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Intro Notes, Plugs & Amendments 🔌🔧

I was at a couple of events last week; The FWB x Backed VC & NFT UK meet up respectively.

I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, the talent, energy and commitment to getting cool things done is unrivalled to anything I’ve seen before. (caveat, I’m 25)

There are so many incredible people that are going to be dedicating themselves to crypto in the next year. I have a feeling 2021 was only the start.

🔌Plugs!🔌

🔌I’m talking at a few events next week, including the NFTCracker next Wednesday!

🔌 Early days, but if you're interested in getting ahead of the curve and sponsoring the newsletter - feel free to reach out to me on Twitter or LinkedIn. I've had some people reach out already, but I'll only accept those who I think will be genuinely engaging and benefit readers :)

Stories & projects of the week

Adidas go full crypto

I used to tell brands that the best case study to research is Twitter. Now, I think it’s Adidas. Especially in a Sports context. 

The tweet below shows Adidas collaborating with some of the most well known NFT projects in the world, including none other than the Bored Ape Yacht Club.

But why have Adidas done what many other brands have been unable to do?

Why have Adidas been able to enter the cryptosphere without backlash or claims that it’s cringy? The simple answer is, they’ve got their hands dirty. 

As Andrew points out, it’s about learning from the ground up and not just doing something surface level. Simply launching an NFT and hoping it does well is not the way to do this. If it’s a money-grab, it won’t work. If there’s a lack of authenticity, it won’t work. So a lot of credit has to be given to those at Adidas getting shit done. Because they’re getting it done in the right way. 

Let’s take a look at Adidas’ journey into the metaverse…

1. On the 17th of November, Adidas Originals tweeted “Looks rare” with a GIF - that represents a POAP (proof of attendance protocol). A POAP is basically a token that represents your presence at a virtual or physical event. ‘Looks Rare’ is memetic vernacular, which indicates that this is something you should probably pay attention to.

2. On the 22nd of November, Adidas tweeted “Adiverse anyone?’”Adidas have bought a parcel of virtual land in Sandbox, which is somewhere that anyone can Play, Create, Own, and Govern a virtual Metaverse that has been made by themselves.

3. On the 24th of November, Adidas Originals simply tweeted out the below. This had Bloomberg reporters hilariously trying to figure out what ‘Probably nothing’ means. Again, this is a Crypto Meme that is ironic in the sense that it pokes fun at naysayers that say Crypto is nothing or unimportant. AKA Visa having their own smart contracts is ‘probably nothing’. Because, well, it’s actually something. 

4. On the 28th of November, a few leaks were tweeted of Adidas collaborating with

So now that we have the timeline, why have Adidas been so successful here? Why have they gone full Web3, whilst Nike have chosen Roblox which is not a decentralised virtual world?

How have Adidas become the hot talking point of the NFT & Crypto space in less than 14 days?

1. Adidas get Crypto. The execs at Adidas and whoever they’ve employed have thought long and hard about this. Everything from the wording, the imagery, the projects they’ve collaborated with - this is a dream entrance by a brand into Web3.

2. They understand that they have consumers, not an audience. Adidas have understood that they need to build an audience in this space. Right now, they have consumers. A lot of them. Who all buy Adidas garments and sneakers. But they’ve never really had an audience. They’re building one that is crossing over into the crypto sphere, and they’re doing it well. They can then build a community from that audience that they’re creating, that is a combination of their consumers and crypto native people with deep pockets.

3. They’re not trying to make money…yet. Right now, Adidas have not made a cent. In fact, they’ve probably spent a tonne of money on consultants, virtual land, POAP partnerships and much more we don’t know about yet. Is it worth it? 100% yes. Marketers and commercial teams and brands need to realise that this isn’t something you can make money on easily. Instead, think about how much more valuable

4. Authenticity is the number 1 ingredient for success in this space. People in crypto are very good at calling bullshit. So if you’re doing something surface level, or it’s a PR stunt, or it’s a money grab - as the old adage says; you’re not going to make it (NGMI).

The brands I’ve spoken to who are looking at crypto seriously, that I think will do well - are thinking about those 4 pillars a lot.

How you do things is just as important as what you do.

Adidas are doing cool things, in the right way. Every little detail matters and they’ve thought about all the little things. 

Crypto Deep Dive:…

No Crypto deep dive this, had an idea in mind but genuinely thought the Adidas story was a big enough deal to dig deep into ;)

More big stories & things to put on your radar

• Bored Apes continue to become engrained into mainstream culture

• I’ve been writing a lot about DAOs running sports clubs. Even the best-run clubs in the world are having big issues when it comes to how they receive their fans. Are DAOs going to solve this in the future?

• Socios have become an official partner to the 2021 Ballon D’Or

• Crypto.com scores a multi-year partnership with CONMEBOL

• Football clubs are becoming more aware. Great work by Brentford. 

Great reads, great tweeting and more general ‘stuff’

• This is crazy considering how young Axie Infinity is

• Twitter continue to be a leading light in terms of how to do NFTs the right way as a brand

• Again, a lead tech editor in the UK told me 2 years or so ago that there was no good use for a blockchain. 

• The tweet of the week