100 Conversation Topics Every Web3 Founder Must Discuss - 7 Key Lessons Learned from 4 Years of Experience

The Web3 startup journey is a continuous cycle of conversations with investors, users, and team members. After experiencing the failure of three infrastructure projects over the past four years, I started creating consumer products that people truly want beginning in 2025. Through this process, I realized which topics of conversation are important and which discussions determine success. Here, I share the seven most essential lessons among the 100 key conversation topics founders must discuss.

Why Focus on User Conversations Instead of Trendy Technologies

My early startup experience revealed the trap of only focusing on popular technological trends in conversations. When account abstraction was hot in 2023, I also discussed the same topics as everyone else. I was captivated by ZK (Zero-Knowledge Proofs) and discussed with investors how “this will change the world,” but it was far from what actual users wanted.

We need to break free from the misconception that complex technology equals a trustworthy product. I confidently listed impressive concepts like zkML, zk identity, and zk voting, but to this day, I haven’t heard stories from people actually using these technologies.

The most important conversation topic for founders isn’t “Is this technology really necessary?” but “Do users want this?” Even in discussions with investors, the focus has shifted from the elegance of the technology to application scenarios and real-world use cases.

Conversations with Generation Z Users – Designing User-Centric Products for Young Users

Entering the Solana ecosystem introduced me to a completely different culture of conversation. Here, practical discussions like “Meme coins are okay because profit matters” take place. Speed, deployment, and real results are the core of these conversations.

Building for young users who are eager to adopt new products is crucial. Especially conversations with the 13-21 age group, Generation Z, are essential for founders. According to a 2024 Consumer Technology Association study, 86% of Gen Z (ages 11-26) consider technology central to their lives. This percentage is higher than any previous generation.

In conversations with this age group, it’s notable that they prefer to try new apps, experiment with new features, and change habits. Users over 25 tend not to adopt new workflows without strong incentives. The peak of social activity at ages 20-21 means that conversations with young people naturally have higher viral potential.

Investor Conversations Focused on Propagation – The Key to Reducing Marketing Costs

Without a large marketing budget, the most important topic in discussions with investors is “How will the product itself become a traffic channel?” This is called propagation property.

It’s especially important to share why this conversation topic matters in the crypto space:

• KOL marketing is extremely expensive
• Trust levels are very low
• Everyone expects rewards or incentives

If your product provides users with reasons to voluntarily share with friends or communities, you can achieve promotion without spending money. While this is a challenging topic to discuss with investors, it’s worth optimizing from day one of product development.

Rapid Feedback and Improvement – Conversations About User Feedback

The most frequent topic to discuss with product teams is “How quickly will you respond to user feedback?” If users report poor experiences or bugs, you must fix them immediately—especially issues that hinder usage.

In my early experience, a user told me via personal message: “Since your app lacks this feature, I will use product Y first.” Once users switch to a competitor and form habits, it’s nearly impossible to bring them back.

Key questions to discuss with your team:

• Do you resolve urgent bugs within 2-5 hours?
• Can you develop requested features within 2-3 days?
• Do you inform users that these features were released because of their feedback?
• Are you ready to offer small rewards to early loyal users?

These conversations build deep trust. Users start feeling that the product is “theirs,” and this emotional attachment can drive remarkable growth in early stages.

Conversations with the Team About Naming the Product

It may seem simple, but many founders fail here. The product name is a recurring topic in discussions with investors, partners, and users.

My previous product, “Encifher,” was hard to remember, and investors and partners often misspelled it. Even within the team, misunderstandings arose because of the name. When I later changed it to “encrypt.trade,” the conversation about the name changed completely.

Topics to discuss with your team:

• Is this name easy to share verbally?
• Is the spelling clear at first hearing?
• Does it convey the core value of the product?
• Can it achieve high recognition?

Having a concise, memorable, and attractive name is more important than you might think in the early user acquisition phase.

Starting Conversations with Users via Cold DM

Finding and engaging users is extremely difficult, especially when what you’re building doesn’t fit into the current “trend narrative.” I sent about 1,000 Cold DMs, received responses from only 10%, and only 3-4 of those led to meaningful help.

But this doesn’t mean you should give up on this conversation topic. The feedback from those who responded helped me iteratively improve the product. An effective structure for Cold DM conversations includes:

• Starting with a friendly greeting
• Highlighting key points (funding status, trading volume, etc.)
• Explaining where you found them
• Offering a friendly call to action
• Following up to keep the conversation going

Remember, this process is slow and tiring. In crypto, very few respond to DMs due to widespread scams. But your goal isn’t to acquire 1,000 users at once. It’s to get 10-20 initial users who are interested, willing to try your product, and open to honest conversations.

Internal Team Discussions for Rapid Iteration Culture

The crypto industry changes rapidly, and attention spans are very short. The most important topic in team discussions is “How quickly can you observe user behavior and respond?”

Topics to discuss internally:

• What are users repeatedly doing?
• What trade-offs are they making?
• What are they willing to pay for?

Many ideas seem good, but if users aren’t willing to pay, survival is impossible. These frank conversations should happen frequently within the team.

Website design is also part of this rapid iteration culture. Don’t assume what users perceive. As developers, the product may seem obvious, but newcomers might find it completely unfamiliar. Confirm this in team discussions:

• Are there new terms or complex processes?
• Is the number of clicks minimized?
• Is the core value presented within 5 seconds of opening the app?

In Conclusion

There are over 100 conversation topics Web3 founders should cover. But the seven core lessons that determine success are:

• User-centric conversations over trends
• Engaging with young users
• Investment conversations focused on propagation
• Rapid feedback and response culture
• Clear product naming
• User development conversations
• Fast iteration culture

Building consumer crypto products is exciting and challenging. Fast iteration, user conversations, and marketing skills are more important than perfect technology. This is a completely different conversation culture from B2B. The topics you focus on in these conversations will determine your startup’s success.