When crypto first started, everyone was focused on the coins. They were focused on the whitepaper and technical information.
Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Dash Ripple, Dogecoin and many others. The race was about which coin will increase in price (Moon), which will 100x, and which will make the next millionaire. Most people focused on either spot or futures trading and discussions on bitcointalk forum.
The hype on cryptocurrency was all there but when the market took a downturn, the hype subsided and it became clear that crypto shouldn’t be just about coins or the technical information, it should be about communities.
Cryptocurrency prices will change but people will stay
There is a cycle in crypto and that is people buying, bull run coming, FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) kicks in, people take profit, FUD (Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt) starts then the dump.
The market crashes and everyone stop hyping the coins. Technical analysts stop drawing charts and all. This doesn’t mean the coin is dead because we still have people.
The people remain after the whole hype dies. The people are the builders, the people that utilize the coin and believe in it. The people that use the blockchain and not just price speculators.
That is the way crypto is going. It is now people focused not price focused like before.
The value is in the community
A coin is a set of codes and nothing else. It has no life whatsoever. The website announcing the coin is just a html page sitting on a server. It only exist there and nowhere else.
It is when people come together to utilize it, build DaPPS and create value around it that the coin becomes an ecosystem.
When you look at surviving coins now that are still doing fine, it is because of the people that believed in it and created value round it.
Bitcoin, Hive, Ethereum, BNB are thriving because they aren’t just cryptocurrency, they are a culture. They have evolved in a way that people now gather around them because of the shared purpose and reward.
Look at the amount of DaPPS Ethereum, BNB, or Hive, the number of things you can use those coins for. I can pay for my domain or hosting fee with btc, eth, bnb and the likes. This shows value and a reason for people to associate with the coin
Gone are the days when traders dominated the crypto space and different coins. Now it is about community.
Let us look at meme coins, it is about community, the people. The meme coin will remain unbonded if it has no vibrant community. Even when it bonds, you need a vibrant community to keep it afloat, raid, shill the whole lot out of it.
Who makes up the numbers for crypto influencers? When an influencer is paid for a promotion, the influencer relies on the people to actually push the coin and its narrative.
We are entering a new era where the question is
What community should I belong to not what coin should I buy?
This is because you can’t fake a community. The community keeps on spreading your coin story even when you are low on marketing budget.
This is the truth, and you see most coins building a solid community. Those that ignore this fade away quickly.
Hive as an example
Hive is an example of a living community. It is a working community. It is a web3 social platform where people can express their thoughts and interact. While the hive platform might be too broad according to many, Hive created communities for likeminded people to interact with. Communities are like group chats on WhatsApp.
Now, I can make a finance post in #leofinance community or a football post in #sportstalk community and fitness/exercise post in #actifit community.
We have different DaPPS too, I just learnt of splinterlands today a game on the HIVE chain.
I am a sustainability expert and I have found home on HIVE. It shows that HIVE isn’t just a coin but a digital society and a good example of what a community can be.
Hive rewards the community and that’s why it is not going anywhere anytime soon.
The Future of Crypto Belongs to People
Dexscreener has something called CTO which is Community Takeover, they know we are entering a different era. This is the era of community owned tokens, decentralized social networks, decentralized funds, and DAOs.
When a community grows, value always follows. Think this like traditional finance. Banks succeed due to the community (the people that bank with them).
When a coin drops in price, the strong community keeps it alive. Price speculators jump ship to the next trending coin.
Cryptocurrency in general started as a movement to take power from the government and transfer to the people but that has changed now.
It is now turning to a movement built by the people.
Let me know what you think of this in the comments.