This month contributors were encouraged to fill in the survey about the functioning of the OWS. Here we have summarized the highlights results. N= 47
When asked why they joined the OWS, the most frequent answers were:
- To earn some NEAR (23,5%)
- To get to know the NEARVerse better (21,2%)
- To learn about the blockchain (19,7 %)
Although earning rewards in included in the top answers, we see that it is NOT the only dominating reason for joining the OWS. This indicates that offering a safe, friendly space for getting familiar with the world of blockchain and NEAR Protocol in particular is highly appreciated by the newcomers.
Some alternative answers of the survey participants included……
“Sandbox is a place where we can exchange and share knowledge about Near with each other.”
“I was invited by my friend, this community is so nice. I learn about NEAR protocol and blockchain in general, earn some NEAR to become NEAR HODLER. I love NEAR and OWS !!!”
“This is a good place for me and a lot of NEARians to contribute and also get some NEAR payout. I found a lot of oppotunities here especially in the quarantine time. “
“I enjoy being an active community member in a project I have invested in, it helps me learn and better understand the idea and direction of Near!
When thinking about the “why’s” of the OWS existence, it is important to keep in mind that at the moment it has 85% (!!) of the survey respondents who are available to contribute between 6 and 15 hours to the NEAR Ecosystem on a weekly (!) basis.
That means only one thing – we need to find a best way to integrate these individuals in the projects of their liking and let them become active members of the community. These young crypto enthusiasts ARE available, we just need do find a best fit for them. The OWS is best engineered to provide them with this opportunity as an incubating space. Having as many representatives from each NEAR entity (projects, dApps, Guild) is critical to success.
The following conclusions have been drawn from replies to “When you first joined the OWS, how easy was it to find the available tasks/opportunities?”:
Although Discord is not a favorite platform for many, it is still clear that the OWS team did sufficient effort (for the time being) to onboard newcomers as smooth as possible: the majority admitted that starting to engage was moderately or very easy.
What are the long-term goals of the OWS contributors?
- Earn some NEAR (27,8%)
- Find Interesting Projects (23,1%)
- Freelance as a solo-contributor (19,4%)
- Expand my network (17,6%)
- Have my own Guild (12 %)
When asked about the long-term goal of being in the OWS, we observed almost the same amount of interest for earning NEAR as for engaging with the NEAR projects via the OWS.
On the one hand, the OWS reduces the performance tension and allows contributors to do small tasks for favorite projects without pressure. Should they like the project, they are highly encouraged to get in contact with the project later on. On the other hand, the OWS acts as a buffer for the projects as it its offering help on behalf of the contributors without further strong commitments on the side of the project (i.e. the project does not have to hire contributors, pay them (as long as budget is agreed upon on with the OWS in advance) or deal with poor quality work if such appears). Contributor get to work of the projects while projects receive extra help and assistance with a potential continuation of collaboration. Win-win!
Probing for more ways in which the OWS team can support its members we have received responses that once again revolving around the presence of the projects:
- organizing more events with the projects (27%)
- introducing Sandboxers to the projects ( 24,3%)
Challenges in the OWS for the contributors
The biggest challenges seem to be connected to the complex nature of Discord (32%) as a platform and not being able to find tasks matching skills (28%).
Last but not least we asked contributors about their top 3 exciting topics in the OWS. Data speaks for itself here:
- Project Opportunities (27,3%)
- NFT giveaways (18,2%)
- Collaborations (15%)
Some general feedback thoughts that stood out:
“OWS is awesome, but I think you need to recruit more collaborators because this community is growing fastly. If you want to grow the Vietnamese community, I am willing to join”
“Everything is good to me and give me a lot of chances to get NEAR and also learn about the platform. Maybe we can make the process of claiming task easier and quicker with some automatically tools so the moderators don’t waste a lot of time checking the claim tasks.”
“The project is very promising, it evokes a lot of emotions. I saw the project through Twitter and decided to try myself. Everything is super here)))”
“I want the community to thrive, especially in Vietnam. We still don’t have a lot of knowledge about the block chain, so it’s hard to get access to it. “
“The program is very cool, the moderators are responsive guys, there are many interesting tasks, I would like a chat with announcements in telegram, it is more convenient for me to work there)”
“I’m most suited as a beta tester, have engaged with many projects in their early phases providing feedbacks to their platforms. I’ve been doing this for more than 2 years. In Sandbox I don’t find any opportunity like this. It would’ve been best something like this existed in OWS.”
The results of the survey showcase a clear need for accumulating a wider range of representatives from different NEAR projects. More focus is needed from the following stakeholders:
- From projects (Guilds, dApps) themselves to connect with OWS and outsource small tasks as opportunities for new contributors toget a feel on what the ecosystem has to offer. Coming the the OWS weekly AMA creates extra visibility as well!
- From the NEAR Core in terms of marketing assistance
- From the OWS contributors to engage more with the existing ones and to check out the new offers regularly in order to avoid standstills
- For the OWS Team to reach out more actively to the projects
Any further feedback is welcome.
OWS Team