Author: Chilla Source: X, @chilla_ct Translation: Shan Ouba, Golden Finance "InfoFi" was once a revolution. We went from the era of "private KOL paid promotion" to the era of "project owners publicly incentivizing promotion." Now, it seems we're back to square one, with influencers once again focusing on private promotion. But haven't we found the perfect model? Too many people have figured out this trick. Even with algorithm upgrades from Kaito (a crypto information analysis company) and other competitors, it's become the lowest hanging fruit for those looking to make a quick buck by writing a few words. But to say we've shifted from "quality" to "quantity" is a bit of a cliché. Exactly when this so-called "quality" even existed remains a mystery. Instead, what's changing is how a crypto startup grows users. Crypto Marketing to Date: If you want your brand/project to grow, who do you want to be your voice? Of course, it's those who: Well-respected by the community (value recognition) Well-established brand (quality) Large following (quantity) But cryptocurrency is a closed system, very different from Web2. Web2's user base is completely different and expects a specific type of marketing. In crypto, marketing and distribution are so intertwined that they're practically one and the same.
Old-fashioned marketing methods that follow traditional market principles won't work here. The target group is too niche, and "normal" marketing methods won't work here.
In this industry, you can only trust a very small number of people. And they're not even real people, but anonymous accounts. You can't use Hollywood stars (FTX did try it with good results), but we're not ready yet. We need some specific people we can trust.
The Authority Principle
Have you heard of the "Authority Principle"? It's the human bias that "people tend to trust a celebrity, expert, or recognized person because they're perceived as credible, authoritative, or worthy of emulation." That's how influencer marketing works in a nutshell.
Initially, aside from early Bitcoin believers, this industry was (almost) entirely made up of traders. Therefore, the KOLs of the 2017 cycle were primarily traders who showcased their strategies on Crypto Twitter (CT). Once they amassed a critical mass of followers, exchanges began partnering with them for influencer marketing, given their strong community appeal. Subsequently, Crypto Twitter (CT) expanded to include verticals like DeFi. Consequently, the concept of KOL broadened to include accounts that spoke about specific sectors, such as DeFi, artificial intelligence, and consumer applications. New startups began sourcing the most loyal users from this "talent pool," spreading information through the most trustworthy accounts. Confusing "marketing" with "incentives" InfoFi changed everything. Everyone had something to say, but it was no longer purely for expression (no, actually, it never was for KOLs; they always had their own incentives, but at least initially, many simply wanted to share their thoughts on crypto). Now, keywords can be rewarded through external Kaito campaigns. Internal marketing partnership agreements are no longer necessary. Doesn't this all sound wonderful? Getting paid for speaking out on a topic feels like a fairytale. You don't need a large following to climb the @KaitoAI leaderboard, which seems to lower the barrier to entry. But all of this has also led companies to confuse marketing with incentives. In reality, if a few trustworthy people talk about something, they encourage end users to try it. However, if many people without a strong brand endorsement talk about something with the promise of rewards, it often has the exact opposite effect. Kaito campaigns are a waste of money (unless you know how to capitalize on them). This is similar to the concept of airdrops. If your project already has a strong distribution channel, product-market fit (PMF), and users, then airdropping tokens can serve as an external incentive to reward something that already has intrinsic value. However, if your project has none of these, this external incentive will be completely detached from the project itself and will actually lead to its demise. Similarly, most Kaito campaigns are often the last resort of projects with no real purpose after their marketing efforts have failed. They exploit a base human instinct: to make a quick buck. Furthermore, as with many airdrops, users ultimately become the recipients of the airdrops rather than the recipients. Content quality declines while quantity increases, and the purpose of discussion is no longer for the community, but for Kaito's algorithm to identify and reward the author. This creates a deadlock for small accounts trying to grow. It also hinders marketing reach, because as a potential customer, I don't want to use a protocol that I see everyone mentioning and then quickly forget. Incentives are misaligned. While some established projects with strong TVL (total value locked) and fan bases have successfully leveraged the sheer volume of these chatterboxes, many new startups are realizing that this isn't sustainable from a quality perspective. Except in some unique cases, the logic behind this is similar to airdrops. Becoming a "CT Leader" might be a natural evolution of this frenzy. Why not bring those external influencers in-house and build loyalty by granting them the title of "CT Leader"? This is far more effective than a few promotions through Kaito or private partnerships. This approach privatizes KOLs for growth purposes, aligns the company more closely with Crypto Twitter (CT), and demonstrates greater unity and long-term consistency.
A Review of Three Crypto Influencer Marketing Methods
Influencer Marketing (Private Partnerships)
Kaito Events
CT Leaders
These three marketing/growth methods are not mutually exclusive. A project can certainly use all three to expand its influence. The key, however, is to understand your audience and have a clear end goal while also identifying the potential for founder-led marketing within your team.
Do you have a strong product about to launch with an experienced team but lack a social media presence? Then, a good move might be to outsource founder-led marketing efforts to prominent figures on Crypto Twitter (CT) to build brand recognition and connect with the ecosystem. This is essentially what @monad does with @intern. However, if you're aiming to build momentum for a specific event (like the TGE) or expand an existing audience, Kaito or influencer campaigns can be an option (though I'm personally not a fan of either). As mentioned above, these approaches focus on quantity. They're only useful if the project already has a foundation of quality and simply needs more voices to spread the word. Otherwise, these campaigns are not only useless but counterproductive. Unless, of course, you're simply trying to generate buzz and extract as much value as possible from the community. Conclusion: Nothing is black and white; everything is ambiguous. There's no magic formula for growing a project's audience. All you can do is be clear about what you want to achieve and understand the resources you already have. Always keep quality as the underlying consensus.
This is why the concept of InfoFi itself is losing value. Because it has to fit into a larger idea to reach the desired niche. You want to attract whales, but you're running a Kaito campaign? Then I have bad news for you. What if you want to get retail investors to spread the word through Kaito, and don't mind the potential misalignment of incentives? Now that's more like influencer marketing.
Quality and quantity are very different. Just know which you want to prioritize.
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