Most onboarding rewards in Web3 are static: airdrops, faucets, or “first transaction” bonuses. These attract mercenaries and Sybils, not real users. In 2025, over 60% of faucet claims are never used for real engagement.

• Predictable Rewards: Bots can script and farm them at scale.
• No Personalization: Every user gets the same, regardless of intent or value.
• Short-Term Thinking: Once the reward is claimed, most users disappear.

• Behavioral Triggers Work: Rewards based on real actions (e.g., “invite a friend who completes a swap”) are 3x more likely to drive retention.
• Adaptive Rewards Outperform: Adjusting incentives based on user journey (e.g., higher for first DeFi use, lower for repeat Sybils) reduces abuse.
• Gamified Progress: Visual progress bars and “next milestone” rewards keep users coming back.

• Implement dynamic, behavior-driven rewards that adapt to user actions and history.
• Use progressive milestones (e.g., “Complete 3 swaps for a bonus NFT”).
• Visualize progress and next steps—make onboarding a journey, not a one-off event.
• Continuously analyze reward abuse and adapt your logic in real time.

The future of onboarding is dynamic, adaptive, and user-centric. Faucets are dead—long live smart rewards.