Social Tokens Are a Powerful Tool for Communities

Social tokens are a powerful way for communities to take back control of the value they create from the platforms they have typically been forced to use.

Especially online, a community can get trapped within a specific platform. As a community grows the platform is able to monetize and benefit from that growth, while often the community is stuck operating within the limits dictated by that platform.

With social tokens a community can achieve a sort of escape velocity from a platform and establish value on their own terms. This independence comes by converting the value a community creates to a digital asset that can be used anywhere online and in the real world as well.

The value of the social token is determined by two main things. First is how much members are dedicated to the cause of the token, and then of course the value relates to what the social token enables.

One of the immediate benefits is that a token gives a community their own means to exchange value, and also the ability to signal identity and membership.

Being able to earn and spend tokens is the obvious way to exchange value within the community. Tokens are often given away to early community members and earned for participation. This is important because the exchange of tokens happens outside any platform, so the value of the interaction is within the community and not captured by the platform.

Another important feature of social tokens is the ability to signify identity and membership, but more than just acting as a badge, this also includes tangible benefits like token gating. This is where access to something like a Discord is limited to those that hold the token. Token gating creates the virtual clubhouse of a community, and can be used to allow access to pretty much anything (a website, a newsletter, a live chat event, even an IRL gathering).

With everything built on open standards anyone can build tools for social tokens, which allows communities to pick and choose what features need. And because it’s decentralized people actually own their tokens.

Looking forward we expect to see more and more integration between the traditional platforms and the newer web3 networks. At Roll we’re developing API tools that will enable more compatibility across all the social and fintech platforms and the decentralized communities running on social tokens.

This puts communities powered by social tokens at a distinct advantage because they will own, control and coordinate the value they create across the internet. As one of our favorite creators said,

The name of the game isn’t about which platform to use anymore, it’s about becoming the platform.

If you’re ready to power your community with social tokens you can get in touch with Roll here.