In case you don’t know it, here’s what it says:

There are 9 dots in a paper. They're arranged in 3 lines, forming a square (see the picture). Your task is to link the 9 dots with a pen, without lifting it from the paper, with 4 or fewer straight lines.

If you didn't know the puzzle, I challenge you to get your best answer. I'm totally going to spoil it in this thread.

Come on. Think a little.

Did it with 4 lines? Cool. I did it with 1. Now these are ChatGPT and Bard answers.

I see 2 big problems.

1. They don't understand the rules.

2. They don't think outside the box.

And yes, this puzzle is where the idiom comes from. In order to get to 4 lines you need to think outside the box. Bard got a bit closer. He must have read the Wikipedia article.

Below, I'll show you the traditional solution.

Don't scroll down if you still want to play!

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Ok…

You asked for it.

See? I didn't say you needed to stay inside the 9 dots. But people tend to assume that. And so do AIs.

To get to a better solution, you need to break the “rules”. You need to find a new angle.

And current AIs cannot do that. They're an algorithm trained on a huge amount of data to give you the statistically most likely solution.

Even when you ask them to be original, they can't. They're still basing their answers on what other humans wrote before them.

Only me, a human, can do it with 1 line. And arguably other humans too. But no AI.

Do you want to see the answers? Yes, answers, in plural.

It's your last chance to exercise your brain. Once you know how to do it, you won't be able to play anymore.

Hint: I totally crush the “rules”. I fold them to their limit. I pass through them. I scratch them.

Really…

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Stop scrolling if you want to play.

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I’m not gonna paste that image again.

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Use your brain.

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Ok, here it goes.

See now what I mean?

As a copywriter I write, yes. But that's a tiny bit of my job. What I really do is coming up with new ideas. New angles.

And by definition, AIs don’t do that. AIs give statistically probable answers. If you ask them to look for random solutions they might not even make sense. How would they know without a human to double check?

Me? I’ve got my brain.

Do you have yours?

It's not any different for Web3 projects, but while the traditional place might have been LinkedIn or Facebook, the social storefront for a web3 brand is typically your Twitter bio.

In today's post I'll go through some of the best advice to have an engaging Twitter bio, specifically for Web3.

Step 1: Who Are You Targeting?

The first step is always the same with copywriting. You need to know who you are talking to.

The language you'll use, the keywords you'll pick… They'll be different.

Find out your customers voice. Find out their pains. Then use them.

Step 2: Show Why You're Unique

You cannot be “another one”. Another PFP collection. Another DeFi exchange. Another L2.

You need to know what makes you stand out. That's why people will follow you and become part of your community. If you're just another one, they'll just go with the other one.

Give them no alternative.

Step 3: Make It Exciting

Even if it’s boring. Talk about the benefits of following you or becoming part of your community. It’s more engaging than simply stating facts.

You can say what you tweet about (it might even be good for the almighty algorithm), but make readers feel something!

Step 4: Show Proof

Why would they believe you're so awesome as you claim to be?

There are 6 ways to show it:

1. Social Proof

2. Testimonial Proof

3. Academic/expert proof

4. Celebrity/famous example

5. Historical examples/analogy

6. Logical deduction

If you can add any of those to your bio, you’re making it right. But remember that not only the bio is your display.

Social Proof can be how many followers you have. Celebrity Proof might be who is following you. You can add an award or some key numbers to your banner.

However you do it, remember that you should give a reason for them to trust you.

Step 5: Use Your Avatar and Banner

Your PFP and your banner should match each other and your bio. If your project is a PFP collection, you already know what to use, right?

You get to use a few words in your banner, but don’t overdo it.

And please, remove those apps that show your latest followers. It’s not adding any proof.

Step 6: R+D

Don’t be afraid of innovation. Embrace it!

As I like to say, you have to do R+D copywriting. Don’t let anything stagnate. People’s awareness change. Your offer might change. What used to be surprising, becomes boring.

Keep testing new things. If they work, keep them! If they don’t, you can always go back to the previous version.

R+D is the only way of staying above the curve.

Are you ready to craft the perfect bio? Follow the steps above and you'll be well on your way to success! If you’re not sure, feel free to DM me on Twitter.

Good luck, and have fun!

Your clients are flooded with information. Each one of them has a preferred way to receive their info (e.g. Discord, Twitter, Telegram…). But don’t kid yourself, pretty much all of them have at least one email account.

Email is one of the most cost-effective ways to connect with your customers. You can send personalized messages and get instant results. It's also easy to measure results and tweak your strategy based on what works best. There’s a reason why an average worker sends and receives over 100 business emails per day.

Being Web3 a rising, almost newborn market, the competition to get attention is fierce. So if you want to lead the way, you need to include emails in your overall marketing strategy. Let’s look at the differences with more traditional B2B funnels, and some crypto-friendly ideas.But there are some contrasts that, even if nuanced, can be key to helping you stand out.

4 Differences With B2B

Look, the overlap is big. The goal is the same, and human behaviour doesn’t change from one medium to another. So you still need to:

• integrate your emails within a bigger marketing campaign

• use an email service provider

• create funnels to ease the path of your customers

• segment your audience

• iterate on your most successful tactics

But there are some contrasts that, even if nuanced, can be key to helping you stand out.

Complexity

Web3, blockchain, NFTs, DeFi… Try asking for definitions of these from anyone on the street and you’ll run into problems. Any marketing text needs to be clear, but it’s especially critical for web3.

I’d argue you need a decent copywriter with a considerable amount of experience on blockchain, since you’ll need to get them engaged while making long explanations.

Loyalty

You’ve probably read already that

• web1 = read

• web2 = read & write

• web3 = read, write & own

This effectively means that any of your customers should feel part of a community. When they own your tokens, they become a part of their identity.

You want them to be loyal and contribute to the growth of your project. So you need to continually engage with the right audience and show them frequently that you should be trusted.

Speed

This builds on the previous point. Speed on web3 is huge. Developments occur faster than in any other niche (except, maybe AI).

So you need to keep up with everything and don’t let your community forget about you. So, again, you need to deliver frequent updates to keep the flame alive.

Spam

You may think of email marketing as a type of spam. But it's so well done, that you manage not to get caught.

While we wait for proper, logical regulation, web3 is full of scammers. Email filters know this and are harsh with any crypto-related email.

6 Crypto-friendly Email Marketing Ideas

Rule of One

As basic as it sounds, web3 email marketing is still marketing and you should follow its grounding rules if you want to be successful.

Each email you send should have one idea, one client in your mind, show one offer and have one call to action. One.

Don’t try to overdo it. A confused client is a client that doesn’t buy.

Explore Ways to Build Your Email List

Your goal is to have a big email list with quality subscribers. You don’t want to have people who don't read or take any action. That only makes things more expensive for you. Bearing that in mind: the bigger, the better.

So you should try to collect emails at any time. There are classic ways to do it, but web3 is all about innovation, so don’t be afraid to try new things. A few examples:

• In exchange for access to exclusive content

• For a chance to get allowlisted

• For airdrop campaigns

• To get new information about your project before it goes public

• For a POAP

Always Add Value

Your client's time is precious. Don’t disrespect them.

I say this is basic human decency, but I’ve seen many marketers spamming their way into my inbox. It’s annoying. It might work for a few quick sales. But it’ll also burn your list in the long run.

So always provide some value in your emails. You should be helping your client, not squeezing their pockets.

As a collateral benefit, it will build trust and get you more sales.

Copywriting

Being good is not enough. You need to look good. And in an email, you do that with the right words.

Again, I advise getting a professional copywriter. There are many nuances to it. From getting the right tone to crafting eye-catching subject lines and engaging texts.

You could do it too, but you’ll need (a lot of) time to learn about it and get some practice. Your time is probably better spent in other areas.

Segmentation

This goes back to the Rule of One. By segmenting your audience, you can craft better offers for them.

You can track if they are hodlers, non-hodlers or whales, for example. Or how they behave when visiting your site.

Specific emails will have better results.

Test, Analyze and Iterate

Getting it perfect the first time is rare. When talking about human behaviour there are no absolutes. Rules are more like guidelines.

Whatever you do, you should collect data and track the metrics. What’s the open rate? The click-through rate? Unsubscribe rate? Bounce rate?

Track it! Then tweak your campaigns and find what works better.

Marketing is a never-ending task. So keep improving and adjusting to the market behaviour.

Web3 is a tremendous change. We can’t imagine where it’s going to take us. Or the symbiosis it might make with AI or any other new technologies. So we take small steps and use the frameworks that we already know. The ones from web2. I’ll call it digital skeuomorphism because it makes me sound cool.

So web3 marketing is mimicking web2. The basics, like the Awareness Journey, are of course the same. However, the forms will evolve. Today I want to share some tips that work today, in a sustainable way, to promote your NFT project. I’ll divide it into three phases:

Phase 1: Awareness

In the beginning, no one knows you or the problem you’re trying to solve. So you need to target the identity of the reader. And you do it by sharing your story, mission and vision.

Most projects have used Twitter to spread the word; a few ones Instagram. But don’t be afraid to innovate. I’m pretty sure Reddit could work perfectly now.

Art is like a headline. It stands out everywhere, and it’s the first thing you see of an NFT. Share teasers and sneak peeks. But don’t forget to add keywords that resonate with the kind of people you want to attract. And always, always, always focus on them, not you. Don’t insist on why you’re good. Say how they’ll benefit.

Same as web2, you don’t own your Twitter followers. We don’t have effective web3 socials yet, so I advocate getting their emails. You need a Lead for that, which for most NFT projects is the allowlist (AL). Once you have their mail, you'll be able to send them offers in the future. No matter if Twitter decides to ban your account. But be conscious about it. People are more reluctant to share emails in web3. You should provide value with every single email you send.

Alternatively, you can at least get them to a Discord server. That’s a double-edged sword though. It can be great to hype up the project. You can share exclusive content or before doing it on other platforms. Your community can gather there and grow together. You can get useful feedback. But anyone can enter and sometimes it becomes toxic. You need good mods.

And you need to treat it as a website. You should have a “landing page”, an “about page”, a “contact page”, a "FAQ" (which you can build from real frequent questions that you get in the server)... Your copy should be similar to what you’ll find on a website. Your design is limited by Discord, so you shall follow the fundamentals of copywriting.

At some point, you need to share your USP (Unique Selling Proposition). What are you adding to the space? What makes you stand out? Show you understand your readers and prove that you’ll achieve what you promise.

Twitter Spaces are huge right now. Partner with other founders or big accounts that share your values. I’ll repeat: that share your values.

If you don’t build your own site, you should at least write some articles on Medium to explain the problem you’re trying to solve in more detail. Or better, go web3 native and use Mirror or fx(text). Your posts could become NFTs to gather some funds. You can even use them to give more AL or some special perks.

It’s still early and many people are exploring everything on web3. I even know people who hired other people to explore discords and digest what’s going on there so they can catch up with everything. So I highly recommend doing weekly or monthly recaps. If you have an email list, use it.

Keep exchanging value. The “raffle for an AL” in exchange for RT/tag/like has worked wonders. But some (most?) of us are tired of it. I would encourage you to get creative.

FOMO is tempting, but it belongs to the dark side. It can be very useful to sell out immediately, but you risk ending up with a lot of flippers that dump your project. I’d rather focus on long-term holders from the beginning to create a sustainable company. Otherwise, you’ll have to work double for this afterwards. But a little mystery is always nice. Have a purposely vague roadmap.

Phase 2: Conversion

The work right before the mint day should be almost the same. But a bit more intense.

Your website should be complete and awesome. It should make the visitor think “Wow!” And everyone should understand it. Rules for AL mint, public mint and how to buy should be crystal clear. Basic copywriting still applies.

Right after mint day, if it matches your style, you can make contests to the better Deca galleries so the word keeps spreading. Whether it is minted out or not, make a final offer to overcome final objections. Something you hadn’t shared below that makes flippers want to hodl. And everyone else to hop on board.

Get testimonials (from Discord or wherever you can). You can even do this pre-launch if you have beta users.

Phase 3: Adherence

Some flipping can help you gather more funds, but your main goal should be getting loyal fans. If you didn’t use dark side tactics, you should already have many hodlers honestly interested in your project. So deliver what you promised… and more!

Consider launching your own (fungible) token. It could help build a nice ecosystem.

And give FREE stuff. Who doesn’t like free stuff? Run exclusive giveaways for hodlers. And share the news everywhere so new people keep knowing about you.

Do events. IRL or in the metaverse. But always keep in line with your brand image. For some, it would be a yacht party, for others an exquisite gallery.

And above all, keep listening to your community. In Discord, Twitter or wherever they are. The space is so new that people keep coming up with cool new ideas. Don’t be afraid to innovate based on what your supporters say.

No, it’s not. Selling is not a bad thing. What’s bad is selling something that you know it’s not good. Let me frame it another way: if you’re excited about something, won’t you tell your friends to try it? Copywriting skills make that process effective.

Do you know what else is powerful? Empathy. Nuclear energy. Internet. A hammer. A frog with superpowers. None of those things are bad on its own. They all allow us to build amazing stuff. The caveat is that we need to be responsible. What a bummer, huh?

I am enthusiastic about copywriting. Good intentioned copywriters have the power to improve the world. And that’s what I want to do. I want to find agents of change. Of truth-telling. And help them shake things up for the better. So we can make the world a better place. Is that naive?

Honestly, I don’t care. The world can use some naivety. So I’ll say it again: I want to make the world a better place.

But it cannot happen with mediocre copy. Nor will it happen by accident. We need to put our hands to it, because it’s only possible with copy that educates, engages and resonates emotionally with the reader.

So I am going to keep learning psychology. I am going to keep learning about human nature. I am going to understand you. I am going to enter the conversation in your head and I am going to convince you to make the world a better place too. Oh, and I’m going to avoid becoming a supervillain in the process. I do not want to fight that frog.

I am writing about persuasion and web3. So if you want to become an evil tyrant, please, don’t read any of my stuff.

Copywriting is about convincing people that your project is good. Just make sure your project is good beforehand.

That’s why I’m so excited about Web3.

We, humans, have conquered the world because of our ability to network.

We are not the strongest species. Nor the biggest. But we cooperate worldwide. Yeah, I know, not always, but enough. The scale at which we network separates us from other species.

Today, we’re interconnected as never before. We communicate through networks such as money, religions, corporations, roads or the internet.

Networks have more value the bigger they are. So, when they’re born, they tend to focus on growth. They try everything to attract users and collaborators (such as developers, content creators and other businesses). Its growth has a snowball effect, and the bigger they become, the more attractive they are. For a while.

There’s a moment when the game becomes competitive and the network grows more by extracting value from its users. Remember Yelp, Zynga or Netscape? Yeah, neither do I.

So what happens is that, essentially, we end up with a Winner Network for each area. And the power concentrates on a few Overlords who rule those winners.

Enter: blockchains

Have you ever heard of someone arguing that Web3 matters because of decentralization? Well, it is because decentralization is important.

A decentralized blockchain like Bitcoin or Ethereum is a public database. Available to all, but controlled by none. It is a network and, as such, it has no value if people don’t use it. But if we do, there’s no Overlord to rule above us.

Web3 rewards its users with native tokens. Bitcoin and Ethereum reward you with $BTC and $ETH. You can get these tokens by buying them or by collaborating with the network. Uniswap and ENS airdropped their own token to their early users. BAYC gave away BAKC, MAKC and $APE to their holders. Thus, Web3 encourages its members to keep using it and spreading the word. Because the growth of the network grows your assets too.

There’s no point where the Network turns against its users. The token distribution aligns everyone’s interests in growing together.

Blockchains get rid of kings and archbishops. Web3 gives YOU power. Which means money. Which means time. Don’t you like that?

Forget about zero-sum games. Let’s build together.