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The NFT space may be well below all-time highs, but brands and loyalty programs trying to reach fans in new ways may still find value, he said. steve kaczynskiCo-author of the book “The Everything Token” and community lead for Starbucks Odyssey.
“Brand anchors” in gated areas like rewards programs are something the companies will expand on in 2024, he said. “I think we’re going to see a lot of community-based brand building this year,” he shared TechCrunch’s Chain Reaction Podcast,
Starbucks launched starbucks odyssey in 2022 as its initial entry into the Web3 world. Experience pairs the company’s Starbucks Rewards loyalty program with NFTs to enhance customer experience, TechCrunch previously reported informed of,
“We’re able to help people find their tribe,” Kaczynski said. “I’ve noticed that people who live in the Starbucks Odyssey community in California are really good friends with people from Chicago and they’ve even met in real life several times. “If it weren’t for Web3, this would never have happened.”
Kaczynski said the loyalty program has a five-tier system with more than 58,000 active participants at least the first level. “I can promise you that they’re not mostly or not all Web3 natives… It’s not just Web3 people that are participating.”
Kaczynski said those who reached the fifth level of the program bought “a good amount of money” on secondary markets. For example, in December, Starbucks announced it was sending the top 20 participants to Costa Rica to visit the coffee giant’s farms where the beans are produced.
There are other “third-party utilities” to be developed through NFTs, not just by big companies like Starbucks or Nike but by local businesses that want to promote loyalty programs or use the stamps as an asset that can be traded. They can provide anchor and encouragement.
Kaczynski offered this example: Let’s say food brand Hot Pockets ran a promotion where gamers would be given a 20% discount if they purchased the brand’s Fortnite skin and linked it to a crypto wallet. “The shopper is happy, the eater is happy and they get a discount and they’re in the ecosystem,” he said. “This person is not just a gamer, they are an active gamer who participates and is willing to spend disposable income on third-party things.”
When people think of NFTs, they often think of pictures of expensive monkeys all over the internet – and honestly, that’s part of it with Bored Ape Yacht Club – but the greater value of owning an NFT Is, says Kaczynski.
“Imagine you go to a museum and you see a beautiful painting on the wall, you can take a picture of that painting but it is not worth any money. The picture on the wall is worth the money because the museum owns it, it’s the original and they can prove both of those things,” Kaczynski said. “Until recently you couldn’t do that with digital objects,” until NFTs came along.
Brands and companies have the ability to buy and sell and “actually have your loyalty is a new concept that makes it one-sided,” Kaczynski said. “Although not all members of the community engage in buying and selling… I think for a lot of people, it’s very important to have optionality.”
This story was inspired by an episode of TechCrunch’s podcast Chain Reaction. subscribe to start a chain reaction apple podcasts, spotify Or your favorite pod platform to hear more stories and tips from entrepreneurs building today’s most innovative companies.
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