| Initiative Title | ZKsync Institutional Narrative Experiment |
|---|---|
| RFP Category | Product Marketing and Community Activation |
| Duration | 10-week experimental phase |
| Budget | 833k ZK (~$15k USD equivalent) |
| Submission Deadline | 20 March; first review closes 3 days after posting |
| # of Recipients | 1 |
Program Background
As the administrator of the Community Activation Token Program Proposal (TPP), the ZKsync Foundation will issue Requests for Proposals (RFPs) to achieve outcomes aligned with the scope of the Community Activation initiative.
For information on how an RFP works, and how RFPs are different from a grants program, please read this post.
RFP 3: ZKsync Institutional Narrative Experiment
This RFP requests proposals to design and execute a community activation experiment, deployable over a maximum of 10 weeks, to test scalable models for community-driven narrative development and amplification around ZKsync’s institutional positioning within the Ethereum ecosystem.
The goal is to explore how coordinated, high-quality participation—through analytical content creation, factual discourse, and targeted engagement—can strengthen ZKsync’s institutional narrative, particularly emphasizing its role as an extension of Ethereum that enables privacy, compliance, and liquidity access for institutions via the ZK Stack and Prividium.
Proposals should structure the campaign as a series of sequential phases (e.g., thematic “waves”) to build a coherent narrative arc, with independent evaluation per phase and overall synthesis. The experiment must prioritize factual, analytical, and institutional-grade content while rigorously controlling for quality, spam, and narrative drift.
Example Focus Areas
- Institutional Positioning : Amplification of ZKsync as Ethereum’s institutional extension, using messaging such as “The Bank Stack of Ethereum” to highlight alignment rather than competition.
- Prividium Education : Community-created explainers, threads, and analyses on Prividium’s architecture—focusing on privacy-preserving execution, Ethereum-anchored security, compliance features, and interoperability without exposing sensitive data.
- Narrative Discipline : Engagement from Ethereum-native researchers, ZK/L2 analysts, infrastructure builders, and institutional commentators to foster high-signal discussion on privacy, liquidity, and regulatory alignment.
The ideal proposal will treat this as a structured, measurable experiment with gating/review processes, transparent quality controls, and public-facing learnings to inform future institutional activations.
Budget
The maximum budget which may be distributed for this community activation initiative is 833k ZK (~$15k USD equivalent at the program’s standard reference rate).
Funds will be distributed in tranches to the selected administrator:
- 50% at program start
- 50% after mid-term evaluation
Proposal Requirements
Proposals for this RFP should include:
- Approach & Methodology – Describe the experimental structure (e.g., phased waves with defined missions), content activation and participation plan, recruitment/gating of creators, quality review processes, anti-spam/sybil measures, and how narrative coherence will be maintained.
- KPIs & Metrics – Define measurable success indicators, including quantitative (e.g., impressions, engagement rate, unique participants, submission/approval volume, CPM/efficiency) and qualitative (e.g., technical accuracy, narrative alignment, institutional tone consistency, depth of Prividium explanations, reply/discourse quality).
- Team & Experience – Introduce the team, relevant experience in community activations, narrative campaigns, X-based programs, quality-moderated incentives, and any relevant tools or smart contract mechanisms for on-chain distribution.
- Budget & Timeline – Provide a detailed breakdown of costs and incentives across the 10-week period (e.g., prize pool allocation, execution/moderation/reporting split), with a recommended tranche structure and wave-by-wave timeline.
- Reporting Plan – Outline how progress and outcomes will be documented, including per-wave summaries (quantitative metrics, top content examples, narrative integrity notes), a final consolidated report with learnings, KPI baselines for scaling, and a curated library of high-quality outputs suitable for ecosystem reuse.
Please reference the RFP Proposal Guidelines & Template as a guide.
Evaluation Criteria
Proposals will be evaluated based on:
| Criterion | Description |
|---|---|
| Alignment with RFP Description | How effectively the proposal addresses institutional narrative building, Prividium education, Ethereum alignment, and disciplined community amplification. |
| Experiment Design | Clarity, structure (e.g., phased waves), scalability, quality gating/review mechanisms, and feedback loops for iteration. |
| Measurable Outcomes | Clear mix of quantitative and qualitative metrics, with robust data collection and anti-spam controls. |
| Community Experience | Demonstrated credibility and track record in high-signal community activations, content moderation, and incentive design that prioritizes quality over volume. |
| Cost Effectiveness | Sensible allocation within the budget cap (e.g., majority to prizes, remainder to execution/reporting) with strong expected impact per ZK spent. |
Submission Details
Deadline : Rolling submissions; first review period closes 3 days after posting. Submission period will end at 5pm UTC on 20 March 2026.
Submission Format : PDF submitted via this submission form.
Questions : Please post any questions related to this RFP in the discussion thread below.