Where did the new users go? "Nobody plays" is scarier than a bear market, what is the next step for crypto projects?

Why are there no new users in the cryptocurrency market? Cryptocurrency marketing is becoming increasingly challenging at this stage, with increased competition, fragmented target audiences, immature technology, and impaired user trust. This article is from an article written by Emily Lai and compiled by Techflow. (Synopsis: Dr. Po Ge Rujun: Taiwan has Ready Bitcoin reserves!) Cryptocurrency law "it's better not to be good") (Background supplement: Trump will be in office for 2 months, take stock of what changes have been brought about by the US cryptocurrency regulatory policy? Crypto marketing efforts are dizzying: from choosing the right channels, to messaging, to team coordination. Should you invest in hosting an event? Do I need to start an ambassador program? How should hackathon incentives be designed? There is always something to do. Good marketers streamline processes, make plans, and execute tasks while helping you save your budget. Chart: An Effective Marketing Strategy Can Help You Navigate Seemingly Complex Situations However, crypto marketing is becoming increasingly challenging at this stage. What the hell is going on? What can we do as founders, builders, and marketers? Why? Here are three reasons: No new users!! The entire crypto ecosystem is saturated with chains, infrastructure, and dApps (decentralized applications), with each project competing for attention with its own token. Figure: Source: @defillama On-chain data provided, @alvaapp dApps and token data provided Figure: For example, my friend @mumufengg has never used an on-chain product (no hot wallet and no exposure to dApps), but his first experience reflects the confusion of new users According to @DefiLlama, there are currently more than 356 blockchains. After a talk, I spoke to @cattybk (from @thirdweb) and he told me that they had worked with more than 2,000 EVM chains alone. Therefore, I consulted the data of @coingecko: More than 8700 L1 chains More than 5200 L2 chains In addition to this, there are: According to @cookiedotfun, more than 1500 AI agents More than 50,000 tokens are added every day according to @pumpdotfun and @Dune 44 narratives tracked by @KaitoAI The question is, is there an influx of new users to support these new chains, infrastructure, dApps, and tokens? In terms of Total Value Locked (TVL), the performance of this cycle is comparable to the previous one, and in line with the performance of the word "crypto" in Google search trends - search volumes have declined periodically, indicating that mainstream user interest is waning. Even if new users come in, they are faced with hundreds or thousands of chain options, not to mention hundreds of wallets. This is more confusing than ever. Figure: Source: @defillama Comparison of TVL trends displayed Chart: Google Trends shows global search trends for "Crypto" Reason 2: Target audience fragmentation The diversity of audiences in the crypto space, each with different motivations, further exacerbates the fragmentation of the market. Developers & Builders: If you're a blockchain/network/ecosystem developer, you need to attract developers to build apps that attract new users. This requires developer marketing and onboarding guidance. Developer motivations may include wanting to leverage your technology stack to realize unique ideas, receive development grants, or see a higher chance of success based on network effects and distribution capabilities. Customers and users: If you're an agreement, dApp, middleware, or service provider, you need to attract users to generate revenue. To the ecosystem, dApp teams may be treated as customers. It's important to note that users and token holders don't always coincide, and sometimes token holders may just be speculators and don't really use your product. Venture capitalists, angel investors, and other investors: These groups fund you and are motivated by a return on investment (ROI), usually through tokens, whose performance is not always directly related to technology, number of users, or number of developers. Retail investors and token speculators: These people may or may not be your users. Their goal is likewise to have a high ROI and profit from token trading. Technology Partners: These are typically other infrastructure or middleware projects. As blockchains expand in terms of speed, security, and cost, an entire field of middleware infrastructure has spawned, including chain/wallet abstraction, cross-chain bridges, interoperability, modularity, and more. In addition, there are service providers, not limited to agencies, but also blockchain explorers, advertising technology, unlocking software, etc. These partners are often targeted at a wide audience, which is why Business Development (BD) is so hot in the industry. Listing partners: including trading platforms, launch platforms, market makers, intermediaries and KOL trading, etc. The performance of these groups has a direct impact on the success of your token, and their motivation is often related to the ROI of investment returns as well. Regulators and institutional investors: These audiences can bring a lot of liquidity while also potentially causing your company to fail. In addition to all these audience types, the globalization of the crypto industry has further exacerbated the fragmentation of the market. This means understanding cultural nuances, coordinating messaging across time zones, and managing localized marketing efforts. All of this makes marketing in the crypto industry more difficult, compared to Web2 marketing, which is more direct, has clearer messaging, and has more consistent motivations. Example: Sales of health supplements: for health-conscious people, the elderly, and high-income earners. Sale of winter coats: aimed at people in cold climates, skiers, climbers and snowboarders. Sale of protein powder: suitable for fitness enthusiasts and bodybuilders, vegetarians are not included (if it is whey protein). Reason 3: Technology is not yet mature and user trust is damaged According to statistics, since the birth of Bitcoin, the media has declared its "death" 415 times. In addition to this, the crypto industry is also notorious for scams, money laundering, and crime. Figure: Some news headlines about crypto might make your mother worry about your choice to pursue a career in the industry In 2021, the boom in NFTs and the metaverse attracted a large number of new users. At that time, many celebrities entered the game. If you were working in the industry at the time, you might have received many inquiries from old friends. However, it all came to an abrupt end after the following issues arose: high gas fees, plummeting token prices, and the painful experience of user losses. These problems have led to reputational crises and a lack of trust. Mainstream users left the market, and we entered a construction (bear market) cycle, along with thousands of new chains and middleware. Chart: The industry's focus oscillates between "we need more applications" and "we need more infrastructure." (Inspiration: @jillrgunter's visualization) So, why are you still here? I don't know, take a deep breath, calm down, and tell me your reasons (I really want to hear your story, it's also important for your marketing). For me, I fell down the "rabbit hole" of Bitcoin in my college apartment in 2013 because...