. Creators of the Trybbles & Icons Cardano NFT projects. Cardano Project Catalyst funded proposers. Members in various Cardano & Catalyst projects, initiatives & communities over the past 2 and a half years.

Award-winning filmmakers, film and animation directors, app and game developers.

In January 2021 they moved into the web3 economy granting new life to one of their projects in the form of an NFT collection on Cardano.

Since then they have released multiple art NFT collections on Cardano, and have been involved in multiple NFT and Cardano related groups and organisations, most notably being core members of the NFT Guild. They have been invited to be among the Genesis Artists of Fibo - the Emurgo NFT Marketplace at its launch in 2022.

Peter Wolcott

Peter is an IT Journeyman Wizard & custom(er) service provider. For fun, he hikes in his local ridges, tends a small menagerie, enjoys global community, ecstatic dance and manages a rental property. Peter believes strong, healthy communities and networks are the world's best resource. He is dedicated to unblocking fellow builders by creating opportunities and following through with personal promises. He is a student of humanity’s systems and infrastructure. Peter earns experience daily in the Cardano Ecosystem and has for the past 2 years.

<https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-wolcott-013358141/>

How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

Our cost calculations are primarily based on the estimated effort and the number of hours we believe will be required to effectively run this initiative. Given that this is a new initiative, without a previous equivalent to base our calculations on, we used an average estimation that we think is both fair and realistic. Future iterations of this project will be informed by the insights and observations we will gather during the first six months of the Help Desk operations.

In terms of our personnel costs, we've used the same hourly rates as in our Developer Community Initiatives proposal. Our team is comprised of members from across the globe, and the rates we used represent an average.

We anticipate that the Help Desk will provide significant value for the money for the Cardano ecosystem. It will serve as a unique resource center for NFT-related matters, offering guidance and clarity, and thereby enhancing the overall user experience in the ecosystem. It will also provide crucial insights into common challenges and gaps within the community, which will guide future developments and improvements in the Cardano NFT landscape. This long-term benefit makes the project a cost-effective and worthwhile investment for Cardano.