101 Guide to Proper Research in Web3

You can't google this one!

So many lies sold in Web3.

Lies you almost can't see through because the space is anonymous and transparent.

But research can save you a lot of pain as a jobber, airdrop hunter, or trader.

In today's letter, I will walk you through research beyond the basic stuff, giving you a concise guide, focusing on non-technical elements.

The kind of research that grants you an "eagle eye".

You probably don’t have “DeFi researcher’ on your bio.

Therefore, you think you don’t know how to carry out research.

The truth?

You need to learn to identify:

-The right projects to pitch to
-Scam projects that are out to hunt you
-Airdrops campaigns that want to swipe your resources.

So, yeah, you do need to know how to carry out proper research, it doesn’t have to be deep and technical stuff

Why Research?

Your big Influencers are always steps ahead, and this is most likely the result of the right 'research'.

There are a couple of things you need to tick on your box when investing in Web3, Here are 4:

1. Evaluate

The space is ever-evolving. The metrics used to assess a project's potential success in 2021 are certainly different from those used in 2025.

But you should evaluate these 3 basic but important metrics:

- The team’s experience and reputation

- Support from investors and partnerships.

- The health and sentiment of the project’s community.

These are non-negotiable evaluation metrics.

Although, this doesn't even 100% assure you how well the project will turn out, it is fundamental to building conviction.

2. Product use-case

I'm a big advocate of 'the product'.

I mean, at the end of the day, even with the greatest marketing, if it's just hype and dust without any real use, things might go down the hills when the hype dies.

Example: Relay Protocol, a product solving slow, costly cross-chain transactions with a fast, cheap bridge.

Yes, there have been other products trying to solve these problems but none has solved it like Relay.

Solutions like this sell themselves because people will always want to bridge using the best product in the market.

So, the use case and real-life applications of products in Web3 are becoming more significant.


3. Verify Funding Claims

Projects lie about their funding.

It's becoming a common occurrence, this is usually a 'PR/Marketing stunt' to attract tons of farmers (with the promise of airdrops), the number inflow would give the project leverage to pitch investors.

Numbers do wonders in Web3, you'll be shocked.

To check for at least 99% accuracy of funding of projects, use these tools:

Public Records: Use platforms like Crunchbase or Coinranking to check if the funding rounds are publicized. Look for press releases or announcements on the project's official channels.

Blockchain Transactions: For projects that claim to have raised funds through token sales, inspect blockchain explorers like Etherscan to verify the transactions. Check for any large transfers around the time of the claimed funding event.

Audit Reports: Look for third-party audit reports on the project’s financial or token handling practices, like Certik.


4. Investors and Venture Capital

Projects lie about funding, they lie about investors, VCs, and partners too.

Backing from reputable VCs or investors can lend credibility and might indicate thorough due diligence has been performed.

Scam projects leverage this, and it's insane.

I checked out a certain project that claimed to be incubated by Binance but not once did they tag Binance in any post.

(I literally scrolled through their TL and found not one).

And because they sold 'airdrop', users flocked in without asking questions (they still haven't airdropped anything since January 10th, the promised time).

Little things like this mean a lot!

A few things to do here:

- Check for official announcements from the investors or VCs, if they truly invested.

- Investigate the track record of investors. Have they successfully backed similar projects before? What’s their involvement beyond just funding transparency?

Web3 is a Wild West.

Somehow, these 4 “tricks” make sense enough for you to do better research.

That's it!

If you have questions, let me know in the comments.

If you're ready, here's how I can help:

- Want to get started with your Web3 journey? Get the Web3 Jobs Course for FREE: Web3 Jobs Course

- Have any Web3-related challenges? Share in the comments and I'll be sure to tackle it in ways I can.

Ciao, for now.

- Phoenixx