Quick recap

The steering committee meeting focused on reviewing Wayne's worker proposal for enhancing strategy execution and driving sustainable growth, discussing the team's approach to identity-focused messaging, payment utility, and social media engagement. The committee debated the effectiveness of current partnerships and marketing strategies, with some members expressing skepticism and suggesting a pivot to fresh ideas. The discussion concluded with an emphasis on the importance of focusing on large partnerships with significant user bases, revenue generation, and strategic conference planning to drive growth in the crypto industry.

Summary

Wayne's Worker Proposal Review

The steering committee meeting focused on reviewing Wayne's worker proposal, which aims to enhance strategy execution and drive sustainable growth in the face of challenging market conditions. Wayne presented their team's experience, proven track record, and approach to identity-focused messaging and payment utility, emphasizing the importance of paid handle strategies and expanding use cases for PO. The team discussed finance and liquidity, including ideas for the BTC fair, and acknowledged current market challenges while highlighting their ability to implement changes immediately.

Social Media Strategy and Growth

Wayne reported a 60% budget reduction in June while noting improved growth and engagement metrics, including a 10.7% engagement rate. The team has shifted their social media strategy to focus on community building through user interactions and partner channel engagement, with several key opinion leaders (KOLs) and trading groups showing interest in their projects. Wayne highlighted 15+ new partner integrations over the past year, including enhanced wallet integration and top-tier exchange listings, while also discussing plans to expand use cases through AI partnerships and institutional service providers.

Enhancing Crypto Payment Brand Messaging

Wayne discussed the company's social media presence, highlighting their 17 active channels and focus on enhancing brand messaging to make crypto payments easier for users. He mentioned ongoing marketing efforts, including campaigns, ads, and press releases, as well as community building and partner integrations. Wayne also talked about the importance of consistent content creation and the company's strategy to grow their ecosystem through partner acquisitions and KOL collaborations. He emphasized the need for a vetting process for new KOLs and mentioned that Take Wallet has recently expressed interest in a full integration.

Domain Registration and Partnership Strategy

Wayne presented a 3-month work proposal with a total budget of 87,000, focusing on a dual approach combining payments and identity utility to drive domain and handle registrations. The team aims to achieve 75+ domain registrations, 30K handle transactions, and secure 4 new partnerships, including at least one top-tier partner, while maintaining an engagement rate focus rather than just follower count. Wayne emphasized the team's proven track record in deal closures and partner management, contrasting their proposal with others that lack demonstrated execution capabilities, particularly in social media and business development.

KOL Strategy vs Organic Growth

Wayne and Sarn debated social media engagement strategies, with Wayne defending their current approach of working with 5 KOLs who share content in their native languages, while Sarn questioned the authenticity of recent engagement and referenced past proposals. Wayne accused Sarn's previous examples of being inactive or inconsistent, while Sarn maintained that organic growth required skill and talent. The discussion ended with Wayne suggesting they should focus on Web3 aspects and Sarn sharing a recent successful video post.

Domain Strategy and Client Focus

Wayne explained their strategy to improve domain registration targets by focusing on institutional clients and wallet providers, with planned integrations expected in Q3. He noted that while the Better Humans campaign was an anomaly, their main focus remains on handle registrations, with plans to promote domain ownership through affiliate programs. Justin questioned the approach, suggesting that successful domain sales might require competition to identify effective partners.

Worker Proposals: Growth Strategy Debate

The steering committee discussed two competing worker proposals for growth and marketing, with Luke expressing skepticism about the current approach and suggesting a pivot with fresh ideas. Pawel reminded the committee to vote on the proposals by the end of June. George raised concerns about the lack of focus on tangible partnerships, while Micah explained their strategy for business development and emphasized the importance of a focused approach. Sarn asked the steering committee members to clarify their priorities between increasing partnerships and generating revenue within the protocol.

Crypto Partnerships and Revenue Strategies

Pawel discussed the cyclical nature of the crypto industry and emphasized the importance of focusing on large partnerships with significant user bases to drive growth. He suggested that while free FIO handles might be necessary for adoption, the revenue should primarily come from domain sales and on-chain transaction fees. Sarn raised concerns about the effectiveness of current partnerships, noting that many free handles are being distributed without significant user engagement or revenue generation. George expressed interest in institutional opportunities and layer-0 integration with large companies, while Micah mentioned potential improvements to Kraken's spot trading system using FIO wallets.

Strategic Partnerships and Marketing Focus

The team discussed their approach to institutional partnerships, with Micah sharing updates on efforts with Kraken and emphasizing the need for strategic conference planning. Sarn and Adam raised concerns about excessive conference spending and the need to focus on meaningful product development, while Emily highlighted revenue generation as a priority, noting that partnerships currently provide a significant portion of revenue. The discussion concluded with a call for rethinking their marketing strategy to attract developers with financial backing, as current approaches are not effectively engaging the target audience.

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