3 Tips to Take Advantage of the Future Web 3.0 Decentralized Infrastructure The industry may be lucrative, but there are many unknown variables and it's still in the early stages of development.
By Kurt Ivy Edited by Russell Sicklick
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Concepts such as DAOs, NFTs and metaverses are increasing in popularity. They are sure to revolutionize the way we behave in an online world. But, we are still largely interacting with Web 3.0 through Web 2.0 applications and interfaces.
You probably found this page on the Google Search Engine, maybe even through the Chrome browser? These are centralized Web 2.0 applications. And I'm not simply knocking large corporations. Even DuckDuckGo is just a centralized search engine with some privacy features.
The path to Web 3.0 lies in a truly decentralized internet. The underlying engine being the blockchain, allowing users to independently hold their digital assets and identities.
Related: Entrepreneurs Should Embrace Web 3.0
Here's how to choose decentralized Web 3.0 tokens with long-term viability.
Tip #1: Choose development environments, not small projects
This might sound counterintuitive but it's best to select large Web 3.0 projects with a broad scope, for many reasons. It's no secret that many new crypto projects are scams. If not, they often have little to no long-term viability.
There are multiple reasons for this. A founder for a small project with a specific focus might raise substantial funds and the coin price shoots up. When the coin price increases, it's easy to cash out and forget about the project and investors. The trading graphs for many new coins will show a sharp price rise after they go public, followed by a huge drop that never really recovers.
This is not so much the case with broad-scale development platforms. Ethereum and Solana are huge development environments upon which Web 3.0 applications are built from. Polygon was built on Ethereum to make Web 3.0 available to all.
These are multi-chain ecosystems that are industry agnostic. This means they are less disrupted by shocks in a given industry. They also have stronger partnerships and financial backing. All of this translates to increased security and long-term viability in comparison to riskier coins with weaker mission statements.
Related: Why More and More Companies Are Embracing Web 3.0
Tip #2: Look for staking options and DeFi solutions
Projects where coins are staked tend to have more longevity than coins without staking. The basic premise of staking is that your tokens are locked up. In return, you get rewarded with more tokens at a variable interest rate.
The rewards are nothing special, possibly between four percent and 12 percent on average, but that's not the point. Staking is an incentive for people to stick with a given platform for longer periods of time, and it often gives them a vote in the ecosystem. This translates to long-term viability as network participants get rewarded and feel they are a part of the team.
With DeFi, be wary of projects with sky-high APY. The OlympusDAO DeFi project token was worth $1,300 last October and is currently worth $67. It currently offers over 900 percent APY. If you're looking for higher profits in a short time period, be sure to exit quickly before the inevitable drop. Anything that generates high profits is not sustainable for a longer time period.
A more secure model of decentralized finance designed for the Web 3.0 era has been created by Ankr. Ankr offers nodes across 50 proof-of-stake blockchains with the aim of weaving DeFi and Web 3.0 into one. Money will be embedded into the Web 3.0 infrastructure through Ankr, powering a new crypto economy.
Ankr is positioning itself to become a leader in decentralized infrastructure and DeFi. Investors can stake across 11 chains with a higher return on investment. It's the only existing platform that combines node infrastructure, staking and DeFi development.
Tip #3: Assess financial backing and industry partnerships
There's been a lot of talk of innovation and helping the little guy through blockchain. But, huge resources and backing are needed in order to sustain a project and take it mainstream on a longer time horizon. Even with a brilliant technical team, excellent developers and a well-thought-out whitepaper and tokenomics ecosystem, the project won't go anywhere. Unless, it's marketed on major outlets and pushed towards consumers consistently.
This is an attention-based economy and it takes effort to capture mainstream attention and to keep it. Moreover, it will take a great deal of finance to develop VR technology that is high-quality, integrated into the many metaverses, cost-effective and marketed well. A small team might be able to conjure up a good initial project. But, they will likely need to partner up or hand off the project so it can become mainstream.
Always assess who a project is affiliated with and what partnerships they have. This is a strong indication of how much they value their own project and also offers numerous other benefits for various scenarios.
A future built on decentralization
Even with the excitement surrounding Web 3.0, many are not fully aware of the decentralized universe that awaits. Airbnb, Google, Amazon AWS, UpWork and Facebook are the world's most established Web 2.0 companies. They will have heavy competition and will eventually be rendered obsolete unless they can adapt. Meta is already ahead of the curve.
The decentralized infrastructure has multiple advantages for global customers across all sectors, including travel, finance, hospitality, healthcare, software development and many more.
Despite many hurdles to overcome, the Internet is slowly moving from centralized Web 2.0 to decentralized Web 3.0 in tiny daily increments.
Related: Web 3.0 Is Coming, and Here's What That Really Means for You
