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The multiple levels of web3 UX
Creating a larger framework for web3.
There are so many new elements that separate web3 from web2, such as gas fees, tokens, wallets, and smart contracts, that we need to think way beyond just the UI. There are multiple levels.
We need to improve all of those levels to create a good user experience.
The User Journey is a Long and Winding Road
Consider a standard app. Nothing Web3, but just a popular app on your smartphone that you use regularly. The actual UI of this app is just the last element in a long string of experiences beginning in the real world, crashing through numerous physical spaces, into digital interactions, through a whole mess of different hardware and software until you eventually find yourself hovering your thumb over a button someone designed.
You probably had a thought, like “play music” or “check directions” or “buy clothes,” which was prompted by something in your physical surroundings.
The “UX” of that experience begins long before you take the phone out of your pocket.
This is under-appreciated when looking at Web3, so let’s take an example.
International payments
There is the “UX” of sending any kind of money to a resident of another country, and there is the “UX” of the particular app you use to do it.
You could argue that sending stablecoins on a blockchain over international borders is already a much better experience than sending FIAT. It’s pretty much instant, and the fees are minimal. If you try to send FIAT it could take a couple of days and you’ll be charged fees at every step. On the other hand, some money transfer apps are pretty good these days. It’s a more familiar and accessible process than the crypto equivalent. Most people have a smartphone and some local currency. Most people don’t have an exchange account, a wallet, and some crypto.
Parts of the user experience are better than the current standard. But a lot of the other steps are worse than the current standard.
