Nobody asked, but here’s my 2 MATIC on Instagram’s recent announcement concerning the shutdown of their short lived NFT pilot:

If you’re in web3 and you’re surprised or disappointed about Instagram sunsetting their digital collectibles initiative, that therein lies the issue.

You cannot say that you are working towards mass adoption without considering the wants and needs of traditional consumers.

Ask 10 people that you know outside of the web3 space how they felt about Instagram removing NFTs and you’re likely to receive one of three responses:

1. I didn’t know that they had them
2. I didn’t care that they had them
3. I didn’t like that they had them

Digital collectibles on Instagram predominantly appealed to folks who were already leveraging blockchain, but they didn’t really move the needle for their web2 consumer base, aka 99.9% of their users.

I personally found it exciting that Instagram decided to dabble with NFTs, similarly to how Reddit, Inc. and Spotify are doing so. Nonetheless, their decision to reevaluate shouldn’t be condemned.

It’s still early. The way NFTs have been introduced to the general public has been less than ideal. And it certainly doesn’t help that seemingly every week, there is a new crisis in crypto.

We have a very long way to go before mass adoption becomes a feasibility.

Instead of being upset by setbacks, let’s shift our focus to how we approach creating opportunities for web2 natives to participate in the web3 landscape by meeting them where they are.

More importantly, this is obviously a great opportunity for @lensprotocol.lens to further solidify itself as the leader in digital collectibles on social.

I had the privilege of being a member of the latest Lens @creators.lens accelerator cohort and I’m confident that despite market conditions, Lens will continue to facilitate innovative ways for creators of all kinds to thrive in the world of web3 social.

I’m looking forward to witnessing how the landscape will continue to evolve over the course of the next few quarters. And I’m even more excited about being an early adopter during this time.

Here’s to the future of the intersection of digital collectibles and social media 🥂

#web3 #instagram #blockchain #svb #marketing #uiux #polygon #creatoreconomy #socialmedia