Remember the “information superhighway”? How about “New Media”? They sound quaint now, but this is how the internet (which, incidentally, was spelt with a capital “I” back then) and digital media/online content, respectively, were hyped back in the late 20th century.
The same thing will happen to Web3. When we look back years from now, we will also cringe at how we referred to many things related to Web3. Especially by how people talked and acted to show they’re part of the Web3 in-crowd and that they’re so much cooler and smarter than “normies”.
It’s this kind of us-versus-them effect, to use the psychological term, that we need to guard against in our efforts to make Web3 more mainstream and extend its benefits to more people. It’s one thing to embrace Web3 and champion it. It’s quite another to alienate the very people we’re trying to educate and onboard by talking over them and turning them off with technical jargon and toxic behaviour.
For Web3 to truly become mainstream, it must disappear into the background and become integrated with the way we work and play. Just like what happened with Web1 in the first place. Once upon a time, email and websites were frighteningly new and complicated platforms for the average user, but thanks to advances in technology and better user interfaces, we now just take them for granted.
Here are three ways we can help make Web3 disappear.
Embrace what’s good, discard what’s bad
As I’ve said in a previous article, I’m firmly in the camp of Web3 revolutionaries. This doesn’t mean, however, that I will condone the toxicity of some Web3 people, particularly on crypto Twitter.
We can embrace the Web3 ethos of decentralisation, empowerment, transparency, and community without adopting the excesses of the internet subculture that has sprung up around cryptocurrency.
Obviously, it’s not limited to crypto Twitter, but it’s also true that many crypto bros revel in toxic masculinity. It’s actually quite laughable how content and engagement on crypto Twitter have been reduced to memes and tropes, which everyone then wants to emulate.
Also Read: Web3 marketing: Building a cult-like community
Becoming a Web3 builder involves more than creating memes, shitposting, calling people MFers, saying this project will go to the moon, and so on. Social media has always been a form of performance art, but it’s become even worse on Web3, especially when it comes to NFT projects that are vaporware relying on the cult of personality and shilling powers of the founders.
It would be sad if Web3 ended up replicating the bad practices of Web2 marketing, such as paying influencers, using bots, and buying followers. As individuals and as communities, I believe we can learn from both Web2 and Web3, adapt what’s useful, and discard what’s not.
The so-called conflict between Web2 people and Web3 people is based on two extreme views, both of which are wrong.
On the one hand, it’s the mistaken belief of Web2 people that they can just waltz in and succeed in Web3. And on the other hand, it’s the misconception of Web3 people that they have nothing to learn from Web2 people.
If we truly want more people to embrace Web3, however, then we have to set aside our egos and work together. Again, let’s get rid of the us-versus-them mentality.
Keep it simple, stupid
One of the biggest challenges to onboarding the general public to Web3, however, is that the process is too complicated and tedious for the average user.
Imagine being excited to play a Web3 game. Only realize that you first have to buy NFTs to play the game. But wait, you need to connect your crypto wallet first to buy the NFT. So you create a crypto wallet, going through each step of the tedious process, including writing down your seed phrase.
So now you can finally play the game, right? Nope, now you have to load your wallet with cryptocurrency to buy the NFTs. You have to understand which blockchain the game is using, as that will determine the cryptocurrency you need to buy, as well as the gas fees.
Yes, play-to-earn showed us that the prospect of earning money could motivate people to put up with horrible user onboarding experiences and technical jargon. But as the subsequent decline of play-to-earn proved, this is hardly sustainable–and will not allow Web3 gaming to become mainstream.
The reality is that most gamers aren’t motivated by chance to earn money but see games as a form of entertainment. Which they are and should be. So we need to focus on making fun games and providing a good user experience to the players who are migrating to Web3.
This is why educating people about Web3 is not enough. Why are we putting the burden on users and requiring them to know how to create a crypto wallet and buy cryptocurrency? Instead, we should simplify the process.
Also Read: The future of lifestyle tech: How Rebase is leveraging Web3 to enhance real-world interactions
Thankfully, this is already happening with the second generation of Web3 games. For instance, some of them have a free-to-play option so that people won’t be required to buy NFTs before finding out if the game is actually fun. Also, some games automatically create a wallet for the player and allow them to pay via credit cards or other non-crypto means.
Focus on customer benefits, not technology
When we withdraw from the ATM, we don’t care about learning the technology that makes this possible. All we want is to get our money. The same thing goes for switching on the TV, using our mobile devices, or buying things online.
Sure, we may occasionally geek out over gadgets. But generally, as consumers, we don’t really care about knowing the technology behind the things we buy and use. And we shouldn’t have to. Because what we are concerned with is what benefits we’ll get from using these devices, not which microprocessor is powering them or what technology was used for higher-resolution video quality.
This is the mistake many Web3 companies make when they focus on talking about their technology instead of communicating the customer benefits.
As Reddit Head of Global Client Solutions Neal Hubman said, what made the Reddit NFT launch wildly successful was that they didn’t refer to them as NFTs and made the backend technology invisible to their users.
“‘The consumer doesn’t care about [jargon],’ Hubman said. ‘The industry will continue to evolve and make it easier to onboard to Web3 whether they know it or not. I’d just like to encourage everyone to remove the jargon and speak like a normal human or brand, and you’ll be a lot more accessible and approachable.’”
Another great example is Starbucks Odyssey, which seamlessly integrates Web3 into its existing Starbucks Rewards loyalty program. Their customers get to enjoy new gamified experiences and unlock digital collectibles that come with real-world benefits. All without having to worry about technical jargon.
Web3 is the future. It will shape society in ways we might not even be able to imagine for now. But this will only happen when Web3 disappears and becomes part of everything we do.
Now, isn’t that more meaningful than diamond hands and laser eyes?
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