There are many different reasons why people got into Bitcoin and the same thing why others don’t. Even for advocates who have been around the industry for quite a while it is still a learning process and it really takes plenty of your time when buying, moving and securing your precious coins.
I guess one of the challenges that crypto enthusiasts face when going out and drink with friends and/or family members is when you start talking about crypto, nobody gives a s**t. Most of the people that I know don’t have any idea what Bitcoin is nor will they ever bother understanding what that is.
Outsiders’ Usual Response:
Here are some of the common feedbacks when having normal conversation with friends:
You can use cryptocurrency to send money to anyone, anywhere. It’s faster and it’s cheap.
Response: I’d rather pay money transfer fee coz it’s convenient and besides, it will reach the destination within the day anyway.
You can be your own bank.
Response: Why would I do that? That’s too risky.
With cryptocurrency you can save money and earn interest which is way more higher compared to banks.
Response: Yeah but I bet there’s a lot of workaround in the process before I can use it huh! Time deposit is still better and it’s user-friendly.
It can also be a form of investment.
Response: I’d rather buy stocks at least it’s easy to understand
And the list goes on and on!
Here’s what I’ve noticed, as long as we can bring food on the table, travel once in a while and buy dumb stuff then most of us that has an 8-10hr day job are more likely to be content on our monthly paycheck and just work our butts off to get some extra money because we prefer doing what’s convenient and are unwilling to take risks in addition to not caring what we think is out of the ordinary.
Adoption… Say What?
Just like the others before me, once you’ve became obsess in this industry then there is no turning back. Institutional money is coming or some might say it’s already here and there are also tons of teams out there improving and adding new use cases for cryptocurrency, I get that!
But how to we preach the gospel of Satoshi Nakamoto to an outsider? How will this thing get into the mainstream?
How can small businesses (I mean really small e.g. bakeries, groceries, wet markets, etc.) utilize this technology without having to deal with the technical stuff and workarounds?
How can a middle class & minimum wage employees use this on a daily basis without the need to fully comprehend how it works in the background?
Yes, there are options out there for using Bitcoin & Altcoins to buy coffee and make online purchases but it has its limitations. Majority of the merchants I know only accepts fiat and I bet they don’t have a clue what cryptocurrency is.
Conclusion
I truly believe that one day cryptocurrency will be widely accepted and use by anyone in the world without them even knowing its being utilized in the background. We are still in the early stages and there’s a lot of work needs to be done for this to be well-suited for the masses. Similar to the “Rise of Internet” this will take time but until then let us enjoy the ride as we are seeing history in the making right in front of our eyes.
DISCLAIMER: Cryptocurrency investing is very risky as it can be very volatile most of the time in addition to hacks due to vulnerability exploits on some protocols. Do not put your life’s savings into it or even any amount that you are not comfortable and prepared to lose in the process.
Yeah! Your points are Germain to the problems encircling the adoption of cryptocurrencies. However, perhaps the best way to introduce cryptocurrency to people is to earn it and spend it in their presence. Remember the saying: "seeing is believing". This is the way I've been introducing BCH to people in Nigeria. Just few days ago, a company has erected Bitcoin ATM at strategic locations in Lagos, Nigeria to increase the awareness. "I hope BCH ATMs will rival those ATMs very soon"