Weekend Update, Readings & Vídeo
Update
Last week, two of our co-founders had a very interesting meeting where we were asked about our market fit… If you have been following our project for a while, you know it’s pretty clear who we want to serve: independent self-managed artists who want to benefit from the new business opportunities the web3 provides them. Nevertheless, for business purposes we need to prove that our services can solve real problems, and that Smartists will be actually useful.
It’s been a while since we moved to testnet, and few changes have been actually done. We are sorry for that, but there has been a lot going on in terms of team building, organization, incorporation, looking for reinforcements… Fortunately we are making good progress to realize some key milestones, so we can go to Mainnet by the end of the year.
Readings
Today, independent artists have many options on the Internet. Promoting to reach large audiences seems the most obvious utility of the web for them, meanwhile making business with one’s creativity is not yet clear for most artists-authors.
While financial news tell us that big tech is starting to fall down, it feels good to recall our mission and vision once more. We were born in response to the many abuses from the Web 2.0. And, it feels like it’s the right time to show the way to a better Internet. Moreover, at Smartists we don’t want to limit our users to artists already on the web3. We actually want to invite newcomers and this is the reason for the following selection of articles.
For artists and art-users discovering web3
As well as for those who want to introduce Web3 and Smartists to their acquaintances, consider the power of web3 and discover Smartists!
About the web3, The Internet of Value
Addressing Artists in the real world
Reasons to be interested and consider getting involved
Why Digital Rights Matter [April 2020]
It is also important to remember that our services are not an adaptation of anything previously working on the Web 2.0. We are opening brand new business opportunities for self-managed artists on the web.
Taking back control of your data and your creations was the promise of blockchain tech, and it was the starting point for building Smartists. So, I have recently begun to collect YouTube videos by artists with good reasons to come to the web3. There are quite a few who have been quitting social media, and are focusing in their websites, newsletters/blogs, and sometimes their video channels. They explain that they look for quality relationships which are not possible on any social media. It’s all about recovering the control of your time and your creations, and to be able to have good clients instead of random followers depending on an algorithm. (a personal take) —> An interesting testimonial by Julia Bausenhardt [video]
At Smartists, we would like to help these artists who work in the real world to sell online their art works, from their own websites and private online studios, to their subscribers and clients. We just need to introduce them to Smartists, secured by Bitcoin, and help them get started on the web3. We celebrate and are really happy to count on our pioneers coming from Stacks, but at Smartists we want to prove that we can serve any independent artist in the real world.
How to enter the web3 ?
Therefore, we know that the first entrance barrier to use Smartists will be to get a wallet and seed it. We are ready to explain this out there, and I am hopeful young artists won’t find it difficult as web3 adoption continues to expand and grow. This will be a first challenge, for sure.
For newcomers there are many wallets, and those not acquainted might feel lost. At Smartists we put security first, because we know for artists their creations are like their own children, their legacy on earth. This is the reason we only consider the Bitcoin blockchain for our transactions. Thanks to the Stacks technology, today it is not so difficult to get started with Bitcoin NFTs via a Stacks/STX-wallet.
Here are two articles by Flor Peña explaining this, Step by Step. Plus, there you will find some links to useful tutorials for jumping in.
If you want to know more about Smartists…
Go to our community website where you can read about our Mission and Vision, discover some pioneers, and find your preferred media to connect with us: Newsletter, Blog, Forum or Discord!
Thank you for reading, and for sharing our contents with any artist or art-user who could benefit from this information.
Best!
Georgina Mauriño, co-founder of Smartists, secured by Bitcoin.