When Worlds Collide 
Web3 infrastructure company Co:Create is rolling out an application on e-commerce giant Shopify, allowing millions of businesses to implement blockchain-based loyalty and rewards programs on the platform.
Powered by Ethereum sidechain Polygon, the Web3 Rewards Tools application aims to help brands create a deeper connection with their customers through non-fungible tokens (NFT) and gamified experiences. Brands can issue token-based rewards, as well as release token-gated products with their own NFT collections and existing projects such as the Bored Ape Yacht Club or CryptoPunks.
Tara Fung, CEO and co-founder of Co:Create told CoinDesk that commerce is a key mechanism to engage the community behind a brand, and Web3 provides the technology for merchants to provide digital ownership to their loyal customers.
“We are building an assistant system that helps the most innovative community centric brands grow, reward and engage their community,” said Fung. “And that is where the Shopify app lives.”
She also noted that commerce helps startups and newer brands build their audiences and engage their communities, as opposed to larger brands rolling out Web3 activations.
“The future of brand engagement and the most exciting brands that people are actually ecstatic about and want to give their advocacy to are often smaller brands that feel very authentic,” said Fung. “Those are the types of brands that are going to want to engage a community more deeply as opposed to utilizing Web3 as just a marketing play.”
While Co:Create’s application is targeted at inducting more brands into Web3 rewards ecosystems, it isn’t the first to do so. In March, Avalanche-based community engagement platform Try Your Best (TYB) released its application on the Shopify app store, allowing brands to implement NFT-based loyalty programs into their storefronts.
Beyond commerce, Co:Create is oriented towards bringing fans closer to the individuals and brands they love through in-person experiences. Last month, Co:Create teamed up with ticketing application EVNTZ to issue blockchain-based rewards to attendees of pop singer Harry Styles’ concert at Slade Castle in Ireland.
Read more: Loyalty, Memberships and Ticketing: How NFTs Will Bring About Mass Adoption
