Original:ehwangah
Compiled by: Yuliya, PANews
First, let's talk about a reality - in the crypto field, market capitalization is the core indicator for measuring success. Technical innovation, core value capture, product-market fit (PMF), etc. are all important, but the real sign that you have brought multiplied returns to your team, investors, and holders is whether your market capitalization can soar. So how to achieve this?
Start immediately, build and publicly showcase > Don't get too bogged down in the launch details or keep postponing it.
Don't be too nervous, the launch only accounts for 10%-20% of your long-term success. Don't let it become complicated. Here's a brief summary:
Excessive pre-launch hype but lack of substance: Skyrocket and plummet
Low-key launch but lack of substance: Directly stillborn
Excessive pre-launch hype but with substantial support: Take off and reach the peak
Low-key launch but with substantial support: Steady growth
Do you see the pattern? The key is to build substantial content (we'll discuss in detail how to build substantial content later, in short, it's about the team, product, and community). A simple test is: Are your friends willing to buy, hold, and believe in your project? If they don't trust it, others won't either.
Why is an early launch the best choice?
1. Validate your idea before investing more than $100,000 in development
Rather than spending 3 months or even longer and tens of thousands of dollars polishing the product, an early launch can help you validate the concept. Similar to the lean startup approach, first put out a proposal, spark the interest of your target users, and then iterate and build. You may think this is unconventional, but it can help you cultivate your initial 1,000 true believers, who will become catalysts for driving project growth, whether in terms of network, resources, or pricing.
The key is: Validate the idea first, don't wait until you've spent a lot of time and money.
2. Establish a leading position and leverage the Lindy effect
Do you know why the top 50 projects can still maintain a leading position in the cycle replacement? It's not just about quality, but also the advantage of time and position, i.e., the Lindy effect. An early launch will give you a stronger community of token holders, allowing you to gradually weed out the less committed users and attract loyal supporters. Time is on your side.
If you wait too long, inferior projects may occupy your position. Once others have taken over your narrative, funding, or attention, it will be very difficult to regain it. In the PVP competition on X (Twitter), it's hard to get people who have already "entered" to switch to another project.
In the current AI agent craze, being the first to launch is not only a bonus, but a decisive factor. Everyone is rushing to launch AI agents, getting on the track early will give you an advantage in the ecosystem, while others can only chase after you.
Whether we like it or not, launching a project in the crypto market involves a "game of attention". Product-driven growth is certainly important, but that's a different story. Attracting attention first and building a community are crucial, and tokens are the best tools for distribution and aligning interests.
Projects that launch on the Virtuals ecosystem usually gain a competitive edge. The overall culture of this ecosystem is known for high quality, and in the long run, capital tends to flow towards quality projects.
3. Immediately form a community and distribution effect
Launching a project will generate buzz, people on X (Twitter) will start discussing your project and summarizing "3 reasons to buy/hold". This discussion is very valuable - not just for the price increase, but because it builds a community. This group can help you iterate the product, test new features, and even contribute development resources. On the first day of launch, you'll already have a loyal user base.
4. You can get ahead of the wave of VC-backed token projects in 2025
Many projects postponed their launches during the 2024 bear market, believing that low liquidity and risk-averse sentiment were not suitable for launching. By 2025, you'll see more projects launching, following the typical path:
Raise a large amount of funding from VCs;
Polish the product and then conduct marketing activities (airdrops, quests, KOL collaborations, etc.);
Subsequently hold a token generation event (TGE).
What's your advantage? Fair launch, decentralized spirit, and organic community growth. The market dynamics have already shifted, and now it's more favorable for you.
What if I build the product first?
A solid product can indeed bring competitive advantages, but it's not the only decisive factor. As an early-stage project, the crypto market itself is also in the early stages, and the team's background to continuously create value is crucial. To be honest, if the crypto market was purely driven by utility and product, "shitcoins" wouldn't have attracted so much buying power.
It's not about advocating for launching "air projects", but rather that an early launch can give you a competitive edge in community building and narrative shaping.
Product launches are never perfect, there will always be bugs, server overloads, concurrency issues, etc. Don't overly emphasize these problems, as the product will ultimately prove itself through updates and iterations.
Build in public, document the journey
People love to see a team create value from scratch. The story is important, and people are more willing to support founders with flesh and blood rather than cold brands. Building in public makes the project more approachable and human.
You don't need a perfect brand image on the first day, start early and build from the initial drafts. Grow through public building. I recommend studying the success stories of the top 20 projects in the Virtuals ecosystem.
FAQs
About snipers: They exist on all chains, the key is to maintain user stickiness and ecosystem strength
Token economics design and agent launch structure: Advice can be provided based on experience from over 100 launch cases
G.A.M.E framework: Provides open-source SDKs to support customized needs
Business model: Can integrate existing business models
Existing token integration: There are corresponding solutions
Trust issues with no-product launches: Similar to Kickstarter projects, early feedback is most valuable
