Not just developers... businesses

Last week, I wrote about how attracting developers is the most efficient way to market a blockchain. Developers who build dApps that attract their own communities will feed the broader network.

But this assumes a lot about the capability of the developers. Most developers aren't marketers. They've never built communities. Plus this is probably just a hobby for them. Taking on the long-term project of improving your dApp and nurturing the community you've built may not appeal to many developers.

So, instead of saying blockchains need devs, what I really should say is that blockchains need businesses. This is a very different target audience.

For blockchains to attract and retain businesses, business outcomes are the primary driver. Tools, support, and other inputs are valuable, but it has to amount to X% lower start up costs, Y% lower ongoing costs, Z% larger potential audience, etc.

Businesses choose Ethereum because it has the largest already-on-blockchain audience. This customer segment is used to high fees and is willing to pay big money. You don't need as many customers, but you really have to deliver something valuable.

Businesses choose alt L1s and L2s for greater reach to those not already using blockchain. The majority of the world isn't willing to pay $100 or $1,000. But there's a massive (constantly growing) group of people interested in blockchain that might pay $1-20. Because these customers aren't as familiar with blockchain, they have very different needs.

New networks seeking to attract businesses need to understand these new entrants to blockchain in order to drive meaningful business outcomes for the dApps they attract.

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-Luke

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P.S. One of the biggest differences with new blockchain users is that they don't have a wallet loaded with tokens to spend. You can't assume the user experience of Ethereum dApps is good enough.