Launching a crypto project is easy, but getting it into orbit is much more difficult. As a result, the crypto landscape is littered with failed projects that crashed and burned before leaving the lower levels of the atmosphere. According to stats gathered by CoinGecko, over 1,800 projects that were launched in 2022 are now dead in the water.
The reason for these failures can generally be attributed to two things. The first is a lack of awareness since, for people to support a project, they first must know it exists. The second is the lack of adoption. Once people become aware of a new project, they must see the value in getting on board.
Marketing has the potential to fix both of these problems because it delivers the content that crypto users need to understand, evaluate, and support a project. The following steps can assist in developing and deploying the type of crypto marketing campaign that can spark long-term success.
Cater to Your Market
Catering to the target market is key to successful marketing. The needs, preferences, and behaviors of the desired audience must be addressed by the campaign. If the message is not relevant, it won’t connect or prompt the desired response.
With a crypto project, crypto enthusiasts will typically be your target market, and they are not your average consumer — they are known to be against traditional advertising, suffering from what some call “banner blindness.” This means that much of your marketing will involve non-traditional channels.
For example, networking is an invaluable form of marketing for crypto projects. To earn trust in the crypto universe — which should absolutely be one of your top goals — you need to circulate in the crypto universe; meet people, shake hands, and attend events, including conferences and social media gatherings. This can also help you to connect with high-net-worth investors who typically spend their time beyond the reach of common marketing channels. The market may ignore your ads, but they will note your presence when you become active in their community.
Ideally, marketing will be built into the tokenomics of your project. An example of this would be including airdrops in your token distribution plan. Airdrops serve the double purpose of increasing awareness of your project and encouraging token use.
Focus On Your Goal
Awareness is an important first step for any crypto marketing campaign to succeed, but its ultimate goal should be its wider adoption. The target market for your campaign needs to see the use case for the project, meaning they will need to believe in its value.
The buyer’s journey involves advancing from awareness to consideration to decision-making, so your aim should be to guide people through each of those phases. Stay focused on what motivates people to get on board, who influences them, and where they connect by designing a funnel that takes these factors into account.
Partner with Experts
Working with experienced consultants will help you avoid the pitfalls that will slow you down and cost you credibility. Your job is to learn from their mistakes. Consultants bring wisdom and connections that you can’t get anywhere else, so think of what it costs to gain their help as an investment rather than an expense.
Because credibility is so critical to marketing crypto projects, public relations consultants can be especially valuable. PR is a proven tool for building credibility, as it positions you and your project as viable, trustworthy, and active in the crypto space. PR provides access to engaged audiences in the fintech, blockchain, and investing communities, opening doors for you and your project to pique interest and get people started on their buyer’s journey.
In the world of new media, influencers can be an additional key to building credibility and awareness around your crypto marketing campaign. While some deliver questionable value, no one cannot deny that influencers that deliver quality content and have built engaged communities around them can significantly boost the credibility and visibility of the projects they genuinely like.
Commit to Building Community
Community is equatable to currency in the crypto space. After all, a project won’t survive unless a strong community forms around it, so taking steps to build that community is a critical component of a successful crypto marketing campaign.
Building a community can start with using community-driven platforms like Quora and Reddit to spread the word, seek support, and provide information. Once you start to gain some momentum, establish space on Discord and Telegram to gather the community and stay in touch with them. Use these channels to encourage the community to be collaborative. The more feedback you receive, the more insight you will gain into how the project should evolve to become what the market will support.
Investing in a strong community is also a great way to fuel word-of-mouth marketing, as those who find a deep connection with your project can become fierce promoters. In addition, knowledgeable investors know that cultivating a vibrant community takes a high level of effort and commitment, so they will see this as an indicator of a healthy project.
Launch a Top-notch Website
Taking your project to online communities is important, but it also needs an online home that you can point people toward. The project’s website serves that purpose. It is where you share your vision, post your white paper, compile FAQs, and provide an always-on, up-to-date portal for people to connect with you.
Your website will also be a valuable forum for you to publish content, which is another important part of building credibility. The more you can do to establish yourself as a thought leader in the industry, the easier it will be to gain an audience for your project. You can accomplish this by authoring posts, producing videos, and hosting webinars or podcasts, all of which can be shared via your website.
When done correctly, a crypto marketing campaign gets a project in front of the right people in a way that builds credibility, attracts community, and differentiates it from the competition. The best campaigns will use a multitude of channels and opportunities to inspire potential investors to become committed believers.
