A few weeks ago, we wrote about MetricsDAO’s bounty review process and what criteria our bounty operations pod/reviewers rely on to evaluate bounty submissions. These are:

• Accuracy & Completeness,

• Insights, 

• Visualizations, and 

• Definitions

We also gave examples of top quality submissions and some best practices.

In this article about Stellar Submissions, we will highlight the grand prize winners for each of MetricsDAO’s bounty programs to further drive home the point of what makes a good submission. We will list best practices and tips to avoid common mistakes as recommended by our team of reviewers and the submission authors themselves. Our goal with this is to sharpen the skills of on-chain analysts and raise the overall quality of bounty submissions.

First off, the Convex Program.

1. Most Active LPs on Convex by Chain Iq Edu

In this dashboard, Chain Iq Edu dives deep into the liquidity pools on Convex Finance by looking at which tokens are most often added to Convex and whether people are exiting or entering pools at high volumes. The submission also explores which pools are less active than others.

One of the many things that makes this submission great is that Chain Iq Edu not only systematically answers each question with the appropriate metrics, he also does so by defining said metrics and avoiding any jargon. The author also guides the reader on his approach to answering the bounty questions, sharing the main insights, and finally listing the data sources and analysis methodology which gives the reader a chance to verify the findings.

In fact, Chain Iq Edu shares his own tips on building dashboards for on-chain analytics on this twitter thread.

Give him a follow on Twitter if you want to learn from one of the most experienced analysts in the space.

2. On CVX token lockers and their relocking behavior by Adria Parcerisas

Adria looks into CVX token holders that have locked their tokens and what percentage of them have chosen to re-lock their holdings after the locking period.

Like with the previous submission, Adria explains to the reader the context behind the analysis as well as his methodology. He then walks the reader through each of his findings that answer the bounty questions.

What makes this submission truly stand out, however, are the findings on the factors that affect the decision to relock the CVX tokens.

The bounty question itself was not specific on what factors to consider regarding the decision to relock the tokens. The analyst took this as an opportunity to explore different facets such as asset prices and protocol activity. By going beyond the bounty brief and letting his curiosity lead, he was able to present some very insightful findings to the reader with a clear narrative that was easy to follow. All of these made for a richer and more comprehensive bounty submission.

Check out the full dashboard or reach out to Adria on twitter (@adrianparcerisas) to find out more.

3. Delegations of Vote Locked Convex Tokens (vlCVX) by rplust

I was fortunate enough to have two of my Convex bounty submissions be selected for grand prizes. In this particular dashboard, I explore the vlCVX delegation landscape, looking at things such as the top delegates and the distribution of delegations.

It’s a bit awkward and quite self-serving to go through what I think makes my dashboard great so instead I’ll just share my personal approach to answering bounties and building dashboards. 

My number one thought is to always put myself in the reader’s shoes. I think of what the reader might want to know at a high level which is why I put some scorecard visualizations (Counters) at the very top. As we dive into more detail, I want to use the simplest visualizations that allows the reader to glean the insights they need in the shortest time possible. However, sometimes we cannot avoid complexity when dealing with on-chain data, given the speed of innovation in the space. In these cases, I find it helpful to include a few lines regarding the points I want to make so it is easy for the reader to follow the narrative of the analysis.

I chose these metrics in particular because I wanted the reader to see just how much vlCVX was being delegated. It sets the stage in seeing if delegation is important in the Convex ecosystem. After that, I myself was curious on who are the top delegates and thought that this might provide valuable insights to the readers as well. Seeing this distribution would give them an idea who has the most power when it comes to gauge voting. With this, I was able to find out that the Votium protocol is the dominant entity in this space. The last step was to explore how much vlCVX voting power is entrusted to it and provide possible reasons as to why.

1. Explain the metrics you use and avoid jargon

   As analysts, it is easy to assume that readers know what we know. More often than not, this is not the case.  As much as possible, use common and easy-to-understand metrics and explain the key terms used in the analysis.

2. Cite your sources and explain your methodology

   As different people will be reviewing your bounty submissions, it is important that they can also verify the accuracy of your findings. Platforms like Dune and Flipside give reviewers the ability to check your code. However, this does not mean that other platforms should not be used like Medium or Mirror. In fact, MetricsDAO encourages analysts to use whatever tools they are comfortable with. It just means the sources should be cited in the posts themselves with the methodology clearly explained.

3. Walk the reader through your analysis with a clear narrative

   It is easy to put together a dashboard with just a bunch of charts compiled together. However, what makes a quality submission stand out is the analyst’s ability to relate these charts and metrics together with a woven narrative. It does not have to be an explicit narration. Rather, it just has to make sense for the reader so they are able to get the insight they need so they can make the right decision at the right time

   Bonus: Please make sure hyperlinks to bounty submissions are working. Test them out before sending. Nothing might be worse than giving plenty of effort to complete a bounty only to miss out on a reward because of a faulty link.

1. Most Active LPs on Convex by Chain Iq Edu

2. On Holding Convex Tokens and a Protocol's/Organization's Asset Price by rplust

3. On CVX token lockers and their relocking behavior by Adria Parcerisas

4. Delegations of Vote Locked Convex Tokens (vlCVX) by rplust

Hopefully this was helpful to on-chain analysts in the space, especially those who are looking to participate in bounty programs. Check out the currently active bounty programs by MetricsDAO here.

Stay tuned for the next set of Stellar Submissions.

—

Want to share your own tips and best practices? Maybe you are ready to participate in a bounty program? Hop on over to the MetricsDAO Discord or follow us on Twitter to find out more.

A few weeks ago, we wrote about MetricsDAO’s bounty review process and what criteria our bounty operations pod/reviewers rely on to evaluate bounty submissions. These are:

• Accuracy & Completeness,

• Insights, 

• Visualizations, and 

• Definitions

We also gave examples of top quality submissions and some best practices.

In this article about Stellar Submissions, we will highlight the grand prize winners for each of MetricsDAO’s bounty programs to further drive home the point of what makes a good submission. We will list best practices and tips to avoid common mistakes as recommended by our team of reviewers and the submission authors themselves. Our goal with this is to sharpen the skills of on-chain analysts and raise the overall quality of bounty submissions.

First off, the Convex Program.

1. Most Active LPs on Convex by Chain Iq Edu

In this dashboard, Chain Iq Edu dives deep into the liquidity pools on Convex Finance by looking at which tokens are most often added to Convex and whether people are exiting or entering pools at high volumes. The submission also explores which pools are less active than others.

One of the many things that makes this submission great is that Chain Iq Edu not only systematically answers each question with the appropriate metrics, he also does so by defining said metrics and avoiding any jargon. The author also guides the reader on his approach to answering the bounty questions, sharing the main insights, and finally listing the data sources and analysis methodology which gives the reader a chance to verify the findings.

In fact, Chain Iq Edu shares his own tips on building dashboards for on-chain analytics on this twitter thread.

Give him a follow on Twitter if you want to learn from one of the most experienced analysts in the space.

2. On CVX token lockers and their relocking behavior by Adria Parcerisas

Adria looks into CVX token holders that have locked their tokens and what percentage of them have chosen to re-lock their holdings after the locking period.

Like with the previous submission, Adria explains to the reader the context behind the analysis as well as his methodology. He then walks the reader through each of his findings that answer the bounty questions.

What makes this submission truly stand out, however, are the findings on the factors that affect the decision to relock the CVX tokens.

The bounty question itself was not specific on what factors to consider regarding the decision to relock the tokens. The analyst took this as an opportunity to explore different facets such as asset prices and protocol activity. By going beyond the bounty brief and letting his curiosity lead, he was able to present some very insightful findings to the reader with a clear narrative that was easy to follow. All of these made for a richer and more comprehensive bounty submission.

Check out the full dashboard or reach out to Adria on twitter (@adrianparcerisas) to find out more.

3. Delegations of Vote Locked Convex Tokens (vlCVX) by rplust

I was fortunate enough to have two of my Convex bounty submissions be selected for grand prizes. In this particular dashboard, I explore the vlCVX delegation landscape, looking at things such as the top delegates and the distribution of delegations.

It’s a bit awkward and quite self-serving to go through what I think makes my dashboard great so instead I’ll just share my personal approach to answering bounties and building dashboards. 

My number one thought is to always put myself in the reader’s shoes. I think of what the reader might want to know at a high level which is why I put some scorecard visualizations (Counters) at the very top. As we dive into more detail, I want to use the simplest visualizations that allows the reader to glean the insights they need in the shortest time possible. However, sometimes we cannot avoid complexity when dealing with on-chain data, given the speed of innovation in the space. In these cases, I find it helpful to include a few lines regarding the points I want to make so it is easy for the reader to follow the narrative of the analysis.

I chose these metrics in particular because I wanted the reader to see just how much vlCVX was being delegated. It sets the stage in seeing if delegation is important in the Convex ecosystem. After that, I myself was curious on who are the top delegates and thought that this might provide valuable insights to the readers as well. Seeing this distribution would give them an idea who has the most power when it comes to gauge voting. With this, I was able to find out that the Votium protocol is the dominant entity in this space. The last step was to explore how much vlCVX voting power is entrusted to it and provide possible reasons as to why.

1. Explain the metrics you use and avoid jargon

   As analysts, it is easy to assume that readers know what we know. More often than not, this is not the case.  As much as possible, use common and easy-to-understand metrics and explain the key terms used in the analysis.

2. Cite your sources and explain your methodology

   As different people will be reviewing your bounty submissions, it is important that they can also verify the accuracy of your findings. Platforms like Dune and Flipside give reviewers the ability to check your code. However, this does not mean that other platforms should not be used like Medium or Mirror. In fact, MetricsDAO encourages analysts to use whatever tools they are comfortable with. It just means the sources should be cited in the posts themselves with the methodology clearly explained.

3. Walk the reader through your analysis with a clear narrative

   It is easy to put together a dashboard with just a bunch of charts compiled together. However, what makes a quality submission stand out is the analyst’s ability to relate these charts and metrics together with a woven narrative. It does not have to be an explicit narration. Rather, it just has to make sense for the reader so they are able to get the insight they need so they can make the right decision at the right time

   Bonus: Please make sure hyperlinks to bounty submissions are working. Test them out before sending. Nothing might be worse than giving plenty of effort to complete a bounty only to miss out on a reward because of a faulty link.

1. Most Active LPs on Convex by Chain Iq Edu

2. On Holding Convex Tokens and a Protocol's/Organization's Asset Price by rplust

3. On CVX token lockers and their relocking behavior by Adria Parcerisas

4. Delegations of Vote Locked Convex Tokens (vlCVX) by rplust

Hopefully this was helpful to on-chain analysts in the space, especially those who are looking to participate in bounty programs. Check out the currently active bounty programs by MetricsDAO here.

Stay tuned for the next set of Stellar Submissions.

—

Want to share your own tips and best practices? Maybe you are ready to participate in a bounty program? Hop on over to the MetricsDAO Discord or follow us on Twitter to find out more.