The onboarding process [1] plays a significant role in companies, products, and DAOs. In this article, I explore one of the onboarding points of the Nouns DAO [2] through the sub-DAOs derived from Nouns, such as NounsBR [3], Gnars [4], Food Nouns [5], NounBA [6], among others created and that may appear in the future.
This is a series of 3 articles that explore the following:
1. The problem.
2. How some DAOs are currently dealing with this problem and trying to solve it.
3. Solutions and possible experiments for current and new DAOs.
This series of articles and research were funded by Prop House 17. If you want to look deeper into the content, check out the proposal [7].
I am Arod [8], and I’ve worked with technology for over 15 years. I recently founded my web3 solutions company, arod.studio [9]. With experiences in development, leadership, people and project management, and mainly product. I do like business problems, processes, and mental health at work. I love being the intermediary and translator of the tech bubble with business, sales, product, and strategic areas. I’m more creative in solving general problems that can be solved with technology and providing a good experience for users. If you want to know me more, follow me on my social networks. [10]
Journey of the potential member of the Nouns ecosystem
To dive into the problem, we first need to understand the fundamental role of sub-DAOs in the Nouns DAO [2].
Sub-DAOs are crucial in bringing together groups with similar purposes or interests. They facilitate members' understanding of the NFT ecosystem, DAOs, and the functioning of Nouns projects, in addition to reinforcing the main objective: the proliferation of the meme ⌐◨-◨.
Let's follow the journey of the potential new Nouns’ member - Nog member with little knowledge of crypto.
Nog will look for content on Twitter, discord and read what is on the website. Upon seeing the Nouns, depending on his bag and knowledge of crypto, he will hardly buy a Noun since we consider that Nog does not have money to buy a Noun.
Then we have two paths:
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Nog understands that Nouns is not a DAO he can participate in because he does not have the NFT and will look for other DAOs to contribute to and enter. A significant loss for our ecosystem 😢.
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Before abandoning his research, Nog was lucky and found a derivative of Nouns and decided to look deeper.
Following the second path, Nog found a DAO from his own country, like NounsBR [3], NounsJP [11], or on a subject that he likes a lot, like FoodNouns [12], Gnars [13].
Nog enters Discord. He begins to understand how it works. He becomes more interested in building and engaging with the people of this community. These people have a common interest and are accessible. They promote onboarding and are willing to explain and create proposals together with this new member for Nouns, even without having the main NFT.
Then, Nog, super excited, intends to participate actively and realizes that the value of the NFT is accessible. He decides to buy an NFT, thus, helping the sub-DAO's small treasure, and starts to participate in the decisions.
The journey of buying an NFT in the sub-DAO Nounish
ONE DERIVATED NOUN, EVERY 15 MINUTES SETTLE FEE 🫠, FOREVER.
Upon entering the site, Nog sees that the supply of NFTs is much larger. He notes that there is an auction every 15 minutes - INCREDIBLE! I can buy my NFT quickly, even several.
However, no auction is active. And there may be a Connect wallet button, a settle button, information about bidding and settling, or no information.
Then, doubts begin - Isn't it every 15 minutes? Do I have to wait? What is settle? What is a bid? I just wanted to buy 1 NFT to participate in the vote, the community, and contribute.
With contradictory feelings of disappointment and confidence in the project, Nog returns to the community to understand what needs to be done to acquire the NFT.
What is settle?
When trying to understand what 'settle' means in the community, it becomes evident that each person has a different interpretation:
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The winner of the last auction should settle.
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Please, can someone settle?
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Gas is high, do it at dawn.
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It's to start a new auction. You do this and then bid on the auction that starts.
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Be careful with the time you settle. Someone might come and bid higher.
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The new auction starts when someone settles. Just do it there.
And in the best case, someone explains what is done when settling, why this should be done, and maybe even how smart contracts work. - Please take a look below about what settlement is, a well explained on the Gnars DAO website.
Settle fee vs. NFT price.
Most sub-DAOs have their NFTs sold at a much lower value compared to Nouns. This lowers the entry barrier for new members and facilitates understanding of the ecosystem and voting participation. In addition, it also expands the possibilities of creating their own on-chain and off-chain proposals.
However, NFTs almost always cost the same value as the 'settlement' fees, sometimes even less, since most auctions have only one bid, which is the minimum value.
Then, Nog clicks on the settle button and gets a shock!💥 It's almost the same price as the last auction. An internal feeling begins:
Wait a minute, I will pay the settlement because I want an auction to start to buy my NFT, but if someone comes and bids, will I have to pay more than I planned to buy the NFT?🤔 That's not FAIR!
So, the possibility of Nog settling becomes relatively low. This also applies to members who want to buy new NFTs from the same community. There is a lot of risk of losing that fee paid, which for many is small. Still, for people who are entering web3 and from countries with different currencies, it can be something relevant, especially since it means 1 NFT fee to buy 1 NFT for the fee value, with risks of someone going there and buying the NFT in front of you and you losing the settlement fee money.
My goal is to investigate this user experience problem, which establishes an unnecessary barrier to integrating new members and limits the fundraising potential of sub-DAOs. For each NFT acquired, the value corresponding to another NFT is dissipated in fees. Imagine a scenario where the fee was significantly lower. Or even better, the fee could be incorporated into the bid. In this case, the user wouldn't have to understand what 'settlement' is. And if there were no auctions in the sub-DAOs, considering that many of them have the price set at the minimum value? And if the auction time was extended to increase fundraising? Think of a scenario where there is no barrier to participating more actively in the DAO is the purchase of the NFT.
We must discuss this and optimize before the nounish’s DAOs DIE!
In the following article, I intend to explore what some DAOs are already doing, like Gnars [4], which increases its auction time as time passes, or like our friend willywonka.eth proposal [15], which calculates a dynamic auction duration according to the latest auction bids. And in the third article, I will explore possible technical, visual (UX) solutions to help us improve this user experience and focus on what really matters: BUIDL!
In summary, we're up against some severe UX challenges in the Nouns sub-DAOs. Barriers to new member integration and the high fees associated with NFT acquisition damage these sub-DAOs' fundraising potential. But there are solutions to these issues.
By optimizing the auction process, exploring new pricing strategies, and improving user understanding of 'settlement', we can make DAO participation more accessible and appealing. Let's keep this conversation going and work together to ensure the future of Nouns' sub-DAOs. I'd like you to stay tuned for upcoming articles where I'll dive into what some DAOs are already doing and possible technical and visual solutions to these challenges. LFG! Follow me on Twitter to be aware of the following articles @theArodEth.
Links:
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[2] Nouns DAO
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[3] NounsBR DAO
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[4] Gnars DAO
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[5] Food Nouns DAO
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[6] NounBA DAO
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[7] Prop House 17 - Navigating Settlement Roadblocks: Improving Sub-DAOs' NFT…
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[10] @theArodEth twitter | @osabiao linkedin | arod.studio website | arod.studio linkedin
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[11] NounsJP DAO
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[12] FoodNouns DAO
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[13] Gnars DAO
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[14] Nouns Builder