PART 1
Problem Statement
In the past 18-24 months before the project, brands, collectors, and existing NFT collections were actively launching physical luxury goods on-chain in large numbers, but there wasn’t anywhere to track and analyze trading data on these phygital assets. Even though collectible trading has gone up by 300x in the past three years, this lack of centralized data was preventing collectors and traders from making informed and insight-driven decisions, as well as from building loyal and engaging communities.
PART 2
Research Activities
Interviews
12 interviews with stakeholders from established NFT marketplaces and collections to gauge interest in a tool such as meerac.
Takeaways:
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Both traders and collectors are interested in an aggregated marketplace.
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Luxury goods, including luxury sneakers, are a top choice of niche to focus on.
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Provisioned access and advanced analytics are features everyone seems interested in.
7 interviews with web3 enthusiasts and NFT collectors to understand what people are looking for in a tool such as meerac.
Takeaways:
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Currently, web3 applications are not easy to use for anyone but the most web3-experienced user. The industry is known for scams, so people are wary and easily spooked.
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A lot of the design looks like a web3 developer cobbled something together that they thought looked cool, but it is not made with the user in mind.
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Traders in this space value luxury, rarity, and “flex” power.
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Crypto wallets are confusing for everyday users. Platforms need to resemble Web2 applications as much as possible.
Defining Personas
Interests
– Sneakers & luxury watches – Luxury goods, including pre-loved items – Discovered crypto
Pain Points
– Overwhelmed by the number of phygital launches ongoing in the last 12 months – Struggles to stay on top of upcoming launches, to sign up for their waitlists, etc. – Never gets access to phygital snips as Discord communities are often crowded
Goals & Motivation
– Wants to discover the metaverse – Owns or wants to own a phygital item for “flex”, in-community membership benefits, and to increase/diversify income – Doesn’t care as much about a specific brand, far more inquisitive about the technological innovation and leap of physical goods on-chain and wants to be a part of this
Interests
– Luxury fashion apparel—owns items from a number of fashion brands – Well-versed in the crypto space. Has been investing in crypto since ~2018 – Passionate about and loyal towards mission-driven brands – Stays on top of exciting developments in the web3 space through newsletters and podcasts – Has a network of peers, friends, and family that are already familiar with the web3 space, too
Pain Points
– Unable to buy more than one high-value physical good at a time in the current marketplace landscape – Does not have a clear view of choices available as the market is fairly new and evolving, and there is no one place to see everything available – Wants to save on gas fees in order to be able to trade at a greater volume
Goals & Motivation
– Post buying and trading NFTs and avatars in the metaverse, and is now desires portfolio expansion through acquiring high-value collectibles – Motivated to continue engaging with brands they’ve already been supporting IRL
SEASONED COLLECTOR
Name: Casmir P.
Age: 34
Occupation: Head of Smart Contract Development and Audit
Income: $240,000 – $300,000
Interests
– Has been trading in stocks and FOREX since 2010, has made substantial returns since then – Has multiple streams of income, constantly seeking diversification – Has a strong background in finance—understands the market and wants to work with sophisticated tools that can offer meaningful returns and value – Is part of a number of Telegram & Discord communities that discuss best trading strategies
Pain Points
– Does not have access to an easy-to-use plugin or tool that advises on the best time to sell – Has been looking for ways to automate sell orders but due to the fragmented structure of marketplaces, is unable to do so – Wants to do more with any phygital item bought (e.g. earn more, collateralize, lease, etc.) – There’s too much noise in the solutions they have now—they want to be able to focus on data-driven decision-making with the right insights
Goals & Motivation
– Has the potential to “sweep the floor” with phygital items but does not have access to a platform to do this – Prioritizes having access to information and insights before anyone else – Doesn’t care about owning the phygital product for any specific sentimental or emotional reasons, wants to be able to sell and expand income
Auditing Current Applications
1
I conducted an audit of 16 different comparable websites such as Bello and BubbleMaps that showcase some form of web3 or NFT analytics.
2
I also studied web2 analytics providers such as mixpanel and Amazon Seller Central to understand the way they displayed and organized analytics for their users.
3
The third group I studied were 42 prospective customers that we shortlisted to be invited to our beta. I combed through their Twitter accounts to see the types of NFT information and statistics they were sharing to their followers.
PART 3
Solutions
1
Since trust levels are low, we must do anything we can to inspire trust: reveal the founding team, set up social media accounts with personalized messages (shouldn’t look like ChatGPT wrote them).
2
The design and UX copy needs to be reminiscent of a web2 analytics platform rather than an NFT marketplace. That way, we can reduce the confusion of a new asset class (phygitals) and give our users comfort in the familiarity of a product they already know how to use (analytics tools).
3
We must also retain certain elements of popular NFT marketplace sites such as OpenSea, or else we risk creating a platform that experienced NFT creators won’t perceive as valuable.
TESTIMONIAL
"Nisha is a standout UI/UX freelancer. She swiftly grasps project intricacies and consistently delivers designs that are both striking and user-friendly. Her communication is impeccable, often taking a proactive stance in her tasks. Most notably, she embraces feedback as a pathway to growth, ensuring the end result is always polished. A joy to collaborate with her and I am happy to work with her again."
— Nhân Vũ,
Head of Venture Pipeline, brainbot