Author: Ice Frog
Last year, I wrote an article titled “How to Manage Airdrop Expectations: The Correct Approach for Project Teams to Display a ‘Big Picture’.”
However, reality ironically showed me another side of the industry - user expectations collapsed, trust in project parties was bankrupt, and capital fell into a vicious cycle, forcing me to enter the rights protection track.
Airdrops have also degraded from a growth engine into a “harvesting game,” until the emergence of the Initia airdrop, which not only validated my point but also proved that an airdrop with “no losers” is possible.
Initia’s airdrop this time showcased what a big picture truly means to the entire industry: building trust through transparency, managing expectations with reasonable rules, making airdrops not just a marketing tool, but the infrastructure for project governance.
- Initia Airdrop Strategy: Reject PUA, reject show-off skills, return to simple user operation thinking.
In September last year, the two co-founders of Initia had an interview where their core philosophy was to maintain a high degree of consistency between the project and the community while creating long-lasting wealth effects, and they firmly opposed short-termism. From the analysis in the first part and the founders’ statements, you will find that the project is indeed practicing long-termism, from product design and token economics design to the final airdrop.
A careful analysis of Initia’s airdrop reveals that there are no particularly superior airdrop strategies, nor any manipulative operations to entice users with carrots. Especially, the entire airdrop is almost “de-KOLized”; I call this a simple yet very effective “marketplace philosophy.” Nothing more, just fairness, integrity, and transparency.
1⃣Transparency: Rules are pre-established, progress is transparent
In the airdrop, during the first testnet task phase, the project clearly provides incentives, and after it ends, without delay or ambiguity, clearly informs users that there will be no further incentives.
Secondly, during the entire airdrop period, the anti-cheating mechanism of the testnet phase is initiated rather than modifying the rules afterward, eliminating concerns about wash trading. This is unlike certain projects that ambiguously allow bots to manipulate volume first, and then sharpen their knives after the airdrop begins.
It’s like a customer going to a clearly priced vegetable market; once inside, you can see the prices and decide whether to buy or not, rather than having a misleading price tag while selling something completely different.
2⃣Fairness: Inclusive airdrop, dynamic adjustment
The Initia airdrop has a distinctive feature this time, which is different from traditional projects that design airdrop mechanisms around KOLs and whales. Initia has created a highly inclusive token distribution framework, with a very high structure.
Zero-threshold coverage: Most users only need to complete two tweets to receive 400+ tokens, which will lower the participation rights to the real user group.
Long-tail incentive design: Airdrops cover 4,000 users based on YAP points (far exceeding the top 100 model of the YAP leaderboard), allowing small and medium participants to receive returns that match their contributions.
Dynamic adjustment mechanism: Exclude 1 million low-tier users and allocate more tokens to deep participants, forming a positive feedback loop where the more active you are, the higher the returns.
Throughout the entire process, whether you are a KOL or an ordinary user, what matters more is the fairness of the rules, rather than the emphasis on the KOL’s ability to drive sales.
3⃣Integrity: Words must be followed by actions, refuse PUA
At this point, the project is reflected in many places, and there is basically no vague promise, and the founder tweeted that it will be launched at the end of the month, and then the TGE will be launched at the end of the month.
In addition, the development progress of the testnet is basically the same as that of the main network, and there are 3 months left after 70%, with a clear planning route; The same is true in the airdrop, the testnet deadline, tweet and DC are unusually clear, and the walk is true.
- Initia allows users to experience true long-termism.
Based on the three points mentioned above, it is not difficult to understand why community users voluntarily maintain the project, allowing users to feel the true essence of long-termism, rather than short-term speculative games. This accumulation of trust transforms users from being indifferent “airdrop hunters” into organic participants in the project, even actively promoting and defending the ecosystem. When rules are clear, interests are intertwined, and value coexists, community stickiness and loyalty naturally take shape.
Initia proves that the core of a decentralized world is not KOLs, but the silent majority. Traditional project airdrops are often designed around KOLs and whales, leading ordinary users to become “pacing runners.” Initia’s strategy emphasizes inclusiveness, quantifiable contributions, and transparent fulfillment, allowing every genuine user to receive matched benefits.
From a business perspective, Initia’s success does not rely on complex “magic tricks,” but rather on returning to the most basic business ethics: long-termism never requires flashy designs, just the simple fulfillment of commitments 100%, and that’s it.
This is common in century-old shops in the physical world and in the operations of market stalls; it’s simple but can earn continuous trust.
III. Outlook and Discussion: What Kind of Airdrop Does the Industry Actually Need?
Is there really a need for airdrops in this industry? I think Initia has already provided the answer. I believe that if we continue with this sincere operational approach and persist in technological development, the vitality and potential of this project may exceed our expectations.
In this industry, the more we look at airdrops, the more distorted they become. Most projects are obsessed with grand narratives, while airdrops are falling apart. Initia has proven that as long as you can honestly make a good bowl of ramen, this sincerity is far more vital than a fabricated lavish banquet. This is a very simple operational philosophy, but I think it might be a breakthrough point.
Airdrops are not a zero-sum game chip, nor should they be a harvesting tool; they should become the trust infrastructure of the industry. In the current industry, a good airdrop is essentially: transparent (rules are verifiable), contributions are quantifiable (fair), benefits can accumulate (long-termism), value can diffuse (ecosystem binding), and commitments can be fulfilled (integrity).
A deeper consideration is whether project parties and capital regard users as traffic or assets. If you do not treat users as assets to manage, but merely as traffic, then this opposition, distortion, and even rights protection will not cease.
The cryptocurrency industry is still in the cold start phase, and airdrops remain a necessary market tool. However, if users are treated merely as traffic rather than long-term assets, the industry will fall into a vicious cycle of “short-term arbitrage by users - project parties harvesting - market trust collapse.” What the industry needs is not an innovation in the production relations of airdrops, but rather a consistent understanding of the rules and details between project parties, capital parties, and the community.
Perhaps we can say that it is time for a supply-side reform of the airdrop!
