Effective communication and branding are key to adoption

[CarthaginemDelEsse]

To: Tezos Foundation:

The success of Tezos hinges in large part on its network effect which in turn is a function of its adoption. Adoption happens when new technology offers better solutions to existing problems than what existing technologies have to offer. But it has to be communicated to a larger audience.

I’ve seen various comparisons between ETH and XTZ and in most cases, XTZ is ranked higher in all categories except for its network effect. The network effect of ethereum is simply a function of time. ETH has been around longer than XTZ and therefore has a much larger follower base, both in terms of developers as well as in terms of users.

So if XTZ doesn’t want to end up like Sony’s beta VCR, which many claimed to be superior to its competitor, VHS, there has to be a strategy for overcoming the very real first mover advantage that ETH has.

Looking at another competitor of Tezos, Cardano, illustrates how an effective branding strategy can have a positive impact on a blockchain’s network effect. In early 2020, Cardano decided to hire a marketing company to help them gain more brand recognition and greater exposure among developers, users and potential stake pool operators.The strategy paid off. In March of 2020 ADA bottomed at a market cap of $750M, while XTZ was roughly $200M higher. Today, the market cap of ADA is $13.8B, while XTZ is around $2.2B. Cardano outperformed XTZ by a factor of almost 6x since they hired a marketing company. That is despite the fact that Cardano hasn’t even launched smart contracts on the mainnet yet. Tezos is far ahead in terms of development, but sadly lags in terms of adoption/network effect.
There is nothing wrong in looking at the competition and copying what works.Remember,imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.

Please consider producing a report at least quarterly instead of semi-annually. Please also consider hiring an outside marketing company to add leverage to your strategy and perhaps to advise you on what an effective strategy might entail.

Thanks for reading.

[ZPE1333]

This x1000. I know competitor and price talk is discouraged here, but you are spot on in regard to Cardano’s use of effective marketing and the resultant effect: INCREASED NETWORK EFFECTS. If increased network effect is a second order result of effective marketing impacting price, a significant amount of time and capital should be allocated toward this.

[gorfl]

2021 is the year of decision for tezos. Be the last blockchain needed or become just another chain. There were some promises to become more marketing-oriented a few months back, but no results yet. TQ has some job openings on those areas atm. wonder how long it will take to hire somebody.

[CarthaginemDelEsse]

An alternative to hiring a marketing/PR employee is to outsource it. That might be a better strategy anyways, especially in the beginning.

[perfectparadox]

I think there are two sides here. Let me start by saying that I 100% agree with this post. I also think that, until recently, “we” were missing a lot of pieces to the puzzle. The amount of projects that are coming to fruition in the near future is astounding. Now, I’m not saying that marketing isn’t amazing, but I think that we were lacking ammo.

It’s really hard for me to put someone in a room with plywood and nails and ask them to build a table without also including a hammer. I know that excitement has been lackluster as of late, but I think that once Edo is actually injected we may see a large influx in development. That’s not guaranteed of course and I would still love to see some marketing as well that includes the more “American” approach of actually “tooting your own horn”. I was actually under the impression that the TF did hire a PR and Marketing firm recently after a fallout with the last? I don’t know. If TF wants to give me a greenlight to set up some interviews, I’ll be more than happy to start contacting outlets. I just hope the community will bear with a market that moves a little slower so that we can make it to the end of the race, which I know we can win.

Also, some devs are very vocal about their projects on social media. Others seem to almost distance themselves from Tezos when it comes to their projects. Is this just a cultural thing? With around two hundred devs working on different projects, shouldn’t that be a huge influx in organic marketing?

[Robert]

The bi-annual report requires a lot of effort from many team members. We had discussions but decided to stick to a bi-annual report. The monthly TF is from now on an alternative providing smaller but more frequent updates.

On marketing side, hires are ongoing and so are the activities mentioned earlier in January.
The begin of the year has been busy with the launches of OpenMinter enabling the creation of NFT’s, Homebase and more, and influencers are showing interest such as Crypto Banter.

The Tezos Foundation gives grants to entities around the world for marketing specifically. It is not something we are ignoring.

[CarthaginemDelEsse]

Hi Robert,
I really appreciate the feedback and that helps to clear up some of my questions and concerns. Hopefully more community members will step up and incorporate marketing into their grant proposals.
Again thanks for the feedback!

[gorfl]

Fund a new entity in the ecosystem that is exclusively working on branding, marketing, etc.?

IMO the whole operation should be outsourced with the idea to create short, medium and long campaigns that promote tezos.

Btw how is the interest for the job openings in TQ? I see some openings for a while now. Also probably its not so easy to get good applicants in NY in short notice?