To sum this up: ICO means crypto sale before they do anything practical. A lot of people are scared of ICOs scamming because they are not regulated and many ICOs have been nothing more than a way of raising money fast for some.

But there is a way around it. Projects that do have a plan and a practical idea behind the whitepaper will offer bounties and other ways to get the crypto for free. Because the true purpose of a project that wants to succeed is to make people aware of the coin and to use it.

For any football fans around, there is a football manager that pays crypto. No investment needed. Just to play the game. It can be then exchanged into btc or other bigger altcoins. It is called FootballCoin.