The almost ludicrously complex, convoluted and expensive process for joining Friends With Benefits - a buzzy online virtual social club mentioned in the last post is worth reviewing for those new to the space. Tokens allows digital services to become digital products - unique and exclusive. So whether it’s a digital version of a country club or a rave, you now have entirely new spheres to build in. ‘Tokenising communities’ essentially means giving communities a unit of currency which conveys ownership and governance rights. However, the complexity of accessing these is one of the reasons we’re not there yet. (And it’s also the reason I opted to go for a simple ‘Subscribe’ button’ for EiC - more on that in the next post.)

The steps to join FWB from their site are:

1. Turn your Fiat ($,£,€, etc.) into Ethereum (Cryptocurrency) (e.g. via COINBASE

2. Purchase some Ethereum (You’ll need75 $FWB worth of Ethereum.)

3. On desktop Install a browser-based Ethereum wallet called METAMASK. On iOS you should already be using RAINBOW WALLET.HOW TO INSTALL METAMASK.

4. Next send your purchased Ethereum from Coinbase to the Metamask. On Rainbow wallet you should already have the ethereum you purchased with Apple Pay.HOW TO SEND ETHEREUM TO YOUR METAMASK WALLET.

5. With Ethereum in your Metamask you can now swap your Ethereum for $FWB at the Uniswap Exchange by CLICKING THIS LINK. On rainbow wallet you can swap your ETH for $FWB using the “swap” function. Here's a tutorial on how to use Uniswap.HERE'S A TUTORIAL ON HOW TO USE UNISWAP.

6. Once you've swapped your ethereum for at least 75 $FWB tokens you can join the discord and follow the instructions in the #welcome channel. (If using Rainbow Wallet remember to use “WalletConnect” to connect Rainbow once you’ve clicked the link DM’d to you by Collab.land)

Are your eyes bleeding yet?

Another issue to contend with is the volatility of these tokens. As community guru and founder of CMX, David Spinks, ruefully commentated in a recent podcast, he went through the hoops to join FWB, purchasing the tokens for about $8k USD and then immediately the tokens lost 50% of their value. So his onboarding experience to this virtual community was immediately in the red. At least when you spend that kind of money in a country club you get to sit in the steam room.