Meet Whal3s — An Outlier Ventures & Protocol Labs backed developer platform to easily build utility
Utility is one of the most talked about topics when it comes to NFTs and Web3.
At Whal3s we’re making sure this important subject gets all the attention it deserves and businesses looking to provide utility for their token holders have all the tools required to deliver their desired experience or benefit.
Why utility?
A non-fungible token (NFT) is the underlying technology that enables you to own something unique within a decentralised network (Ethereum, Polygon, Solana, etc.). Naturally, with ownership comes a bond or sense of belonging. An NFT, or essentially a JPEG as the image is the most striking part of the NFT, has the very same effect. Digital Ownership. An innovation so powerful, it already impacts consumer behavior all over the world and will continue to do so in almost every aspect of life. The single most important driver for this will be utility.
Let us explain: With the initial bond established after purchasing the token, the following question arises: What utility does this NFT have? What do I get or what does this grant me?
This is where it gets exciting for businesses. The greater the utility a token can provide, the greater its value and the greater the bond businesses can establish with the holders.
What is utility?
Utility comprises a myriad of things for different token-based offerings across various industries. Tokens within games, for example, will, above all, provide in-game utility, whereas tokens within a loyalty program of a sports team will provide real-world utility, e.g. tickets to the next match or holder-exclusive merchandising.
In the coming days, weeks, and months we will highlight best practices for utility in web3 here on Medium, so make sure to keep an eye out. 👀
Promising utility is easy, delivering it is difficult!
The opportunities that can arise from increased token utility are endless. As a business, you can easily think of many experiences or benefits you’d like to offer exclusively to your token holders. When it comes to delivering utility, however, you will run into challenges super quickly. Building utility for tokens is a lengthy and tedious process that requires deep domain expertise in web3 and can become very expensive very quickly as custom-built solutions for single-use cases are the only way to go right now.
With this in mind, we set out to cover the need for flexible infrastructure powering web3 applications of tomorrow.
London-based Outlier Ventures is the world’s leading web3 investor with 185 investments made since inception. No other accelerator has worked with as many web3 projects across Defi, NFTs, DAOs, blockchain infrastructure, identity, luxury fashion, music, gaming, and Metaverse.
As Europe’s first dedicated blockchain VC and Accelerator, Outlier Ventures offers a variety of programs including the IPFS Open Metaverse Base Camp, which Whal3s is a part of since the beginning of October.
The involvement of Protocol Labs, the R&D lab building IPFS & Filecoin, enables us to think and build decentralised products from the beginning. Using the power of IPFS we’re actively developing new standards for storing utility data.
Some utility advice…
If you’re looking into launching your own NFTs and providing some stand-out utilities, think about this: Web3 is in a phase of exploration. Brands, creators, and businesses entering the space will generally be welcomed with open arms. Pushing the boundaries of what utility is in most cases today and going beyond generic use cases will be crucial for long-term success. The best way to do so is to build up a core community around a small token-based offering at the start, get in very close contact with your holders and then iterate from there.
Owning all of the Web3 experiences you create for your token holders helps massively. What do we mean by this? Your applications, e.g. websites, landing pages, or mobile apps should always be the hub for engagement. Let your customers make use of their tokens directly within your applications.
If you ever need help in doing so, feel free to check out our website and explore the tools we offer for developers. We’d love to accelerate your journey into Web3 and provide the right infrastructure for all your utilities.
