Sub0 2023 witnessed an insightful presentation by Anastasiia Aleksiichuk, a UX designer at Subsocial. In her talk, she explored the critical topic of bridging Web2 user experiences with Web3 using Substrate’s distinctive capabilities, with a focus on onboarding billions of users.
Substrate, created by Parity Technologies, is a flexible software development framework for building blockchain networks and decentralized applications in the web3 space.
Known for its modularity, Substrate simplifies the development process by offering tools and libraries that enable developers to define custom consensus mechanisms, runtime logic, and economic models.
Subsocial is a decentralized social network built on the Polkadot network that allows users to create and share content while maintaining ownership and control over their data.
Anastasiia started by addressing a pressing issue in the Web3 ecosystem – the frustrating user experience. She talked about the cumbersome process of registration and interaction with Web3 platforms, which often involves multiple steps, including wallet installations and transaction confirmations.
Another challenge she mentioned is the concept of transaction fees in Web3, which can be perplexing for users transitioning from Web2. Users may not immediately grasp why they need to spend tokens.
Grill Chat: A Web3 UX success story
In illustrating what a web3 onboarding story entails, she discussed Grill Chat as an example. Grill Chat is a user-friendly Web3 application built on Subsocial, which has gained popularity within the web3 community.
Grill Chat simplifies the user experience by removing the need for users to estimate and confirm token transactions. It is designed to work smoothly on mobile devices and seamlessly integrates with multiple devices with a single account.
Anastasiia also highlighted a noteworthy aspect of the product: it is completely free for end users, alleviating the burden of transaction costs. She shared impressive statistics, with over 10,000 visitors and more than 13,000 messages sent in recent months.
Chatting on chain and integration
The speaker went further to say that the concept of “chatting on chain” is changing how the world communicates. This approach enables users to share NFTs, make donations, and connect their addresses to maintain reputations – features not readily available in Web2 platforms.
Anastasiia emphasized that Grill Chat offers easy integration for other applications with just a few lines of code. This allows one chat or discussion to take place across multiple sites and devices, providing a unified user experience.
She also added that another concept that can help power Web3 social engagement is “sponsoring a transaction,”. This is where users can convert tokens into energy, significantly reducing transaction costs.
Additionally, Anastasiia explained the power of cross-chain interactions, enabling users to connect their identities and assets across different blockchain networks.
As the presentation drew to a close, she presented an innovative monetization mechanism that aimed to empower creators and communities.
This mechanism incentivizes stakeholders by offering them rewards, while also enabling creators to earn based on the tokens allocated to them.
Anastasiia emphasized her role as a UX designer focused on visual design, and encouraged attendees to reach out to Subsocial’s development team for any technical inquiries, fostering an environment of collaboration and knowledge-sharing.
