Thread by @MacBudkowski

Explaining web3 products is hard.

So to solve that problem, I talked with 100+ web3 founders, both as part of running @web3talks and through casual conversations.

I also went through top web3 projects to find examples of great product communications.

Here's the guide.

👇👇👇

I came up with 40 examples of Good & Bad product communication from projects such as Zapper, DuneAnalytics, Arweave, Royal, Ledger & many more.

To make the lessons easier to understand, I created alternative versions of their websites (you’ll understand what I mean in a second)

The whole guide is organized around 5 simple rules:
#1: Make them care.
#2: Make it easy to understand
#3: Show why your product can solve their problems
#4: Help them believe you will deliver on your promises
#5: Convince them to try it now

Let’s go!

Rule #1: Make them care

How to make them care tip #1: Address the users, not the investors

In web3, your users are often your investors. They buy your token or NFTs, and some do that for pure speculation. So some projects decided to turn their websites into pitch decks.

And I agree that for VCs, it might be okay. They must explain to their LPs why their “Metaverse fund” wants to invest in this product.

Also, speculators who look for coins that will go up when #Metaverse is trending on Twitter are also happy to see this keyword on your website.

But most users don’t. They only care how your product can make their lives better.

Take a look at this alternative Arweave website (which I made for educational purposes) which is focused on investors:

And here's the real @ArweaveTeam website that’s user-centric:

How to make them care tip #2: Start with “What will you get” instead of “How will you get it”

Another confusing thing about web3 is that tech is extremely important.

For users, it makes a difference if your product is built on Ethereum, Solana, or Polkadot.

It might be crucial for them to understand what consensus mechanism your protocol uses.

And it matters if your wallet is secured by MPC or Multi-sig.

But…

You can leave it for the second sentence. And FAQ. And Whitepaper.

First, you need your user’s attention.

As Guy Kawasaki says: “We live in a Tinder world. Interesting? Swipe right. Not interesting? Swipe left.

Users need to get excited by your headline. And when they understand why they should care, they can go on to learn more.

Take a look at this alternative Royal website which is focused on “How will I get it”:

And compare it to the real @join_royal website that starts with “What will I get”:

How to make them care tip #3: Talk about their priorities

We all know that Satoshi started Bitcoin for a bigger cause.

But it doesn’t mean that a user investing his life savings in CumRocket shares Satoshi’s vision. And we sometimes forget that.

A few weeks ago, I spoke with a business developer from a web3 project that offered a product for DAOs. He summed his experiences with: “They were laughing at our big vision democratizing security”

But aren’t DAOs here for a bigger cause? Some of them are. But…

DAOs have more pressing, tangible priorities.

They care about their smart contract not getting hacked.

About contributors not disappearing during the bear market.

About their token not getting dumped so that people start thinking they’re a scam project.

So if you come with a Sinek-style Start-With-Why big vision, they won’t care.

Big visions are good for bull markets and a small subset of users (mostly – early adopters) who care about them.

But most users don’t. And the more mainstream web3 gets, the fewer of them will care

Take a look at this alternative LearnWeb3 website focused on its big mission:

And compare it with a real @LearnWeb3DAO website addressing developers’ priorities:

How to make them care tip #4: Be specific

Web3 startups, just like web2 ones, love to sound cool. That’s human nature. But it’s often counter-productive.

Although in culture & arts-oriented projects like NFT collections playing games with your audience might work...

in most other web3 projects, it doesn’t.

Take a look at this alternative Ledger website that tries to sound cool:

And compare it with a real @Ledger website that's very specific:

Rule #2: Make it easy to understand

How to make it easy to understand tip #1: Adjust your communications to the level of novelty

Most web3 products are new to the average Joe. But not for us as we been using them for years. So it’s easy to forget we need to explain how it works

So sometimes the new product is communicated in a vague way.

And there are so many scams in crypto that if something is unclear, people take a mental shortcut: “if it’s unclear, it’s shady.”

Adjusting the communication to the level of novelty is not limited to web3, of course. The first iPhone commercials were walkthroughs that explained its features step by step.

Now with over 2 billion iPhones sold, they just show how cool photos it takes.

Same with Amazon, who had some really weird but informative commercials when their product was new.

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Web3 is no exception here. OpenZeppelin, in 2018, had to explain to developers how it works.

Real 2018 @OpenZeppelin website:

Today as a de facto standard, their team can focus on communicating other things.

Real 2022 @OpenZeppelin website:

How to make it easy to understand tip #2: Write like you talk

This is a thing that happens in both web3 and web2.

Copywriters really like to use words like “cutting-edge,” “state-of-the-art,” and “supercharge” because they think it makes the startup look innovative.

But do we really scratch our heads in front of computers and think, “Hmm, maybe I just need a cutting-edge, state-of-the-art blockchain infrastructure to supercharge my dapp?”

Probably not.

And the goal of your copy is to naturally enter your user’s thinking process. So the rule of thumb is: “If this phrase could be found in McKinsey report, it’s probably not clear enough.”

Take a look at this alternative QuickNode website that I filled with buzzwords:

Real @QuickNode website explains what they do in layman’s terms. Even though they target developers who are more tech-savvy than the average Joe.

How to make it easy to understand tip #3: Provide the relevant amount of tech explanation

Thanks to web3 interoperability devs can build on top of your protocol. But it complicates communications a bit.

When a project addresses both devs and users, they can overwhelm users with tech. Or starve potential devs with too few tech details about your infra project.

We talked about not starting with tech in the first sentence. But it’s also important to balance the amount of tech information in the next parts.

And you can’t do it well if you don’t know how technical your users are.

So if you address crypto OGs who understand the difference between rollups & zk-proofs and talk about basic stuff, they’d think, “Where’s the beef? Is the tech weak here, and that’s why they don’t talk about it?”.

But if you address newcomers who send their seed phrases to fake Twitter MetaMask support, then they’d think: “What is this consensus mechanism? I just want to buy some crypto!”

Coinbase, for example, always targeted less tech-savvy users and they used haven’t focused too much on the tech side.

Real 2013 Coinbase website even explained what Bitcoin was:

Real 2022 Coinbase website is still very simple:

Ethereum, on the other hand, targeted cryptography-fluent devs.

Imagine reading their website in 2014 without having a clue what Ethereum might look like in practice.

Real 2014 @ethereum website is very technical:

As Ethereum became more mainstream and its explanation evolved, it started reaching also less tech-savvy audiences.

Real 2022 Ethereum Foundation website is much more noob-friendly:

One note. Understanding “How technically advanced are your users?” will impact all your communications. Website. Tweets. FAQs. Blogs. Memes. Copywriters you hire. And so on.

The marketer who shilled Logan Paul’s NFTs might not be a great fit for an infra project. And vice versa.

How to make it easy to understand tip #4: Find good metaphors and analogies

We all remember blockchain explanations that start with “Alice & Bob want to make a transaction.”

We also remember zk-proof explanations that start with “How could you prove you know where's Waldo without revealing his position?”.

And we remember them because they work. They stick to our minds.

So whenever you’re building a new product, think about a metaphor or analogy that might work (try not going for a “Uber for X” shortcut).

Alternative MetaMask website that doesn’t use any metaphor:

Real @MetaMask website is focused on the gateway metaphor, which helps to understand the idea of the wallet:

How to make it easy to understand tip #5 Find the right visuals

We all love artistic websites here. So let’s make our visual explanations stand out as well!

They say one image is worth 1000 words. But only the one that cuts to the bone of phenomena and explains it in seconds.

Alternative NiftyComedians website has a visual, but it's not too informative:

Real @NiftyComedians website has a much more educational visual (I helped to design it btw :))

*** SMALL BREAK ***

If you like this text…

1) You might also like @web3talks – my builders-oriented podcast where founders from projects such as Zapper, WalletConnect & Farcaster share their stories & lessons they learned along the way.

Learn more:
web3talks.xyz

2) You might not want to miss another text (that I write every few weeks or months).

So if you want to stay in touch, you can subscribe to my Substack:

macbudkowski.substack.com

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Rule #3: Show why your product can solve their problems

How to show why your product can solve their problems tip #1: Use knowledge levers

As most of our peers are into web3, it’s easy to forget where this excitement comes from. And it comes from understanding certain things.

You won’t value Bitcoin until you see the FED’s money printing and authoritarian governments seizing the citizens’ money.

You won’t value decentralization until you understand that relying on Big Tech APIs is risky, and you can end like Zynga.

You won’t value Zapper until you try to track your DeFi portfolio with Spreadsheets and Etherscan.

Every product has prior experiences or knowledge that’s mandatory to really appreciate its value. That’s why crypto is so popular in unbanked, high-inflation African countries.

So think about 1-3 key things your users need to understand to appreciate the value of your product. And educate them – sometimes via your landing page, sometimes via Docs and FAQ

Alternative IPFS website where they don’t pull any knowledge levers:

Real @IPFS website educates their users from the ground up:

How to show why your product can solve their problems tip #2: Show your product in action

“Add more screenshots” is the most common Landing Page feedback ever.

Users also prefer to see the product in action. So show your screens and gifs!

Here's an alternative Zapper website:

And here's the real @zapper_fi website where you can see the product in action:

How to show why your product can solve their problems tip #3: Show many sides of your product

Many web3 founders aspire to Uniswap’s cleanness and simplicity.

But most products must highlight more features to grab the user’s attention.

That’s because most users have a mental product checklist in their minds.

Is it safe?
Can I connect my wallet?
Does it integrate with my favorite dapp?
Can I do this thing?
And what about that thing?
And what if this terrible thing happens?

Different user segments might have different mental checklists – your mom will be less interested in hash functions than Vitalik. But the checklist is still there.

So understand their questions and smuggle the answers in your website’s copy. You can expand on them in Docs & FAQ.

Alternative NFTfi website would have a good but limited description of the product:

Real @NFTfi website shows many sides of their product:

Rule #4: Help them believe you will deliver on your promises

How to help them believe you will deliver on your promises tip #1: Map objections and disarm them upfront

Web3 builders community is so supportive that it’s easy to forget that users have objections about our products

And your users are going to have them. Especially since web3 is full of scams. So you need to ask users about their concerns, think through all “What could go wrong,” prepare your arguments and include them in your copy.

Alternative Dune website ignores most users’ concerns:

But the real @DuneAnalytics website masterfully addresses users' concerns:

How to help them believe you will deliver on your promises tip #2: Map users opinions to different users’ situation

Your users start with different experiences, expectations & beliefs about your category of products.

They might think that DEXes are not safe. That crypto accounting software is unreliable. Or that NFT swaps are scams for stealing Bored Apes.

So opinions you share on the website shouldn’t be generic “Cool product, highly recommended”. They should address your users’ objections.

Alternative Gilded website shows a shallow opinion from an unknown company:

Real @GildedFinance is focused on deep opinions from reputable companies from different segments:

How to help them believe you will deliver on your promises tip #3: Use Sinatra tests

Most web3 builders hang out on Telegram, Discord & conferences. And we basically know which products are leaders in their category. But many users don’t. That’s why you should use Sinatra tests.

It’s a copywriting idea inspired by Sinatra’s song “New York, New York,” where he sings, “If you can make it here, you can make it everywhere.”

So you need to show examples that will show that “If you made it there, you can make it everywhere”

An example from my life:

My friend told me her mom worked as a cleaning lady. And she added, “But you know, not a normal cleaning lady. She was like a manager of other cleaning ladies.”.

A few years later, I learned what kind of a manager she was...

It turned out she was Marriott's staff manager. And she was so diligent that when Bill Clinton stayed at their hotel, she got a handwritten “Thank you” note from the president of the United States.

So if “She could make it during Bill Clinton’s stay, she can make it everywhere.”

Your web3 product might also have stories or facts like that.

It can be a referral from Vitalik. Or providing infrastructure for OpenSea. Or being a #1 choice for niche zk-proof researchers.

Alternative Wintermute website is not using Sinatra tests:

But the real @wintermute_t website shows raw, powerful numbers:

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Rule #5: Convince them to try it now

How to convince them to try it now Tip #1: Show clearly why you’re different

Web3 is a collaborative space, and we sometimes feel bad comparing our products to a competition being run by our friends.

But our user still needs to understand why he should use your product and not the other thing.

DeFi degens may prefer a platform with the highest yield, even with bigger risks.

Newcomers may prefer the biggest DEX, even if it means fewer features than the specialized ones.

Look at this alternative ZenGo website describing their wallet without highlighting what makes it different:

The real @ZenGo website skillfully compares the product with other wallets:

How to convince them to try it now Tip #2: Surf the trend waves

Your product can surf trend waves. Sometimes the wave can take you really far, just like dissatisfaction with financial systems gave extra speed to Bitcoin.

So – although it’s being overused – it’s sometimes useful to relate to “creator economy”, “ReFi” or “open protocols” on your website.

Alternative Moss Earth website isn’t too exciting:

But the real @MossEarth website makes you want to join their mission right away:

How to convince them to try it now Tip #3: Make your users feel good about themselves

Most web3 products do it, but I’m going to mention it anyway - your product needs to say something positive about the user.

Just like driving a Tesla tells “You care about the environment” or using an iPhone tells “You’re trendy and doing well financially.”

In the web3 example, your users might feel like a patron when they’re buying an NFT directly from the artist (see: the NiftyComedians example).

Or they will feel like a good person when they’re offsetting their carbon footprint via Moss Earth. Or they will feel like the smartest kid in the block when they’re maximizing yield.

Alternative Code4rena website is okay but it doesn’t make me feel supersmart:

But the real @code4rena website shows that by using their product, I get into “If You Know You Know” club:

How to convince them to try it now Tip #4: Add some FOMO in a classy way

I think airdrops made us all lazy. As users expected to get them, they were more eager to cross the chasm and try new services.

But in the bear market, there are fewer people out there.

And they are more hesitant to try new stuff as most airdrops will be worthless. So we got to do something to move our users from their mental couch.

So we need to give them a little push.

Show the number of NFTs already minted. Show that they can book the cool username on a new web3 social platform. Present how their competitors or other people are already using you.

The alternative PoolTogether website doesn’t induce FOMO:

But the real @PoolTogether_ website gives me an extra push to try it out:

Five last things:

So after 5 rules, 19 protips & 40 examples, we’re almost done.

Creating a good copy sometimes feels like solving a multi-variable maths equation. But if you solve it, it will be incredibly satisfying for you and your users.

Of course, it’s just one part of the equation.

Communication is a promise that a product should fulfill.

So remember to underpromise & overdeliver – then your users will be pleasantly surprised. If you do the other way round – they will feel cheated and churn fast.

Before you go, I got 5 last things to say:

1) If you found this guide useful, please share it with people on Twitter, Discord, Telegram, and other places.

2) If you are interested in joining a community where other builders will help each other with communications, subscribe to my Substack, and I’ll let you know when the group starts.

macbudkowski.substack.com

3) If you need help, you can ask me for feedback or re-design your landing pages.

I help a public good project for free once a month. If you’re not a public good project, we can also cooperate commercially.

Learn more here:
macbudkowski.com/consultations/

4) If you’re looking for design inspirations for your landing page, I’ve been curating the list of the best web3 designs.

web3talks.xyz/web3-design-ex…

5) If you’re looking for inspiration from other builders, I run a @web3talks podcast, where I’ve been talking with 20+ top web3 founders about their projects and the lessons they learned along the way.

More info here:
web3talks.xyz

PS:

This article stands on the shoulders of giants.

The 5 rules have been heavily inspired by Peep Laja’s insights on messaging. Landing Page protips have been inspired by YourLandingPageSucks.com, & MarketingExamples Landing Page guide.

Also, Thanks to @0xElle, @0x_sterling & other members of the @farcaster_xyz fam for the feedback!

PS2: The best way to spread the word about this thread is to RT the first tweet:

https://twitter.com/MacBudkowski/status/1587525519398129665?s=20

PS3: If you wanted to share this article with a person who doesn't like threads, here's the website version of this text:

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