Summary

At Breakpoint 2023, presenters discussed the "Only Possible on Solana" campaign, highlighting the unique capabilities of Solana's technology and the marketing strategies used to promote it. The opening speaker elaborated on the structure of their campaign, focusing on countering misinformation and building a positive sentiment for Solana's tech via simplified messaging. The second speaker, John Wong, dived deep into the technological advancements that Solana boasts, including its speed, cost-efficiency, and impressive footprint in decentralized applications. Wong emphasized the network's role in powering business models and facilitating a developer-friendly environment, which is already bearing fruit in various everyday use cases globally.

Key Points:

The "Only Possible on Solana" Campaign

The Solana team opted to address an undercurrent of misinformation by capitalizing on the buzz around the "Only Possible on Solana" meme through their marketing campaign. They aimed to succinctly explain Solana's capabilities using straightforward messages to foster a sound understanding of the technology and build a positive sentiment. The campaign was strategically deployed in phases, beginning with a focus on community engagement through posters and stickers, followed by the gradual rollout of digital advertisements. The intent was to nurture a learning experience in marketing, encouraging a test and learn approach rather than a one-time launch endeavor. This multifaceted marketing approach was crafted while simultaneously running other targeted campaigns, including ones aimed at reaching developers and business decision-makers unfamiliar with Solana.

Solana's Technology Explored

John Wong took the stage to discuss the technological underpinnings of Solana, painting a comprehensive picture of its capabilities and how it stands out in the blockchain space. Wong demonstrated that Solana's decentralized, high-speed, globally-distributed network is already the most used blockchain, pushing boundaries with its transaction counts and swift confirmations. He highlighted Solana's intelligent design that allows it to handle a high transaction load without surging costs, a significant selling point for turning interests into real-world use cases. Wong also touched on the developer experience, acknowledging the challenges but underscoring the potential for leveraging existing solutions on-chain to facilitate the building process. In closing, he mentioned the impacts this technology has on everyday uses and announced the open-sourcing of educational materials to further disseminate knowledge about Solana's offerings.

Facts + Figures

• The "Only Possible on Solana" meme sparked an entire marketing campaign focused on countering misinformation.
• The campaign was launched in phases to incrementally build engagement and understand audience response.
• Digital ads ran concurrently on platforms like Twitter, LinkedIn, and Reddit, specifically targeting developers and business leaders.
• A significant focus was placed on backend tracking to evaluate the performance of campaign initiatives.
• Solana is presented as the world's most used blockchain, capable of finalizing transactions faster than major competitors.
• The Solana network showcases a high level of decentralization, indicated by its Nakamoto coefficient and validator node distribution.
• Solana is innovating by working within the physical constraints imposed by global data transmission speeds.
• As of April 2023, 96 million NFTs had been minted on Solana with state compression technology.
• Solana's developer experience, while acknowledged as challenging, is seen as high leverage and supports general-purpose programming languages.
• Solana permits gastless transactions, indicating a promising move for accessibility in everyday transactions.

Top quotes

• "The decentralized permissionless network of the future is here today."
• "Solana is already the most used blockchain, doing more transactions on any given day than every major chain combined."
• "We need to start with a pebble and see where the ripples go."
• "You'll see ... continents that are maybe underrepresented here ... that is actually a constraint of the system."
• "If you're making a payment, you can't buy a coffee and walk away and find out that you got reorged."
• "Solana is designed to power economies of scale.”
• "On Solana, you can actually reuse smart contracts that are on chain."
• "Up to 10% of the daily transactions on the Solana network are gastless."
• "For the businesses who want to build at world scale, there's only one place that you can do it today."

Questions Answered

What was the motivation behind the "Only Possible on Solana" campaign?

The campaign aimed to correct misunderstandings and offer clear, factual information about what Solana's technology can do. It was primarily motivated by the need to convey the unique selling points of Solana in a simple and effective manner, and to foster positive sentiment based on factual claims.

Why is Solana considered a unique blockchain platform?

Solana's blockchain is globally decentralized and known for its speed, handling more transactions than any other major chain combined and having a fast transaction confirmation time. These features, along with its cost-efficiency and friendly developer ecosystem, make Solana stand out in the crowded blockchain space.

How does Solana's technology impact the costs for businesses?

Solana's smart contract system and state compression technology reduce transaction costs significantly, enabling new business models not feasible on other platforms. For example, the cost of minting a million NFTs on Solana was brought down to an impressive $141.

What are some real-world use cases enabled by Solana?

Solana enables everyday use cases like digital payments, loyalty programs, and settlement for financial transactions. Companies like Visa, Boba guys, and Shopify have started integrating Solana for various functions, indicating widespread applicability in daily transactions.

How approachable is Solana for developers?

While the development experience on Solana has challenges, the platform allows developers to use familiar programming languages and provides high-leverage tools. It facilitates the reuse of on-chain smart contracts, reducing the need for redundant coding efforts, which streamlines the development process.