In an era of the Digital world and online transactions, Cryptocurrency is a term that has been in the limelight in the market since 2010. Initially, this was an ambiguous term which was very difficult to understand. It was understood as a platform of investment that suddenly erupted from the air however it is far from reality. It has its history and its special process of transaction. What is cryptocurrency? Why is it in the limelight? How it works? How safe is it for investments? The series of blogs shall cover the basics of cryptocurrency that evolved. First, we shall delve into its evolution to understand why it came into the market. Then we shall move towards its fundamentals and its social aspects. We shall cover this complex phenomenon easily in some series of blogs.  

Evolution of cryptocurrency 

In any economy, the production and distribution of material wealth is something to be considered as the primary goal. Everyone here requires a variety of material goods but cannot produce everything. Thus, we tend to get involved in the exchange process. This exchange process has its stages: – 

Barter system: –  

When the economy was in its initial stage people used to exchange goods and services in return for goods and services. It means that If I need a cat and I have shoes then I must find a person who needs shoes and is ready to give his cat in exchange. It seems to be a very difficult and time-consuming task that demands a further revolution in the market. 

Entry of metal coins 

Thus, we tended to find some representations of the value of goods that can be carried. No one has the time to find a person who needs a cat. Thus, we found some metal coins which can act as denotations of value paid. These metals, since they are limited in numbers, can have their value which can equate to the value of goods and services and thus can be exchanged altogether. It was also a decentralized system used for the transaction process. 

Evolution of banks and currency notes.

Then with time, institutions such as banks evolved which led to the generation of currency as legal tender. It means that a place will be specified where everyone can put their money and can withdraw on demand in case of ‘demand deposits’. The method of transaction here changed to currency notes and coins which themselves have no value. They are valuable just because the government claims that they are valuable. As in the case of demonetization, if one day the government claims that from now on this note is not a legal tender, that currency will lose its value. 

Currency notes, depending on the demand and supply of goods and services, international trade and the overall economic situation of a nation, can gain and lose their value.

Currently, because of the strong economic and political dominance of the USA, US dollars are taken as the standard for whether the currency of a nation has appreciated or depreciated and in what ratio. However, this trend is now changing and the Chinese yen, Russian rubles and Indian rupees are also in the limelight for standardization to decrease the polarization towards the USA.  

Thus, it is the bank here that keeps the record of transactions, and they are under the control of the Central Bank. Central banks work under the government thus making the transactions and value of money depend on the system working there. 

Rise of cryptocurrencies 

One of the major problems with using the currency (legal tender) and banking system here is that they have control of our money. Banks have complete data that shows how much money I have, where I am spending it and how much raise I am getting. Even in some special cases, if the government wants it can restrict its uses. It means till now, we have just earned and given our money to a centrally controlled system to keep it safe and tend to use it as per our requirements. 

However, such kind of transactions have created a sense of dissatisfaction among the wealth holders. The problem is that if I have earned the money, why should a system have control over it? Thus, it leads to the emergence of a need for a decentralized system to control the money we have. 

After the sudden dissimilation of computers, it created an idea why not have a system of records that would work on Unanimous Consensus.

It means rather than providing records to banks let’s have a unanimous record of transactions and a decentralized system that will entirely work based on demand and supply. Here the government will not have any control and we can freely use this currency as per the market principles. 

Here is the place where cryptocurrencies are raised. This is the same principle that follows and solves this raised problem. 

What is cryptocurrency? 

In an era of this digital world, we created a system where we hold a form of digital and decentralized currency known as cryptocurrency. It works with cryptography to maintain security. Cryptography is a field of study where we convert plain text to a code or cypher text that we can’t understand with our known language. Thus, programmed language ensures the security of data in public spheres.

It means if we have done any transaction with this currency. When it tends to get stored publicly it will have a specific code that will contain the data for security here. 

Just like UPI payments in India, these kinds of currencies are accepted as a medium of payment in many countries. It is somewhat the same, however, the difference is that Upi payments happen through banks which are centrally controlled whereas cryptocurrency is a decentralized medium of transactions. Many such currencies exist such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin etc.  

In a nutshell and way towards part 2 

This is an aspect that does require some detailing to have an insight.  In this blog first, we had a glimpse at why the need for cryptocurrency arose and how it evolved. Thereafter we have understood what this cryptocurrency is. However nowadays it is a platform of investment. So, what made it a platform of investment? What is the technology behind it and how viable is it to invest? All such aspects shall be covered in the next part of the blog provided below: – https://www.dutimes.com/what-is-cryptocurrency/

References

pexels, https://www.drishtiias.com/to-the-points/paper3/cryptocurrency-9

The post What is cryptocurrency? appeared first on DU Times.

What is Social Proof:

Social proof is the concept of taking another person’s opinion and following it. Alternatively, it can be mentioned as word of mouth. Today’s world encompasses all types of people, many are entrepreneurs who seek audiences. Approximately there are 590 million entrepreneurs across the world, which implies 7.5 percentage of the total population. Most startups and entrepreneurs need immense efforts to reach their audience’s attention. Let’s see everything in detail without missing anything crucial.

Real-life examples of Social Proof:

Online Shopping Platform: Numerous online shopping platforms include Flipkart, Amazon, Ajio, and so on. These platforms provide a reviews section which showcases customer’s satisfaction with the product. Additionally, it helps folks to build trust in the product. Social proof lessens uncertainty.

OTT Platforms: Unlike past decades, there are multiple OTT platforms including Amazon Prime, Netflix, and Hotstar which engage diverse audiences. These platforms have review sections, which allow audiences to leave reviews of the movies. This facilitates a clear overview of the movie or series before actually viewing them on our own.

Types of social proof:

Social Media Proof: Social media is the greatest platform to create trust among folks. Each share represents that the product is useful and it can be recommended. Products or services with multiple likes, followers and comments are considered as social proof.

Acquaintance’s Recommendations: This kind of social proof is accepted by numerous people as it involves emotions and connections with a particular acquaintance. People trust easily if the product is recommended by their close friends or relatives.

Following the Crowd: If a group of people uses a specific brand, it creates curiosity and pushes others to buy it. Increased customers imply increased trust. The prospect of investing in that product is also high.

Celebrity Social Proof: If any celebrity endorses the product via social media or any other public media platform. it enhances the rating of the product. People who might know the celebrity will buy because of immense trust.

Natural Products: As the world got adapted to adulteration people are desperate to buy original and organic products. If the product mentions that it contains only organic ingredients, folks are excited to buy it. This is also considered social proof because people invest their money and trust these products.

Experts Recommendations: This includes press or any other reputed industries. Endorsement from these giants will enhance trust and act as social proof. This helps customers to keep immense trust and purchase.

Examples of Social Proof in Advertising:

Association with Influencers: Influencers might have already earned enough followers. Collaborating with them increases the visibility of your product. Unlike celebrity endorsement, an influencer’s involvement will earn more trust because they are one among the people.

Customer Reviews: This gives proper evidence to the buyers, as the customer reviews are more trusted by the folks. This provides real-time experience with comprehensive knowledge about the product. Shopping apps like Amazon and Flipkart also allow customers to share their reviews through images and videos. This furnishes transparency of the particular brand.

Case Studies: Case studies are real-life examples to attract other potential followers. It gives a sense of trust and it is the prominent evidence that showcases the previous works of the company, organization or startups. It is the sharing of experience of the customer who buys the product. Numerous case studies prove the quality of the brand.

Social Proof Tools:

Numerous software help in social proof. Here are a few of them.

Nudgify: This has multiple templates which can be categorised according to the goals that are to be achieved. There is a feature named Nudge Builder which facilitates writing notification messages, and images to be uploaded, setting target rules and so on. Nudgify is used to discover activities of users that include product reviews, recent sign-ups and sales.

TrustPulse: This software is extremely easy for beginners to use. This was designed to work seamlessly with popular websites like WooCommerce, BigCommerce, Squarespace, WordPress and much more. This is one of the best software. 

NextSale: By using NextSale, one can track user’s reviews, recent activity, and live sales. NextSale specialises in automatic social proof notification on the site. This can be used to track the user when he or she lands on the page, exit the site and the activity of the visitors.

In conclusion, social proof plays a prominent role in making people trust and like a brand more. When brands show that other customers are happy with their products through social media platforms or testimonials, it makes new customers feel more confident about buying them. This helps to increase sales and build a good reputation. This is a smart way to succeed and stand out in the competitive industry.

The post Validation Through Social Proof: Boosting Your Brand’s Credibility  appeared first on DU Times.