Author: eNate, Growth Director at Eclipse
Compiled by: Luffy, Foresight News
To be honest: I hate Twitter. I really hate Twitter, and I wish I had never used it.
Life is too short. As we age, we increasingly see how fragile life is (illness, accidents, wars, etc.). Our time on earth is limited, and I would rather be around positive people, as being with them is a joy. I do not want to spend time with negative people, and Twitter is filled with toxic and carcinogenic energy. But I am still on this damn platform, investing time every day, because if I am not active on crypto Twitter (hereafter abbreviated as 'CT'), I cannot do my job well.
I touched on this topic indirectly a month ago (how to filter for quality marketing talent), and mastering CT has become a prerequisite for success in the crypto space.
But there are some exceptions:
Some businesses almost monopolize specific markets (e.g., Dexscreener). They quietly rake in huge profits, and frankly, they do not need to be that active on CT because their competitors are weak.
If your clients are entirely institutional clients (i.e., market makers or liquidity providers), then winning attention on CT is not that important. The key decision-makers you interact with will make decisions based on how much profit they can generate while executing strategies, and this decision-making process does not happen on Twitter.
But if you don’t belong to these categories (most people don’t), you need to stay active on CT. Unlike a few years ago, the crypto industry today is filled with competition in almost every vertical. There are now dozens of CEXs, DEXs, wallets, cross-chain bridges, and blockchains, with new ones emerging daily. In the past, launching the best technology could win, but now there’s no consensus on what constitutes 'the best technology'. For example, launching L2 three years ago was considered novel; now I’ve lost count of how many L2s there are.
It is important to adapt to the times and continually evolve. We are in an attention-driven economy, and the future super users are only half our age. Simply providing technology will not drive usage, as the competitive landscape has fundamentally changed. 'Build it, and they will come' is a failed and naive strategy.
90% of these companies will die within 5 years. Even if they perfectly executed their product roadmap (which is not an easy 'if' to achieve), many companies will run out of funds before they find product-market fit / profitability. Alternatively, they may fail because their competitors capture all the users. Other companies will take all the risks and invest heavily because market conditions have improved, and then when the next bear market inevitably hits and funds dry up, they will be abandoned by the market.
The purpose of marketing and growth work is to strategically distribute and promote the technology that engineers are developing to attract attention and subsequently gain adoption. If done well, this plays a crucial role in extending the company's lifespan. Solidifying your brand positioning and building brand image is just one aspect of this work. If you cannot execute in marketing channels, all of this is meaningless.
People need to know you exist (recognition), and only then can you expect them to use your product (conversion; if they like the product experience enough, they might eventually promote it for you (advocacy)).
When it comes to the user acquisition process, the funnel model is essentially the bible. The top of the funnel is known as 'brand awareness,' colloquially referred to as 'mind share' by cryptocurrency insiders. Being able to effectively leverage different distribution channels is how you win mind share for your company. This, in turn, increases the opportunity to convert those who understand your brand/product into users. The more ways you reach your audience, the greater the likelihood of gaining more users.
But here, two fundamentally different questions need to be asked:
How do I get more people to know about my product/brand?
How do I convert people who know about my product into users?
In the early stages of a product, the company can focus on the top of the funnel. They do not yet have a functional product that can be actually used, so they can focus on marketing spend and efforts to build strong mind share. But as you get closer to and eventually launch the product, this situation changes. The pre-product and post-product phases are a completely different game, and many crypto startups struggle to formulate a go-to-market strategy in the post-product phase because they are trying to tackle two different problems simultaneously.
A quote I often reference is:
If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound?
In other words, if people do not know about your product, how can they use it? Conversion happens after recognition, and the team needs to face the reality that without first investing effort to ensure people are aware of your product, usage cannot be achieved. You can invest in both the top and bottom of the funnel simultaneously, but if you have not achieved the top KPI, the bottom KPI cannot be realized.
This is because, at each step of the marketing funnel, the percentage of people who move to the next step decreases. What does this mean? Let’s break it down:
You first need to win recognition.
A smaller portion of these people will consider using your product.
The proportion of those who end up using it is even smaller.
Frustratingly, only a small portion of people can retain long-term.
This is why CT is so important. Cryptocurrency insiders often specifically mention 'mind share' in the context of CT for a reason. CT is the most important distribution channel in cryptocurrency because it is the channel most likely to convert the audience into users. But as I talk more with founders trying to elevate their marketing game and offer advice, I realize that many do not understand why CT is so crucial as a distribution channel. This article will explain why CT is important, as well as the successful strategies I have in mind.
Why is CT so important?
Before I started working in cryptocurrency, I worked as a marketing consultant for clients in various industries. These clients included cosmetics giants like L'Oréal and Revlon, social media companies like Instagram and LinkedIn, sports leagues like the NFL and NBA, and more. These companies invest millions of dollars annually in advertising / collaborations and rigorously evaluate the effectiveness of different distribution channels (i.e., digital ads, billboards as physical ad spaces, social media marketing, etc.) to continuously optimize their marketing strategy mix. If a channel performs well, clients will look for ways to improve it to enhance ROI; if it doesn’t perform, they will quickly cut spending and redirect funds elsewhere.
At this stage of my career, one important lesson I’ve learned is that not all distribution channels are equal. The specific distribution channels that are most effective for your business vary based on your key audience/user demographics. With this in mind, you can imagine how surprised I was when I first joined a cryptocurrency company (dYdX) and realized how few cryptocurrency companies were trying to leverage different distribution channels to improve user acquisition. Years later, I sadly say that most cryptocurrency companies still are. Perhaps it’s because most of these companies are early-stage startups with limited funding, but at some point, you need to have multiple distribution channels to scale your audience.
Notably, when I first joined dYdX, Twitter was one of the few channels they invested resources in to attract followers. Honestly, it took me about a year to understand why Twitter is such an important distribution channel for cryptocurrency. In fact, before joining dYdX, I deliberately avoided using Twitter and had resisted creating a personal account for a long time. But when you think about it seriously, you will understand why Twitter is the primary medium for cryptocurrency companies to interact with potential users.
The onboarding journey for the average user in the cryptocurrency space is fraught with friction and pain points. Generally, to use any DApp, you first need to create a wallet. After completing that process and storing your private key, you need to convert fiat currency into stablecoins or assets like ETH. Then, you need to connect your wallet to a specific DApp and learn how to use it. To be honest, this is a simplified description of a highly complex user journey.
After using a crypto product for a while, you forget the complexities of joining as a new user. Compared to simply going to a store to buy something or signing up for a social media account, you need to go through more steps before using these products. This has significant implications for overall marketing strategy.
For resource-constrained cryptocurrency startups, trying to hand-hold newcomers through every process of entering the cryptocurrency space is extremely inefficient. In the short term, you need to focus your marketing efforts on channels with a high concentration of existing cryptocurrency users to see a positive ROI. While there are some nuances (for example, many people use Kakao in Korea, and many use WeChat in China), for Western markets (the US/Canada and Europe), CT is by far the channel with the highest user density. In many cases, I can clearly see:
The trading alpha circulating on CT far exceeds that of any other public channel (e.g., Reddit or YouTube). Many of the excellent traders I know make decisions by monitoring new product releases and Twitter information. Interestingly, almost every tenfold gain I encountered in memecoin trading was discovered on Twitter, or one of my friends found it on Twitter and then forwarded it to another group.
Airdrop hunters on Twitter share fairly accurate predictions about which protocols should be farmed weeks or even months before incentive programs begin.
The most popular NFT collectibles often generate buzz on Twitter even before whitelist openings or public minting on the market.
Venture capitalists will ask to see Twitter profiles as part of their due diligence when evaluating new startups.
In short, if you are not active on CT, you will lose a segment of the audience that would certainly pay attention to new product launches. While you figure out what other channels are suitable for your specific product, you need to win on Twitter, as it is essentially the only channel you know the audience will pay attention to, and you have a good chance of converting them into actual users.
Furthermore, the importance of CT is not only seen in user acquisition but also in user retention. When a place has such a high density of daily active users, they will inevitably talk a lot. CT is where you can most accurately gauge audience sentiment and get honest, unfiltered feedback about what went wrong with your protocol. Without CT, your company cannot successfully fend off FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt).
There is a lot to interpret regarding the topic of FUD. I could write a novel on this topic, so I will follow up with another article in the future. Here are the key points:
CT will help you understand the severity of the fire drill situation so you can respond accordingly. Is this a survival crisis, or will it pass quickly? What are people actually angry or anxious about? How widespread is the impact?
Compared to any other medium, CT will provide you with more background information to help you make key growth decisions. When you are active on Twitter, you will learn to distinguish between real communities and self-serving impostors. You will gain a reference framework to understand why previous decisions or even industry history might influence your perception of a brand/product.
Yes, I admit that finding genuinely beneficial and high-quality information requires filtering out a lot of noise. But the information above is crucial for guiding the growth stages of a company (pre-funding, post-funding, pre-product, post-product, etc.). When senior leadership/marketing teams do not have a solid strategy for Twitter, it's the biggest warning sign that they won't succeed.
If you cannot concentrate some resources on the most successful distribution channels, it will be hard to gain substantial usage. Your understanding of how to retain your users will also be very limited.
So I’m sure your follow-up question is, 'How do I succeed on crypto Twitter?'
The winning way of CT
Simply put, the winning strategy for CT includes three key elements:
Authenticity
Consistency
Understanding audience scope
Let’s start with authenticity. I’ve seen people try various strategies on CT to gain attention:
The founder is as quiet as a mouse in a church in real life but only posts crazy comments on Twitter to attract user engagement.
Women posting enticing or foot photos to gain more views and likes.
Leadership LARPs (live-action role plays) as technical experts in hopes of scoring points with thought leaders, but lack the expertise in engineering trade-offs.
It should be noted that I am not criticizing anyone. Don’t hate the player; hate the game! If these strategies can win more attention, then it might be a successful strategy, right? That said, I want to warn that if these online personas are not authentic, then the strategy is likely to be difficult to sustain.
People will eventually discover that the persona you present online is a facade when you make too many mistakes. Additionally, no one can be an expert on every topic. I have several examples from Eclipse that illustrate how authenticity has helped us gain more attention on Twitter:
Before taking on the role of CEO, many suggested that eVijay behave more wildly and flamboyantly on Twitter. This is completely inconsistent with his style. If you've met eVijay or seen his podcast, you’ll quickly realize that 'wild' is almost an antonym for him. His calmness, elegance, and seasoned experience are key reasons many respect him as a leader. People follow him not to see a continuous stream of trending topics.
Most Eclipse teams are active on Twitter, but you will notice that the content we post is different because we have deep insights on different topics:
My expertise lies in go-to-market strategy and growth hacking. I won't post about technical topics because that wouldn't be authentic. For example, I know nothing about zk fraud proofs, so I won't talk about them on Twitter. But I’ve written long articles about marketing that people find valuable.
This is not my first time talking about the importance of CT.
etaetaehoho previously worked at 1kx and published a wealth of research. Therefore, he has unique insights on some topics. He has written about how venture funds evaluate portfolio companies when investing. He also posts articles on technical topics and high-level strategies on Twitter because he has a deep understanding of these topics. That is why people respect his intellect and engage with him.
eSe is one of the best traders I know. This guy has brought me several 50x gains (though I often lose them due to foolishness). He posts trading strategies and trends he observes in the market. People follow him because he is a profitable trader, not a KOL selling his positions.
This all-hands-on-deck approach works well for us because it allows us to attract different audience segments. Our Twitter content benefits our thought-sharing because it resonates with different people for various reasons. Cryptocurrency marketers and founders might appreciate my content because I share insights on marketing strategies, but traders may not care as much about what I write. In contrast, traders might read eSe's tweets.
The second key element of a robust strategy is consistency. Whether through a company account or personal account, regularly posting content is important. If you don’t have a large number of followers yet, your account will not grow if you post occasionally and then disappear for a long time. Don’t sacrifice quality for quantity, but aim to post as often as possible about topics you genuinely want to discuss, which will greatly increase your engagement. Start with a company account, keep experimenting until you find the right rhythm and the best combination of content types.
To encourage everyone to post more consistently on Eclipse, we started holding regular meetings to help people brainstorm tweet topics and enhance their social influence. Ultimately, your colleagues will grasp the knack and can handle it themselves, but when they are just getting the hang of the process, guide them! Not everyone is a born social media expert.
At first, focus on staying active on CT and showcasing yourself. Regularly interact with other builders and community members. Identify general trends in the industry and common pain points for users. As long as you are consistently on CT, you will gain a more comprehensive understanding of your business. You can also strategically contextualize your business decisions by looking at the mistakes others have made before.
Don’t believe it? Give it a try. I guarantee that if you spend an hour daily on CT for 30 consecutive days, you will learn more about the cryptocurrency industry and relevant current affairs than anywhere else, and you will raise your company’s visibility while doing so. It’s a win-win situation.
As a leader, you can also turn it into a fun game! Every time I surpass them on Slack, I humiliate all the younger teammates. Social media is a young person's game. If I'm older than you, your follower count should be way higher than mine 🥱
Finally, you must learn to narrow your audience. You will never connect with everyone on crypto Twitter. There are many different ways to segment the crypto Twitter audience (e.g., maximalists vs. agnostics, DeFi vs. consumers, etc.). Trying to find a way to resonate with everyone on CT is a waste of time. Identify the people who are most important to your company and prioritize them.
Prioritization is key, as having a small group of loyal fans who consistently engage with your content is more impactful than having a large number of disinterested followers. Your core audience should be those who have the most significant impact on your business, not those on CT who will never care about your product.
For example, if you are a B2B company, which companies or developers do you need to attract? Is your strategy aimed at winning the audience's attention? If you are a gaming company, does institutional funding really matter to you? Adjust your content based on the audience most relevant to your core KPI; you do not need to win everyone's attention.
There is a strong causal relationship between trying to win everyone's attention and failing to win any attention at all. When you try to be relevant to everyone, you end up becoming irrelevant to anyone because there is no differentiation. Start with a targeted and clear approach, and then expand from there once you achieve success. As your business grows, you will organically gain more relevance, and then you can broaden your audience.
This is a marathon, not a sprint. Over time, you will naturally start delivering more important things to the new domains of CT.
Finally, I want to repeat what many successful people on CT have said. Don’t overthink it, and don’t be afraid to make mistakes.
CT's attention span and memory are extremely short. If you don’t post enough, it’s likely no one will notice you. Even if they do notice, if you mess up, they will forget about it within weeks. Get back up, stand tall, and return to the ring. Don’t be shy to try new things.
Additionally, some companies that launch state-of-the-art, technologically advanced products have very low mind share due to not effectively utilizing CT. The reverse of this statement is also true. Many people working in the cryptocurrency industry will tell you that some of the most well-known companies on Twitter have countless issues behind the scenes because their technology simply does not work.