This story is part of Glossy’s “Look Ahead” series breaking down what brand and retailer executives can expect from the fashion and beauty landscapes in 2024. Click here for more stories in this series.
2023 was the year that web3 brands went dark and into “building” mode, with a focus on internal project development as opposed to flashy launches.
Due, in part, to the announcement of crypto regulations, the crypto market was slow this year, only experiencing an uptick in the number of transactions toward the end of the year. This means that collectors and fans of making crypto purchases of NFTs were less likely to invest in the product, mainly waiting on the sidelines for more elaborate launches like those previously released by RTFKT and RSTLSS. They did, however, remain engaged in web3 community events and activities, showing ongoing interest and providing an opportunity for brands.
“2024 will be the year where we will see many brands creating loyalty programs powered by web 3.0 technology,” said Anne-Liese Prem, brand strategist and web3 educator. “Pioneering efforts by industry giants like Starbucks, Nike and .Swoosh have paved the way, yet it is just the beginning.” Decentralized loyalty programs are tamper-proof, making them a stable investment for future brand activity.
For its part, web3 fashion brand 9dcc has had two phygital collection drops, combining physical products and collectibles, this year. And next year, it plans to expand its product range beyond T-shirts, hoodies and caps. Anonymous founder Gmoney said building the brand with a focus on community engagement side rather than selling products has led to stronger brand affinity.
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9dcc has a 2,500-member community — each owns a digital wallet holding the digital collectibles that come with the brand’s physical products. 9dcc engages that community with a points system. A leaderboard found on Twitter features its top fans who earn points by wearing the brand’s products, liking its posts or taking part in brand conversations on Twitter through the platform’s chat and live functions. Community members can also earn points by displaying the brand’s affiliate badges, introduced in April, on their Twitter profile. Every three months, the top 25 people on the leaderboard earn a brand affiliate badge — normally priced at $50 per month — for free. “The thesis behind it is that these people are our best members, the best ambassadors,” Gmoney said. An affiliate badge communicates a fab’s affinity to a brand to a certain community.
The strategy combines the web3 brand with the web2 technology of the Twitter affiliate badge. According to Gmoney, integrating the two worlds has been a challenge; in the year ahead, the brand plans to develop technologies to easier link web2 and web3.
“We were one of the first web3 projects to implement a points system, which is now pretty widely used by different projects,” said Gmoney. Others that have adopted the system include RTFKT, RSTLSS and KIKI World.
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“Imagine if a company like Nike, Adidas or Prada [had affiliate badges],” said Gmoney. “These companies have people who are diehard fans and they want to feel connected to the brand — they want to be affiliated with this company.”
According to Gmoney, unlike product purchases, the points system shows the true value of a community member. “There is no real way to find out if somebody who buys your product wears it a lot or if they’re a good ambassador,” said Gmoney. “But those [who do so] are the people that are valuable. They may not be spending $100,000 a year, but if they’re wearing and evangelizing the product, that means something. Even if all they can afford is a hat, if they’re wearing this hat every day and are interacting with this community every day, they’re valuable.”
He added, “They may be even more valuable than a ‘points for purchase’ customer because they’re also an ambassador for the brand.”
“Web 3.0 allows for a much more interactive way to engage with customers than the traditional points-based system,” said Prem. “In 2024, expect to see a surge in brands leveraging digital wallets to cultivate vibrant, interactive communities, transforming customers from passive consumers into active, engaged community members, united by a seamless blend of their physical and digital identities.”
