Building for Believers: A Playbook for Crypto Community Development

Building for Believers: A Playbook for Crypto Community Development

In the world of community building, one key principle holds true: as a member's commitment goes up, they make larger contributions to the community. This concept of "Building for Believers" is crucial for creating a thriving and engaged community. By gradually ramping up the commitment curve with incrementally harder asks, you can generate more commitment and reward from your members.

To effectively implement this strategy, it's important to lower the barrier to entry with low barrier asks. For example, at Meetup, they don't immediately ask a new member to host a meetup. Instead, they first ask them to read a blog post and attend an event. Similarly, at Airbnb, they don't immediately ask a new member to post a listing. They first ask them to watch a video about how Airbnb works and then try booking a stay. By starting with smaller asks and gradually increasing the level of commitment, you increase the likelihood of members saying yes to your requests.

But where do you find these highly committed members? The key is to focus on finding Community-Member-Fit (CMF), which is the point at which members are consistently providing meaningful value to each other without being asked. Don't copy how an established community works today; instead, copy how it started. Meetup and Airbnb started by focusing on actions at the top of the commitment curve and targeting the biggest believers in the world: themselves.

To find CMF, start with the people who need little convincing. Ideally, they're already trying, unsuccessfully, to do the thing that your community offers. Your only hurdle should be convincing them to do it with you. Remember, you don't need a thousand people to start a community; you need 10 true believers. Look for the small organizers who still need help and have the motivation but haven't been successful yet. They need your support to achieve their goals.

Now, let's shift our focus to the realm of crypto applications and progressive decentralization. In this context, building a community with ownership is crucial, but launching a token too early could be risky. Without a working product, ownership is worthless, and the community won't stick. Launching a token at this stage may also lead to compliance issues.

In the early stages of building a crypto application, it's important to focus on product/market fit, community participation, and sufficient decentralization. These three components are essential for the success of any application running on a blockchain computer. User-owned networks can benefit from a cooperative economic model that helps ensure crypto services remain better aligned with their users as they scale.

However, it's important to note that crypto tokens facilitating economic alignment can be deemed securities under the Howey Test. In the pre-network stage, tokens are generally considered securities due to reliance on the efforts of others. But post-network launch, if the network is sufficiently decentralized, the token's nature can change from security to non-security.

To achieve product/market fit, it's crucial to have a great team, lean development, tight execution, and quick learning. Complaints about control can actually be a good sign, as it shows that users care about what you've built. Clear communication about where control exists is essential.

Community participation can be fostered through economic incentives. A fee-per-call business model, similar to API micro-services like Twilio or Stripe, can align the community around the project's success. However, it's important to introduce fees only once there are strong network effects, ensuring defensibility through switching costs. In crypto, protocols must remain minimally extractive to incentivize community contribution.

Lastly, achieving sufficient decentralization is crucial. The core team should cede majority ownership of the application and mitigate platform risk by ensuring the product is community-owned and operated. The company should retain enough tokens to benefit from fees and growth, ensuring sustainability. Failing to formalize real community participation can result in low participation rates and heavy dependency on founding teams.

In conclusion, building a community of believers requires a strategic approach. By starting with low barrier asks and gradually ramping up the commitment curve, you can generate more commitment and reward from your members. In the world of crypto applications, progressive decentralization is key, with a focus on product/market fit, community participation, and sufficient decentralization. To succeed, remember to find CMF by targeting highly committed individuals and providing the support they need to achieve their goals.

Three actionable advice:

• 1. Lower the barrier to entry and gradually increase the level of commitment to generate more engagement from your community members.

• 2. Focus on finding Community-Member-Fit (CMF) by targeting highly committed individuals who already have the motivation but haven't been successful yet.

• 3. Foster community participation through economic incentives and ensure sufficient decentralization to create a sustainable and engaged community.