The Art of Encryption Marketing: From Token Issuance to Developer Ecosystem

The Uniqueness and Basic Logic of Encryption Marketing

The biggest challenge facing cryptocurrency marketing is the extremely small target audience. In 2023, there are only 23,000 active cryptocurrency developers per month, and it is expected to increase to 30,000 in 2024, while less than 0.1% of the 28 million developers worldwide are involved in cryptocurrency. In such a highly vertical market, marketing must focus on the three core needs of developers:

• Technology: Solving practical issues such as composability in the Rollup ecosystem
• Economy: Exploring sustainable revenue models for public product development
• Value: Create a unique value proposition that is attractive to developers

Encryption marketing needs to redefine the way of growth, and the core of the developer community is precise value resonance. Economic incentives are just the starting point; what truly drives growth is the construction of a technological ideal country where developers can find career value and spiritual belonging. Once achieved, they will spontaneously promote ecological development.

We need to abandon the mindset of pursuing scale from the Internet era and instead adhere to "depth first": understanding the technical preferences of each core developer, even their pet names, and perfecting the experience of the top 10 users. Technological idealism itself is the best medium for communication. In this field, the power of 100 deeply engaged participants far exceeds that of 10,000 shallow users; real growth comes from these seemingly non-scalable deep connections.

Positioning and Strategic Trade-offs of Layer 2

The Rollup ecosystem is an extension of Ethereum culture, and its open characteristics have given rise to a unique "competitive cooperation ecosystem"—all Layer2 are working together to strengthen the Ethereum network. This requires marketing to balance dual positioning: it must highlight commercial value while also emphasizing the core mission of expanding Ethereum. The most effective proof method is technological binding, such as defaulting to using ETH to pay for Gas fees, which demonstrates the symbiotic relationship with Ethereum more than any slogan.

When evaluating Layer2 strategies, resource endowment determines differentiation. Well-funded projects like BASE under Coinbase can independently build eco-brands leveraging the resources of a listed company; whereas resource-limited Layer2s must deeply bind themselves to Ethereum, leveraging its industry credibility for a cold start. This resource-oriented marketing strategy choice essentially reflects the "Matthew Effect" of the encryption ecosystem - the strong get stronger, while emerging projects must make good use of leverage.

DevRel × Marketing: The Collaborative Engine Driving Ecosystem Growth

Developer relations ( DevRel ) should be deeply integrated into the marketing system. As the primary touchpoint, developer documentation needs to have a unified control over language style and conversion paths. Currently, DevRel is evolving into the role of content creators, addressing tool usage pain points through programming tutorial videos and other formats. This evolution requires DevRel to possess stronger marketing thinking and execution capabilities.

The success of the developer ecosystem depends on building a closed loop of "product-economy-community." Taking the privacy field as an example, its professionalism naturally filters out target developers. During the cold start phase, a dual approach is necessary: both exploring commercial potential and tracking the progress of early developers, providing high-value support such as media exposure and strategic consulting at critical moments. Although this deep operation is difficult to scale, it is key to creating a project moat.

The essence of cryptocurrency marketing is ecological coordination. It is necessary to explore developer stories while actively identifying needs and promoting product iteration. The core lies in helping developers succeed through deep support: actively intervening on platforms like GitHub and Twitter, first addressing actual construction challenges, and then spreading the word once the project matures. This "empower first, speak later" closed-loop model is the truly effective path for ecological construction.

System Thinking from Token Issuance to Brand Collaboration

The core of token issuance lies in balancing its dual attributes. It is both a marketing activity and a financial product. The quality of the design of the economic model directly determines the fate of the project, and the explosive or progressive path must be chosen based on the project's characteristics. On the implementation level, three key aspects must be grasped:

• Engage in in-depth discussions with economists about the value positioning of tokens to avoid rigid applications;
• Conduct in-depth research on the practical application scenarios and usage habits of different markets;
• Establish a sound post-listing management mechanism, including community sentiment management, team incentive mechanisms, and information disclosure norms.

These challenges are essentially consistent with the governance requirements faced by publicly listed companies.

The core of community operation strategy lies in clearly defining the types of targets for long-term resource investment. It is essential to accurately identify the target audience:

• Early supporters who are highly aligned should be cultivated during the testnet phase.
• For PoS networks, node operators and validators (, whether institutional or individual stakers ), are key opinion leaders.
• Establish a structured operational mechanism, such as regular community conference calls.

The key is to collect market feedback widely while also learning to filter out the noise. Attempting to respond to every online voice will only lead to a quagmire of ineffective information.

Building an influential brand in the encryption industry requires establishing a deep connection with the founders. Only through one-on-one communication can we truly understand their core vision and entrepreneurial intention, thus injecting soul into the brand story. This is the foundation of successful marketing, and there are no shortcuts.

Dual Layout of Founders' Influence and Marketing Resources

The core advice for founders is: to shape the image of a domain expert rather than a product salesperson. Specific methods:

• Discuss industry pain points based on professional insights, rather than directly promoting products.
• Build influence publicly through expertise
• Make good use of personal channels to convey in-depth views

It is recommended that founders choose the most natural way of expression: those who are good at conversation should do podcasts, those who are good at writing should write long articles, and those who adapt to the camera should make videos. There is no need to force forms they are not good at; for example, those who resist public speaking can avoid large occasions. The key is to integrate personal style into professional content—adding a touch of humor for fun, and unique expressions for creative designs. Finding a relaxed yet professional way to output, combined with communication strategies, will yield the best results.

For founders who are just starting to build personal influence, it is recommended to start from the easiest entry point: focus on doing one thing well, mobilize resources from the entire company to support it, and create a few iconic moments to accumulate momentum. This is far more effective than forcing founders to tweet 10 times a day. The key is to have something to say, to express it well and thoroughly, and naturally, the situation will open up.

Founders must lead the expression of the company's DNA and technological roadmap, which is key to securing investment. The marketing team provides professional support—from ghostwriting services to strategic discussions—but always insists that the founder produces original content, while the team is responsible for optimizing the packaging. Because what truly moves the market is always the founder's genuine entrepreneurial intention, not overly packaged marketing rhetoric.

The uniqueness of cryptocurrency marketing lies in the fact that it often begins marketing concepts and visions while the product is still immature. This stage requires continuous trial and error to find the most suitable means of communication.

The best time to launch marketing is 6 months before the product goes live. Promoting a non-existent product too early can lead to market skepticism, while doing so too late can result in missed opportunities. The key is to find the golden moment for storytellers and communicators based on an understanding of the product delivery cycle.

For projects that require community co-construction, marketing involvement can come earlier. For example, when running a decentralized testnet, even without a "formal product" or mainnet, it is necessary to attract node operators to participate.

Marketing Startup Methods for Projects

When a startup team first recruits a marketing director, the core principle is: only choose versatile talents who have previously worked together. Such candidates must meet three key conditions: a deep understanding of my work style, seamless collaboration ability, and a willingness to be hands-on. In the early stages, even the CMO needs to operate social media (. Practice has proven that this familiar collaboration can quickly open up the situation—compared to the risk of using newcomers, the tacit cooperation with familiar comrades can better withstand the pressures of entrepreneurship and avoid team rhythm disruption caused by improper personnel choices.

The marketing team building should follow the dual standard of "all-round foundation + vertical specialization": each member should be capable of basic tasks such as tweet writing, email formatting, and voice live streaming, while also possessing professional depth in specific vertical fields. This team structure, divided by field rather than function, has been proven in practice to maximize the efficiency of small teams. By not setting traditional job boundaries, each member becomes both a versatile talent and an expert in their domain.

The recruitment in the encryption industry should return to the essence of business. SaaS projects aimed at developers can completely introduce mature marketing talents from traditional technology fields, such as experts skilled in developer community operations. Instead of sticking to the hard requirement of "must have an encryption background," it is better to focus on the transferability of the candidates' professional abilities. The abundant SaaS talent resources in technology hubs like San Francisco can quickly supply verified marketing talents for encryption projects.

When considering hiring content creators, it is essential to delve into three levels: first, to clarify the specific pain points in the current business that need to be addressed through writing; second, to define the scope of job responsibilities, avoiding vague statements like "responsible for writing"; and most importantly, to establish a supporting collaboration mechanism, as high-quality content creation requires the founder or team to provide ongoing content support and feedback, which cannot be automatically solved by simply hiring a writer.

Landing and Resonance: From Local Operations to Integrated Communication of Community Culture

The core of the globalization operation of cryptocurrencies lies in building a local trust network. When entering new markets, it is essential to introduce local partners through reliable channels—there are significant differences in business practices across countries: some regions are more receptive to long-term partnerships based on trust rather than standardized American contracts. A lack of local connections will lead to cultural misunderstandings and communication failures. The optimal path is to leverage existing resource networks for endorsement, rather than cold-starting unfamiliar development.

By establishing localized Discord channels, it is possible to effectively identify and cultivate a group of highly active community members. The specific operational model is: first systematically train local members to master project documentation, gradually building a decentralized cultural dissemination network. This localized operation based on daily collaboration tools is essentially creating a new type of online relationship network, naturally cultivating the community ecosystem through high-frequency interactions.

Community operation needs to discover and cultivate core supporters. When the project enters an important development stage, those actively participating contributors can become an effective talent source. By integrating them into a formal system through mechanisms such as technology ambassadors or local event organizers, community engagement can be maintained while establishing initial market resources. When it is necessary to introduce professional service providers, these foundational relationship networks can provide reference suggestions, reducing the difficulties of starting from scratch. The value of the post-funding model lies in its pragmatic evaluation approach.

The core of the strategy for activities in the cryptocurrency industry lies in precise positioning. While large-scale events can help with brand exposure, the return on investment is difficult to measure; in contrast, small high-end events can achieve business cooperation and build key networks at a lower cost. Mature projects should focus on high-value participants, while emerging projects should avoid blindly participating in exhibitions and instead create boutique events in vertical fields. Essentially, it is about pursuing quality rather than scale.

The cryptocurrency activity strategy should focus on three key points:

• Plan in sync with the product roadmap to ensure major releases and important activities are coordinated with each other;
• Standardize budget usage to avoid simply using event funds for relationship maintenance; all sponsorships must align with clear ecological strategic directions.
• Focus on efficient forms of activities, engaging core audiences through small closed-door meetings, while also hosting professional events such as developer conferences.

Offline events allow teams to directly observe developer feedback, identify potential users, and even discover regional communities, creating opportunities for global expansion.

Cryptocurrency marketing needs to make good use of meme culture as a unique narrative tool. Memes can cleverly transform complex concepts while strengthening the sense of community belonging. The key lies in establishing a balance mechanism: core accounts maintain a professional tone, but give operators reasonable creative space, which can enhance work enthusiasm and produce high-quality content. Memes should be an organic part of the overall communication strategy, testing and filtering those expressions that can resonate with the industry, rather than using them sporadically.