1385
justin vogel 🦁
@jhv #1385
Empowering growth leaders at @safary 🦁 and /farhackers
2550 Follower 540 Following
The tribe swap is a brilliant social game mechanic—keeps players engaged, relationships evolving, and shifts overall game strategy!
I grew up playing all kinds of alliance-based mmorpgs, and I'm now surprised that none of them did this
Well played, @dylanabruscato!
I grew up playing all kinds of alliance-based mmorpgs, and I'm now surprised that none of them did this
Well played, @dylanabruscato!
Founder: “Our growth is terrible — time to fire our marketer”
Your onboarding flow:
• Link every social account you own
• Bridge from 3 chains
• Sign 27 transactions
• Hope it works
Me: Might not be a marketing problem...
Your onboarding flow:
• Link every social account you own
• Bridge from 3 chains
• Sign 27 transactions
• Hope it works
Me: Might not be a marketing problem...
My Eth Denver BD strategy:
• Avoid the fun ones (selling B2B SaaS)
• Avoid the hot ones (selling security audits)
• Find the loner (either a big fucking deal or about to be)
They're the most eager to chat, and most likely to remember you
Hasn't failed me yet
• Avoid the fun ones (selling B2B SaaS)
• Avoid the hot ones (selling security audits)
• Find the loner (either a big fucking deal or about to be)
They're the most eager to chat, and most likely to remember you
Hasn't failed me yet
Most people overlook the real experts in crypto
That's why I'm so bullish on growth operators
VCs? Throw money, pray to the token gods, then forget they ever invested
Founders? Bullish on their own thing—because they have to be
But operators? They’re betting their careers on this
They’re locked in for at least 1.5 years—anything less makes it look like they got fired or can’t commit
So when a top operator joins a project, *pay attention*
They’re the only ones making real long-term bets
That's why I'm so bullish on growth operators
VCs? Throw money, pray to the token gods, then forget they ever invested
Founders? Bullish on their own thing—because they have to be
But operators? They’re betting their careers on this
They’re locked in for at least 1.5 years—anything less makes it look like they got fired or can’t commit
So when a top operator joins a project, *pay attention*
They’re the only ones making real long-term bets
I've been roasting founders for being terrible to marketers, but they're often victims in all of this too. Here’s how the cycle begins:
🧑💻 Founder: gm binance! Been hard to reach you, but glad we’re finally chatting. We’ve been building a revolutionary protocol for 3 years, launching in 3 months, and backed by a random crypto guy who gave us $10 milly!
🤑 CEX: Cool story bro. Never heard of you. Come back with 100K X followers, 20K active Discord users, and serious trading volume.
🧑💻 Founder: Roger that! Growth = CEX listing—not that community-building nonsense. Time to hire a marketer!
👨💼 Marketer: So we’ll culture, produce quality content, and build deep relationships—
🧑💻 Founder: blah blah blah none of that matters—can you get us *list of CEX vanity metrics* or not?
🧑💻 Founder: gm binance! Been hard to reach you, but glad we’re finally chatting. We’ve been building a revolutionary protocol for 3 years, launching in 3 months, and backed by a random crypto guy who gave us $10 milly!
🤑 CEX: Cool story bro. Never heard of you. Come back with 100K X followers, 20K active Discord users, and serious trading volume.
🧑💻 Founder: Roger that! Growth = CEX listing—not that community-building nonsense. Time to hire a marketer!
👨💼 Marketer: So we’ll culture, produce quality content, and build deep relationships—
🧑💻 Founder: blah blah blah none of that matters—can you get us *list of CEX vanity metrics* or not?
Two ways to grow in crypto:
⚔️ Wage war – Launch a full-scale memetic assault with coordinated shitposting, farm 100K fake followers for "credibility," & deploy engagement farming quests nobody enjoys but everyone grinds. Engineer a narrative so airtight it feels like fate, let predatory KOLs yap about it until the echo chamber collapses, and sprinkle in just enough token incentives to keep the mercenaries from defecting. Build a cult so loyal they’d dump on their own grandma, knight your ambassador armies with absurd Discord titles like "Chief Shiller," and let the farmers run wild until the rewards dry up.
❤️ Win hearts – Skip the noise. Build something users actually want.
"Ya, going to war sounds easier to me too"
⚔️ Wage war – Launch a full-scale memetic assault with coordinated shitposting, farm 100K fake followers for "credibility," & deploy engagement farming quests nobody enjoys but everyone grinds. Engineer a narrative so airtight it feels like fate, let predatory KOLs yap about it until the echo chamber collapses, and sprinkle in just enough token incentives to keep the mercenaries from defecting. Build a cult so loyal they’d dump on their own grandma, knight your ambassador armies with absurd Discord titles like "Chief Shiller," and let the farmers run wild until the rewards dry up.
❤️ Win hearts – Skip the noise. Build something users actually want.
"Ya, going to war sounds easier to me too"
We're hosting an intimate dinner with Bain Capital Crypto at a nyc penthouse for 5 founders to workshop their ideas with an incredible group of crypto native marketers
drop a comment or dm me if you want to join us!
drop a comment or dm me if you want to join us!
2228
Iggy
@iggy·16:32 21/10/2024
I'm helping host this event for founders in NYC algonside Bain Cap Crypto & Safary ( @jhv )
At the private residence of one of my investors
This Wednesday, 6-9pm
dc if you are interested in joining
At the private residence of one of my investors
This Wednesday, 6-9pm
dc if you are interested in joining
Data-driven growth in web3 isn’t just a buzzword
Here’s how to do it right:
• Track user behavior across wallets
• Use analytics to segment based on activity
• Engage and re-engage the users that matter most
• A/B test incentives (micro airdrops, tiered rewards, loyalty tokens)
Turn data into insights, and insights into growth
Here’s how to do it right:
• Track user behavior across wallets
• Use analytics to segment based on activity
• Engage and re-engage the users that matter most
• A/B test incentives (micro airdrops, tiered rewards, loyalty tokens)
Turn data into insights, and insights into growth
I see it time and time again: web3 marketers don’t lack talent—they lack trust. From new hires to CMOs, the story’s always the same: no budget, no support.
What will it take for teams to finally trust their marketers?
What will it take for teams to finally trust their marketers?
I get DMs daily about why people want to join @safary but here's a new one — to get a visa 🇺🇸
Over the years, I've actually written several immigration letters to help Safary members move to the US
It's a reminder that the best communities can unlock opportunities you never even imagined!
Over the years, I've actually written several immigration letters to help Safary members move to the US
It's a reminder that the best communities can unlock opportunities you never even imagined!
Hearing about teams expecting growth candidates to develop full GTM and TGE strategies during the hiring process without any compensation
Don’t do this. Interviews are for hiring, not free consulting
Don’t do this. Interviews are for hiring, not free consulting
Hot take: Consumer dapps don’t suck — they just haven't been around long enough to find PMF
As Lenny Rachitsky points out, it typically takes 2 years to start feeling PMF, and for many successful apps, it took 3-5 years
So it’s no surprise that only a few crypto companies have found PMF. Just look at those that have:
- @!21200 (2016) → DeFi Summer 2020
- @opensea (2017) → NFT Boom 2021
- @axieinfinity (2018) → Bull Market 2021
- @uniswap (2018) → DeFi Summer 2020
- @polymarket (2020) → Election Season 2024
Each took 2-4 years to achieve PMF through relentless iteration and a bit of luck with market timing
The next wave of great dapps is coming — it just might take longer than you think
As Lenny Rachitsky points out, it typically takes 2 years to start feeling PMF, and for many successful apps, it took 3-5 years
So it’s no surprise that only a few crypto companies have found PMF. Just look at those that have:
- @!21200 (2016) → DeFi Summer 2020
- @opensea (2017) → NFT Boom 2021
- @axieinfinity (2018) → Bull Market 2021
- @uniswap (2018) → DeFi Summer 2020
- @polymarket (2020) → Election Season 2024
Each took 2-4 years to achieve PMF through relentless iteration and a bit of luck with market timing
The next wave of great dapps is coming — it just might take longer than you think
8977
Alex 🎩
@growthbeast.eth·15:24 29/08/2024
Another day, another minicast!
MINT this FREE @pods & hear @jhv talk about the ins & outs of community building with @safary
Exclusively onchain for now - NGL, a pretty based pod
https://pods.media/growth-stories/the-top-1-web3-growth-leaders-in-one-place-w-justin-vogel-safary?referrer=0x94af4B628BE40bbB4EC2AB06156088134940F844
MINT this FREE @pods & hear @jhv talk about the ins & outs of community building with @safary
Exclusively onchain for now - NGL, a pretty based pod
https://pods.media/growth-stories/the-top-1-web3-growth-leaders-in-one-place-w-justin-vogel-safary?referrer=0x94af4B628BE40bbB4EC2AB06156088134940F844
Check out Safary's case study with Squid Router!
387665
Safary Club 🦁
@safary·14:23 27/08/2024
Every marketer knows that web3 data is both a goldmine and a headache! 🤯
And even more so when you're analyzing user behavior across hundreds of projects and chains!
@squidrouter faced this exact challenge, with insights scattered across multiple blockchains — until they found a solution with Safary's analytics platform 🦁
We sat down with Bergen, Squid's Product Marketing Lead, who shared 5 key lessons that every growth leader should know👇
1. Unified Data is Essential for Scale
Squid, a platform to swap tokens between blockchains in one click, is integrated with over 400 projects across multiple chains.
Their growth has been amazing, but that presented some real challenges on the data side.
Historically they relied on blockchain explorers like Axelarscan to get a snapshot of activity, but it didn't offer them the full picture.
Manually gathering data from different explorers was time-consuming and incomplete. Safary's platform filled that gap
And even more so when you're analyzing user behavior across hundreds of projects and chains!
@squidrouter faced this exact challenge, with insights scattered across multiple blockchains — until they found a solution with Safary's analytics platform 🦁
We sat down with Bergen, Squid's Product Marketing Lead, who shared 5 key lessons that every growth leader should know👇
1. Unified Data is Essential for Scale
Squid, a platform to swap tokens between blockchains in one click, is integrated with over 400 projects across multiple chains.
Their growth has been amazing, but that presented some real challenges on the data side.
Historically they relied on blockchain explorers like Axelarscan to get a snapshot of activity, but it didn't offer them the full picture.
Manually gathering data from different explorers was time-consuming and incomplete. Safary's platform filled that gap
Everyone thinks crypto is all about the tech, but the real magic is in the marketing
Marketers create:
- vibes
- brand
- culture
- memes
- shitposts
- narratives
- community
- friendships
Great marketing is what keeps us all here
Marketers create:
- vibes
- brand
- culture
- memes
- shitposts
- narratives
- community
- friendships
Great marketing is what keeps us all here
It's deeply ironic that crypto is so anti-marketing, yet 100% driven by marketing
Starting a new movement: e/yap
e/yap e/yapp e/yappp e/yapppp
e/yapppp e/yappp e/yapp e/yap
e/yap e/yapp e/yappp e/yapppp
e/yapppp e/yappp e/yapp e/yap
e/yap e/yapp e/yappp e/yapppp
e/yapppp e/yappp e/yapp e/yap
e/yap e/yapp e/yappp e/yapppp
e/yapppp e/yappp e/yapp e/yap
X's new audience analytics just dropped. Is this what the crypto crowd really looks like?
No one is more full of false hope than:
- VCs investing in the latest L2
- Marketing launching a rebrand
- Growth opening Twitter on Monday
- BD on their first call with a "hot lead"
- Me thinking I can get work done in 5 mins between meetings
- VCs investing in the latest L2
- Marketing launching a rebrand
- Growth opening Twitter on Monday
- BD on their first call with a "hot lead"
- Me thinking I can get work done in 5 mins between meetings
Every time someone asks for your advice on a topic, turn your answer into a piece of content on X
If one person wants to know something, good chance others do too
If one person wants to know something, good chance others do too
KOLs are overrated
They think they have influence, but often don't
Try working with creators instead
They don't think they have influence, but often do
They think they have influence, but often don't
Try working with creators instead
They don't think they have influence, but often do
Great marketing is just crafting content that sparks conversations and sharing it where it matters most
The work paradigm shift from email to telegram is crazy. Real-time chat means the expected response time is no longer days, it's minutes
I'm surprised no L1/L2 has tried to build a @safary-like group on top
One where the ecosystem's best builders & marketers band together to share their growth tactics with the goal of growing the ecosystem overall
Build the user growth engine and the devs will come 📈
One where the ecosystem's best builders & marketers band together to share their growth tactics with the goal of growing the ecosystem overall
Build the user growth engine and the devs will come 📈
Web3 growth is a competitive sport
Yet the majority of the industry acts like they can win the race without equipment, resources, training, or even a racer
Don't run naked. Frankly, it's embarrassing 🤷
Yet the majority of the industry acts like they can win the race without equipment, resources, training, or even a racer
Don't run naked. Frankly, it's embarrassing 🤷
GM & Happy Monday!
Today, I'm thankful to be in crypto. That's the cast 💫
Today, I'm thankful to be in crypto. That's the cast 💫
Overheard in NYC: “silence is a negotiation tactic”
But can it be a marketing tactic? 🤔
But can it be a marketing tactic? 🤔
I'm so out of touch that I no longer know what's crypto culture vs actual culture
Like community, the best events drive depth, connection, and serendipity.
You get none of that with conference panels
You get none of that with conference panels
“Cost per vibe” is going to be the metric that ironically makes it in crypto
"Broo we just spent $100K on the craziest party at ethcc"
Wow! How many new users did you get?
"......"
Okay, but how were the vibes?
"Amazing! 1000 people came, so our cost per vibe was only $100!"
"Broo we just spent $100K on the craziest party at ethcc"
Wow! How many new users did you get?
"......"
Okay, but how were the vibes?
"Amazing! 1000 people came, so our cost per vibe was only $100!"
Airdrops are the one night stands of web3 marketing 🤫
They're full of promise, often regretted, and rarely lead to long-term loyalty
They're full of promise, often regretted, and rarely lead to long-term loyalty
/growth and /community helped me bootstrap to 2K and beyond
Where should I create content to achieve the next growth milestone? 🤔
Where should I create content to achieve the next growth milestone? 🤔
Your moat is your story. Whoever has the best story, and tells it in the best way, wins
Top 1500 by followers and top 3500 by engagement
The growth challenge never stops 👀
The growth challenge never stops 👀
B2B community building is akin to a sophisticated account based marketing strategy
Think of it like hosting a private party for the top execs from your most important target accounts….
Except you can do it on a global scale, for a fraction of the cost, from your living room
Think of it like hosting a private party for the top execs from your most important target accounts….
Except you can do it on a global scale, for a fraction of the cost, from your living room
I got my Moxie Pass! Mint yours to be eligible for upcoming airdrops, grants, Fan Tokens and more! cc @betashop.eth @airstack.eth
It's amazing how being in a different time zone shifts your perspective
When I lived in SF, I always felt like I was behind (my team is between NYC and European time zones)
Now living in NYC, I start work at 10 am feeling like I'm still ahead, ready to take the day by storm
When I lived in SF, I always felt like I was behind (my team is between NYC and European time zones)
Now living in NYC, I start work at 10 am feeling like I'm still ahead, ready to take the day by storm
You know you’re in a proper wework when there are people sleeping on their desk next to their laptop, two coffee cups, and half eaten food
Marketing is honestly just - what is the pitch and who is it for
Too many teams have lost a sense of *who* they're building for
Build for customers today with an eye toward tomorrow
Too many teams have lost a sense of *who* they're building for
Build for customers today with an eye toward tomorrow
Be willing to be wrong about ideas, but not about people
Be risky with your time, but play it safe with your reputation
These are truisms to playing long-term games with long-term people 🤝
Be risky with your time, but play it safe with your reputation
These are truisms to playing long-term games with long-term people 🤝
The best crypto marketing channel? direct messages to your network
You need to be shameless & *nobody* likes to be that person
That’s why founder-led growth is key. Founders are the only ones truly incentivized to put their reputation on the line over & over to the point of being annoying
Too few crypto founders are doing this, and closed mouths don’t get fed
You need to be shameless & *nobody* likes to be that person
That’s why founder-led growth is key. Founders are the only ones truly incentivized to put their reputation on the line over & over to the point of being annoying
Too few crypto founders are doing this, and closed mouths don’t get fed
Community is the gateway to organic growth:
- Explorers: Reading your content
- Supporters: Engaging in your community
- Promoters: Giving back to your project
Send people your way, give them value, and they'll return the favor
- Explorers: Reading your content
- Supporters: Engaging in your community
- Promoters: Giving back to your project
Send people your way, give them value, and they'll return the favor
Supercast says I'm following 500 more people than Warpcast. Any idea on why there's such a large discrepancy?
Your moat is not tech, gtm, or anything else
It's literally the people you have on your team
Company DNA is where the magic happens
It's literally the people you have on your team
Company DNA is where the magic happens
Creators are trying to transform their audiences into communities
Few realize that building a community can help you retain a large audience
The next generation of creators will start as community builders
Few realize that building a community can help you retain a large audience
The next generation of creators will start as community builders
