PR and Crisis Management Tips for Web3 | Krystin Wiggs & Danielle Eagle

Gm Web3 Academy DOers!

It seems like the mainstream media hates Web3, doesn’t it? 

All we see being reported in the news is either a rug-pull, scam or phishing attack.

However, for those active in this space, we are aware of the amazing things that are being built in Web3.

So, we are confused as to why these stories aren’t shared nearly enough as the negative ones. 

Do reporters hate this space?

Do they not understand the things that are being built?

Are the reporters only interested in the negative news?

These are all questions on our minds that we try to answer alongside Krystin Wiggs and Danielle Eagle, two PR experts at Proxy, that have fallen down the Web3 Rabbit Hole. 

We want to know how good stories can be picked up and shared more frequently.

As well as how this industry can win over the media and be seen as a technology innovation providing incredible solutions for problems all around the world. 

So, without further ado, let’s discuss some PR and crisis management tips for Web3!

P.S: If you want to share your Web3 Story with us, come and join our Discord community where you can meet fellow entrepreneurs, creators and marketers.

You can also watch the episode below, or listen on your favorite platform: Spotify | Apple Podcast | YouTube

Does The Media Hate Web3?

The bigger issue here is that reporters and the mainstream media rather do not understand Web3 at all. They mistake it for purely “crypto”, which is perceived as speculation, scams and lack of regulation. 

Therefore, they ignore the good stories that circulate in this space about how people’s lives have literally changed because of open and permissionless access to digital ownership.. 

Stories of refugees that escaped unfavorable conditions with the help of Bitcoin, residents in developing countries that get their education certificates in NFTs or stories of low income families that generate extra income through games like Axie Infinity are rarely shared world wide.

Yet, these success stories are happening more and more frequently as the Web3 innovation continues.

Why Are Good Stories Not Shared?

In hindsight, the media simply does not understand what web3 is or even the good things that are being built in this space. The speculative and greedy narrative of crypto continues to overshadow the positives of Web3.

This highlights the fact that we are yet to reach the fitting journalists that can distribute the fair stories this space has to share. Part of Danielle and Krystin’s role is to onboard and educate reporters about the Web3 space.

You can think of the media space very similar to the political space. If we want politics on our side we need to lobby and educate the senators and others across the government. The same is true for media.

Reporters are the ones who choose what stories they will write about and what angle they will take in their writing. An uneducated reporter is likely going to ignore Web3 or take the negative view because it’s the easiest path.

It’s on us as an industry to start “lobbying” and educating reporters about what Web3 really is and the positive implications it has for the world. Just like politics however, this will take time. So we should expect an uphill battle in the media for the years to come.

P.S. Should we start a PR DAO educating reporters about Web3? Let us know what you think on Twitter or Discord.

An Example Of A Good Story

Driftershoots (aka Isaac Wright) is a daredevil photographer who takes incredible photos from dangerous heights on top of buildings and cranes. As an honorably retired Army special ops veteran, he began shooting photography in 2014 to cope with mental illness, specifically PTSD and depression.

In December 2020 Isaac was arrested for the alleged crimes of entering areas in Cincinnati unlawfully and taking pictures. Isaac had no criminal record. He was incarcerated without bond for two months. Finally in April 2020 he was released on bond after more than 100 days in jail.

In order to pay for his $400,000 bond and rising legal fees Isaac launched an NFT collection, Where My Vans Go, which has traded over 3,700 ETH ($4.4M USD) worth of volume and the current floor price is 39 ETH ($46k USD).

Driftershoots has become a leading NFT photographer and there's no doubt that NFTs changed the trajectory of his life and career forever.

How Do You Get Your Story Shared?

The key is to find the right moment of sharing. As mentioned earlier, negative news stories typically steal the show so you have to find your opportunity when things are quiet in the markets. 

You also have to keep in mind who will share your story. Which agency / author / celebrity is more likely to acknowledge your type of story.

At the current stages of Web3, it isn’t only important to have an amazing story. You also need to do your homework on how to share it to the masses. 

A tip from Krystin and Danielle is to tell your story of the product or service you’re building by humanizing it. Do not highlight the benefits of what you do, tell the story of how it benefited another human being. This way, you can craft your story for PR, making it more likely to go viral or picked up by a reporter.

Is Crisis Planning Necessary?

Since there is a lot of drama going around in Web3 regarding insolvencies and bankruptcies of the biggest VCs or lending platforms (3AC, Luna, Celsius), we think it is necessary to talk about whether or not Web3 companies need to have crisis plans.

Because everything in Web3 is financialized through a token or NFT, you’re essentially playing with the user’s money, and of course that means things can go wrong. This is why you always have to be prepared for a crisis in Web3. 

Unforeseen events happen all the time, just like Optimism’s failed transaction last month…

Reacting quickly and transparently to any crisis is vital in order for your community to keep their faith in you. 

Celsius is a bad example of dealing with the recent crisis, staying quiet for far too long, leaving its users absolutely clueless.

Optimism on the other hand immediately sent out a tweet and full details of their situation across twitter, discord and other channels. Remeber, your community/customers/internal team are your best spokesperson.

In the event of a crisis, you want to make sure they know everything they possibly can and even provide them with talking points when necessary. While you can’t control the story in a crisis, acting quickly and transparently will help you alleviate the pain and grow a stronger community at the same time.   

We’ve got a long way to go in terms of Web3 having a positive relationship with the media. It will take time to educate and nurture the reporters and decision makers across the industry. But the best way to accomplish this is to simply build products that positively impact people’s lives.

At Web3 Academy, that is the reason we are so excited about Web3. We believe Web3 has the potential to solve many of the world's problems today. However, the key is that we need to build them and do so in sustainable ways. This industry needs to flush out the short-term thinkers, scammers and bad actors, something that’s being done by the current bear market we find ourselves in.

As we wrap up, we have a piece of homework for each of you readers. Find a reporter and pill them on the benefits of Web3! If you need help, share our Free Web3 Rabbit Hole course to give them a free deep dive into the current and future of Web3.

Let’s do our part to help Web3 grow and flourish :)

Connect with Krystin & Danielle on Twitter

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