The future of NFTs for brands and their communities. 🧵

Brands and creators are always testing new ways to engage audiences—via rewards, communities, and loyalty programs. Usually through the lens of ROI: “How much value can we extract from fans?” It’s an outdated model. Here’s how NFTs offer a more holistic approach.

Rule #1: the incentives must be aligned. That means tangible benefits for communities. No cash grabs, no one-sided-exchanges. Brands get insights + loyalty, but customers get increased power + rewards. Those that nail it will kickstart a retention + innovation flywheel.

NFTs enable this in ways that old systems cannot, creating entire economies in the process. Imagining NFTs as simply “unlocking access” or incentivizing customers to purchase is first-inning thinking. Let’s walk through their underconsidered utility.

Content Submission Want to collect an NFT? Submit content in exchange. Not only could you receive a NFT that represents your contribution, but rights can be programmed into the contract so that the use of your content in advertising could yield a % of future profits to you.

Customer Cohort NFTs Imagine receiving an NFT for being one of the first Yeezy customers, and how valuable that would be today. How Adidas might reward you years later with tokenized access points and product drops. Cohort NFTs certify participation in brand history.

R&D Brands exchange NFTs for insights on product dev: pain points, marketing claims, flavors, materials and more. Participants receive tokens granting access to product exclusives and presales. Brands easily track and maintain these high-value relationships.

Education and CX Upon demonstrating exceptional knowledge of a brand’s product, you can receive certifying NFTs in exchange for onboarding newbies into the community, or providing customer support. This can be exponentially more impactful than a brand employee doing the same.

Bounties Brands and creators can drop unique quests within communities, rewarding completion with NFTs. This could be anything from completing a questionnaire, to referring members into the community, to attending events. Bounties can be highly competitive, creating superfans.

Leaderboards Keeping score of top contributors could lead to brand community managers dropping surprise rewards, tickets, and access to fans who show up and bring the most value to communities. This can catalyze increased attendance and engagement within the group.

Voting + Governance Fans deserve more than just “input” on key decisions like product roadmaps or distribution strategy—let them actually vote. Make it gated to only holders of specific NFTs, or open it up wide with POAPs to attract new customers and fortify brand loyalty.

Airdrops More powerful than any SMS marketing text, getting a surprise NFT in your wallet will pique any customer’s curiosity. Better still, it can unlock real utility, like access to events, tokenized chats, and presales. Just don’t airdrop customers a tacky discount code. 🙂

Community Coins Offering communities their own stablecoins to transact with creates tokenized skin in the game. Helpful to a newbie in the chat? A mod might gift you 500 coins. Want a private call with the community creator? 5000 coins. Coins unlock endless layers of economy.

Traceability IRL collectibles come with certification that goods are authentic. NFTs prove that not only is your collectible legitimate, but your behavior that unlocked it is traceable and unique. NFTs center the customer journey more than ever.