Memecoins have always been dumb since the dawn of time. Okay, since 2013 when Doge came onto the scene which is an aeon in crypto history. They meme, therefore they are, and that’s about all they do. At least so the thinking went – and so it stayed for well over a decade. So why, all of a sudden, are memecoin projects rethinking a strategy that’s served the industry for over a decade?

The answer can be summarized in a single abbreviation: WOMIO. Its vision of reimagining memecoins with genuine utility built in has found what VCs like to call “product market fit.” WOMIO may not be the first project to attempt this feat, but in 2024, the year of memecoin saturation, it feels radical. Yet already there are signs that WOMIO’s utility-driven memecoin thesis is prompting other projects to follow suit.

Making a Memecoin

The beautiful thing about memecoins is that anyone can create one. The downside is that anyone can create one. And therein lies the rub. In a year in which memecoins have begun operating like self-replicating organisms, creating copies of copies of copies, it’s become increasingly hard for the genuinely good projects to stand out. Which is one reason why WOMIO has gone down the utility route of trying to program actual use cases into its own token.

But it’s not the only reason. Because WOMIO has a broader goal: it’s on a mission to incentivize other memecoins projects to follow suit. How exactly? We’ll get to that. First, let’s walk things back a little and address what exactly WOMIO does that differentiates it from your average memecoin.

In addition to serving its primary role as a memecoin, WOMIO powers the token launchpad of the same name. And it’s here that its utility comes into play. At least half a dozen use cases have been built into WOMIO including staking, allowing holders to earn a share of every memecoin that launches on the platform. As for the launchpad itself, WOMIO enables projects to deploy their token on a number of chains, a unique feature that distinguishes it from existing launchpads.

But it’s what comes next from WOMIO and the projects it launches that have the potential to deliver lasting change to the multi-billion dollar memecoin sector.

Leading by Example

WOMIO’s team has stated that one of their goals in creating their token launchpad wasn’t just to make it easier to issue tokens, but to incentivize creators to come up with original concepts that add genuine utility. Doing so benefits the projects in question, increasing their prospects of going the distance, and will also serve to increase WOMIO’s appeal as a token launchpad. It’s a scenario in which everyone wins. 

The question is, what sort of utility can be built into memecoins? As it transpires, this is a less daunting exercise than it may sound. Those who recall the first DeFi summer of 2020 will remember the foodcoin craze that followed when yield farming was all the rage. While most of the projects that emerged at that time have long since died, a handful, such as SushiSwap, have gone the distance.

In addition to yield farming, there were also attempts by foodcoins back then to incorporate gamification into their tokens, as embodied by projects such as $TACO, as well as attempting some of the first NFT tie-ins. Fast forward to today and enterprising memecoins are taking a similar approach through incorporating features such as staking (aka the new yield farming) and building games that require the token to access.

And then we have real-world utility. If memecoins can gain traction and establish loyal communities, there’s scope for bringing their energy and memes to the real world through partnerships with payment gateways, stores, loyalty cards, and other businesses. If there’s one thing the memecoin industry isn’t short of, it’s imagination. All of the crypto characters we know and love, from WIF to POPCAT, started out as an idea before going viral and becoming a self-replicating meme.

The notion that memecoin creators are incapable of dreaming up new use cases for the tokens they’ve spawned is laughable. Look around and already there are signs that this transition to more utility-based models is starting to take shape. WOMIO wasn’t the first project to attempt this and, if it succeeds in its mission to inspire other projects to follow suit, it certainly won’t be the last.