Crypto is a high-tech, engineering-led category, created by people solving hard mathematics, cryptography, software engineering, and logic problems. However, as the industry braces for a wave of optimism and friendly regulation in 2025, projects that rest on their technical laurels will do themselves a disservice.

I don't blame technical crypto teams for being skeptical about marketing. In this category, you will encounter many marketers who call themselves “web3” or “crypto” and who often promote a type of marketing that is not rooted in the fundamentals or in a comprehensive strategy. Instead, they usually indicate a close association with specific cryptocurrency projects or types of tactics, such as paying key opinion leaders (KOLs), managing influencers, knowing how to post on X, or getting the pulse on cryptocurrency memes. jour. (To be fair, there's a place for all of that.)

Cryptocurrency marketing is different and comes with unique challenges

But these “crypto marketers” are also onto something. They recognize the fact that cryptocurrencies are not a typical industry and that it requires understanding a unique set of dynamics that do not exist in traditional markets.

Since 2021, at Blokhaus, we have supported a range of crypto clients, from Layer 1 to Layer 2, DeFi protocols, Web3 games and social applications. We have seen first-hand the challenges these projects face and the lack of marketing infrastructure, talent and support that prevents them from achieving their potential. It is a complex environment that very few individuals and teams are able to navigate effectively.

Cryptocurrency projects looking to stand out during a tumultuous year should certainly be ready to step up their marketing efforts and not settle for superficial tactics. When onboarding marketing roles or agency teams to support your project, here are some key skills you should look for:

1. Ability to navigate decentralized ecosystems effectively and be a key point of integration

Cryptocurrency ecosystems operate radically differently than other sectors. Projects often include decentralized global teams, distinct organizations driving governance, technology and business development aspects, and vibrant communities that are not just consumers but active participants in the evolution of the ecosystem.

When marketers turn to cryptocurrencies from traditional centralized institutions, they need a major shift in mindset. Rather than dictating and executing a top-down strategy, marketing in a decentralized environment requires the ability to listen, observe, synthesize, and bounce ideas back into the world that was already there to begin with.

In practical terms, this means you should look for marketing talent who can maintain strong relationships and lines of communication with multiple community organizations, ecosystem projects, and stakeholders. Your marketing team must become a key integration and alignment function and be able to see the connections that translate into insights for technical teams – who may be too busy building in decentralized silos to see the big picture.

2. The ability to have a deep understanding of technology while helping you develop the story

It's no mystery why cryptocurrencies have yet to achieve mainstream adoption - there's not much the average consumer can do except speculate on the potential success of various projects. The cryptocurrency category is still working on the plumbing (layers and layers and layers of plumbing) of brand new infrastructure.

Cryptocurrency marketers need to be skilled in a very important way: they need to understand the technology deeply and accurately enough to devise tactics for a range of audiences, from experienced developers to crypto-conscious consumers. They must be able to do this while helping technical teams flesh out the big picture vision and story.

I encourage cryptocurrency teams to look at marketing not as a collection of goodies or gimmicks, but rather as a core function that extends and completes the engineering cycle. Marketing isn't just about getting clicks and eyeballs; It's about building a product that meets the market's desires, which requires a constant feedback loop between developers and marketers.

3. The ability to move at the speed required by the industry while getting out of “reactive” mode.

Cryptocurrencies are a volatile and fast-moving currency, and as a result, many teams in this category are in a constant state of interaction – and understandably so. But there is a difference between being smart enough to respond and not having a clear strategy.

It is also difficult to break away from “price-up” pressure, which leads to the industry being overly reliant on KOLs or influencers to discount tokens. These tactics are no substitute for a strong marketing strategy focused on solving problems and meaningfully driving audience engagement and activity. Effective marketing requires moving away from token-centric narratives and towards building sustainable ecosystems that users care about.

Cryptocurrency teams should avoid focusing so much on short-term token price increases that they forget to build a solid strategy that will support them in the long term. Often, the technical roadmaps for these projects are years in the making, recognizing the time and effort needed to achieve their engineering vision – and this same thinking should be applied to marketing efforts.

Yes, the best technology still needs good marketing

For cryptocurrencies to achieve mainstream adoption, marketing should not be viewed as a token price boost or an afterthought. It should be an integral part of the process, driving innovation, user adoption and long-term growth.

The technical teams that successfully break through the noise of 2025 and beyond are the ones that invest in marketing as a strategic function, not a fringe activity. And while it's certainly difficult to find talent and teams that are as comfortable participating in technical discussions about packaged frameworks as they are creating beautiful creative assets, they are out there.