How to sell datasets

This guide outlines the process of uploading and selling data on Ouro. We'll cover the essential steps including data upload, creator onboarding, and effective sales and marketing strategies. By following this guide, you'll learn how to successfully monetize your data on our platform.

Introduction

Ouro is a social collaborative platform that reimagines the role of data on an online platform. It combines the connectivity of social media with tools to use the data in unlimited ways, allowing users to upload, share, and elevate various types of data including images, videos, and datasets.

Users can incorporate their previously uploaded data into new posts, or leverage APIs created by others to transform their data.

This creates a dynamic environment where your data becomes more than just content—it's a valuable, foundational asset that can be continuously used in new ways.

1. Get started

If you already have specific data in mind for Ouro, you can skip this part. However, it's valuable to understand what makes data marketable and why someone might pay for it.

What kind of data to sell?

Ouro supports a wide range of data types and formats. If you have data, there's likely a way to monetize it on the platform.

Here are some categories of datasets that tend to sell well:

• Industry-specific datasets (e.g., healthcare, retail, energy)
• Demographic and behavioral data
• Financial and economic data
• Geospatial and location-based data
• Machine learning and AI training data
• Proprietary research findings

The key to success is packaging your data in a way that's accessible and valuable to potential buyers. Clean, well-structured datasets with clear documentation are always in demand.

Consider these qualities when preparing your data:

1. Uniqueness: What makes your data stand out from freely available sources?
2. Comprehensiveness: Does your dataset offer a complete picture of the subject matter?
3. Timeliness: How current is your data, and how often is it updated?
4. Accuracy: Can you vouch for the reliability and precision of your data?
5. Potential applications: What insights or solutions can your data provide?

Focus on your unique strengths and domain expertise. Whether you're an industry insider, a researcher, or a data enthusiast, your specialized knowledge can translate into valuable data products. By understanding the market and presenting your data effectively, you'll find an audience eager for your offerings.

2. Monetization onboarding

Before you can start earning on Ouro, you need to configure your account for monetization. Here's what you need to do:

1. If you haven't already, create an account with Ouro. Get started for free.
2. Go to your Payment settings.
3. Click the button that says, Monetization onboarding

4. You'll be redirected to a Stripe form. Follow the instructions provided.
5. You're ready to start selling. You should see your account status for monetization become active.

Once you've completed these steps, you'll have access to Ouro's suite of seller tools. You can start creating and managing your data products right away.

3. Create the dataset

The platform is designed to be a seamless extension of your existing data workflow, not a replacement for it. Here's how it typically goes:

1. Off-platform data collection: Ouro doesn't dictate how you gather or create your data. That part happens off-platform, using whatever tools and methods work best for you. Maybe you're extracting data from internal systems, scraping it from the web, or generating it algorithmically. The key is to get your data into a clean, structured format that's ready for upload.
2. Uploading your dataset: When your data is ready, it's time to bring it to Ouro. Use the Add Earth form and follow the prompts to upload your dataset. Ouro will automatically handle everything else for you.
3. Fill out the form: Choose the data you want to upload from your local file system. A good name and description will help other users discover and understand the data. Alternatively, you can upload from the API.
4. Configure monetization: The Access section of the form is where you configure monetization. Select Monetized to bring up additional configuration options.

5. Finishing up: When you've configured everything the way you want, click the "Create dataset" button at the end of the form. The data will be uploaded and you'll be redirected to your asset.

4. Share your dataset to socials

You've created a dataset and listed it on Ouro - now it's time to get the word out. One of the most effective ways to promote your asset is by leveraging existing social networks.

As soon as you create your dataset, you'll see a popup to share the asset to socials. Use these buttons to share to easily share to your existing networks.

You can bring up this interface at any time to retrieve the asset's URL and the share buttons by clicking the visibility button under "Shared with" in the bottom right corner of the header card.

Ouro automatically creates a public version of your asset that you can share with anyone, even if they don't have an account on Ouro yet. They'll be able to see a preview of the dataset and other metadata. They won't have access to the full data until they buy your asset.

The public view is what most people that see your social media posts will see. Send this page around to convert your network into customers. It's worth spending the time and effort crafting a good dataset name and description so that it will grab the curiosity of potential customers.

5. Share your dataset on Ouro

In addition to sharing to social media, you should share your creations on Ouro as well. Create a Post to get the word out to the platform and start marketing your dataset.

You'll reach users on the platform that are already customers of other assets on the platform. This also means the friction of converting them to a customer lower than when they come from socials.

1. Create a post: Use the Add Air form to create a new post. You'll likely want to keep the visibility of the post public so that you can reach as many users as possible.
2. Reference the dataset you're selling: In the post you're writing, create a connection to your dataset by clicking the "Insert asset" button in the editor toolbar. This will allow users to easily navigate to the dataset you're selling. Even if your post is public,
3. Join and engage with relevant teams: Teams are a great way to find interested potential customers. Engage with these communities and establish yourself as someone there to help.

3. Choose an inline preview: For some posts, it might make sense to include the actual data of the dataset you're selling as a part of the post itself. You can choose to show the data in the post, however the user will only see a placeholder until they have purchased the dataset.

6. Continue to create

After you've announced the availability of your new dataset, there's more you can do to help spread interest in your creation. Continue to create public posts on Ouro, each time focusing on how your dataset is relevant and valuable to your prospective customers.

Supporting content can take many forms & focuses; this is by no mean a comprehensive list:

• Educating about the problem your dataset solves
• Sharing case studies or success stories from users of your dataset
• Demonstrating practical applications or use cases for your dataset
• Comparing your dataset to other available sources, emphasizing its unique value
• Providing snippets or samples of your data to give potential buyers a taste
• Sharing behind-the-scenes information on how you collected or processed the data

Most of all, focus on making valuable contributions to the Ouro community. The most effective approach is to provide genuine value and insights, allowing the quality of your data to speak for itself. By consistently sharing helpful information and engaging meaningfully with others, you'll naturally attract interest in your dataset without resorting to overt sales tactics.