Powering Blockchain Projects: Strategies for Cryptocurrency Community Development

A strong community is the lifeblood of your cryptocurrency startup.

The startups emerging in the cryptocurrency space have many common elements of companies that are driven by communities. It is quite practical to create a sustainable competitive advantage by building a highly motivated community of users who are investing in the project. And when the project succeeds they users would cherish their sense of ownership. Especially in the case of the cryptocurrency startups, the project supporters have skin in the game and a community can unlock the potent network effect to scale the project. In this post, we'll cover how to build a cryptocurrency community and its benefits in greater detail

One key factor to consider in the case of the crypto community is that, although the startup is highly technical, the community is purely people-centric. This means communities are not driven by algorithms and programming. Hence, understanding what connects people along with emotional quotient in the community owner is critical.

The general mindset for technology startups has been about attracting users with beautiful products developed with superior coding and technology infrastructure. That applies to cryptocurrency startups as well; however, the community is where the real advantage lies when it comes to long-term success, product adoption, and edge over competitors.

In short, the project would gain adoption, and users would be keen on helping if there is a community binding everyone associated with the startup.

Build a cryptocurrency community of stakeholders

Unlike traditional companies, where the users only care about a great product that works well and fulfill the needs, cryptocurrency startups are widely different. The users are the stakeholders in the cryptocurrency project. They are highly focused on the leaders of the project, the stake they have, the execution of the project, and the roadmap. The primary element is the financial gain that the members expect apart from being a part of the new (and better) technology.

Consider Bitcoin for example — even after close to 100 forks, BTC has captured the maximum market capital. Hence, the cryptocurrency projects are as successful as their loyal community members and supporters.

Robustness of the cryptocurrency community impacts the value

There is no tried and tested method to build a cryptocurrency community. However, we'd start with some common factors that have led to success in other companies and how it can be replicated in emerging crypto companies for community building.

The starting point is to distribute the token of your cryptocurrency in the hands of the maximum number of people. The early adopters of your tokens would be the ones who would be the most ardent supporters. Apart from a belief in the project, they also stand to gain financially -- so that's a big motivator.

During the initial period, projects such as Tezos managed to do well with ICOs and sold tokens to anyone who wanted to back the project. In the present day, when there are many government regulations, it has become relatively difficult to distribute tokens. with ICO. This has led to crypto startups to sell the tokens only to the accredited investors. Considering this, there are other ways to distribute tokens without breaking any regulations; for instance, the startup can allow anyone to start mining and launch on a date without creating a supply (i.e., no pre-sale of tokens). Another way is to take route of equity crowdfunding.

Promote valuable community discussion

Community discussions are valuable as the members get a platform to share knowledge, feedback, and project their notion. This is crucial as it impacts the sense of belongingness and contribution.  Generally, there are two types of communication - real-time discussions and discussions that are not in real-time.

Slack and Discord are completely dedicated to real-time discussion. However, with Bettermode, you can create both discussion forums as well as install a live chat module to enable real-time discussion. The key here is to accommodate as many people as possible in different discussion formats.

The primary reason being the preference changes with people - some members would love to discuss the technical aspects, roadmap while the others might simply want to consume the live updates as they happen. This way you can segregate different content formats, topics, and member preferences without compromising on discussions.

‍Bettermode's customer Komodo Platform, industry's first open, composable Smart Chain platform has launched an online community to promote knowledge-sharing in the blockchain space and improve the adoption of Komodo by educating and engaging the supporters.

Consider working with dedicated community managers and moderators to the discussion going in a safe and secure manner. It is always important to involve the members in the moderation process as well. That said, the leadership team must be active in the community discussions and share the vision and mitigate any speculations or queries. This is a great channel to strengthen the mission and value by reflecting the same in the community.

Acquire blockchain network users and developers

For the long-term success of your cryptocurrency project, it is crucial for you to acquire users of the network as well as those who would build, sustain, and develop the network. A branded community can attract and connect users apart from getting new users via referral.

Integrate a virtual currency system inside your community

Bettermode comes with an out-of-the-box solution for incentivization using virtual currencies. Reward users for favorable actions, incrase engagement and allow them to redeem the coins. For instance, you could reward them for the number of views and sign-ups from the content they create on your platform.

Protect project from controversial forks

When your community members have skin in the game and they are collectively working towards the success of your project, there would be fewer disputes around the direction of the project. And they would be easily solved in comparison to other projects without a coherent community.

Administer efficiently

Instead of relying on third-party apps for communication and moderation, take complete control of the community with Bettermode Community Platform. Reach your users easily via notification systems and answer swiftly without missing anything.

Innovate quickly

Blockchain project benefits immensely from the collective innovation generated from engaged users. Enable effective collaboration among community members, share knowledge, and foster valuable connections to become an innovative blockchain project.

Easily measure community health

Focus on the key metrics and take proactive action using our in-built reporting system. Extend the power of tracking mechanism by native integrations with other leading analytics tools such as Google Analytics, MixPanel, Segment.

Integrate with third-party apps

Enable various apps to improve the community’s functionalities — add polls, events, quickly integrate third-party apps, and customize. We have native integration with numerous leading apps ranging from Telegram, and Marketo to Hubspot and Slack.

Customize exactly the way you want

Bettermode's modular and white label approach to community building allows you to create a user-centric experience while ensuring the branding guidelines. Extend the functionality of the community and seamlessly merge with your company’s processed via our extensive API, widgets, and many other options.

Tap into the network effect

Your team, as well as your supporters working in unison, must leverage own networks to spread the word. Enable your community members to invite people who might be interested in your project. Also, deliver a solid platform for them to share what your startup is building, major milestones, and the initiatives launched for others to get involved.

Takeaway to build cryptocurrency community

Finally, the concluding remarks would be that creating a powerful online community has equal weightage when compared with the technology and marketing strategy. In fact, the community would be the platform that would hold these two connected. With this guide, cryptocurrency startups can start their community strategy to collect, content, and engage the users. This would have a lasting effect on the success of the company.