Author: Weilin, PANews

Emily from Shanghai never expected that as a user, she would have the opportunity to take a photo with the founder of Binance, which has a market value of over $90 billion. This moment occurred during Binance's Blockchain Week in Dubai, which attracted users, partners, and practitioners from around the world. Binance's founder and former CEO CZ unexpectedly appeared on stage for a half-hour sharing session, during which applause and laughter erupted from the audience. Following this, attendees lined up to take photos with CZ, while another co-founder, He Yi, also became a "photo spot" at the venue, with participants eagerly taking pictures with her.

This experience allowed her, who previously worked in traditional finance, to closely feel the vitality and cohesion of the crypto community. In the formal and rigid world of traditional finance, it is hard to imagine ordinary users gathering together to listen to founders and executives share insights, or even engaging in close interactions and taking photos.

During the Binance Blockchain Week in Dubai from October 30 to 31, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, Binance, presented not just a financial event in the Web3 space, but a carnival for the cryptocurrency industry. As Binance's Chief Marketing Officer (CMO), Rachel Conlan is the overall person in charge of this event.

The CMO position was held by He Yi when she joined Binance in August 2017, and now Rachel Conlan has taken over from He Yi and has been in this role for nearly a year and a half. During a time of unprecedented challenges for Binance, she has led her team to support and witness Binance's steady growth. According to the latest data, as of the end of October this year, Binance's global user count has approached 240 million, and this cryptocurrency exchange is leading the global crypto market with the largest market share.

PANews had an exclusive conversation with Rachel Conlan in Dubai, attempting to unveil Binance's marketing focus, brand promotion strategies, and its KPIs. She stated that Binance's executives, including CEO Richard Teng and He Yi, hold meetings every night to maintain agile communication. She also admitted, "This is the most exciting and challenging job I have ever had."

From Traditional Marketing to the Crypto Field: Emotional Connection with Users is Always the Core

Before joining Binance in June 2023, Rachel had 15 years of marketing experience. When discussing her journey from traditional marketing to the crypto industry, she expressed that she has always been attracted to fast-growing businesses and tech companies. The foundational marketing knowledge she gained while working at renowned advertising firms like Havas equipped her with agile decision-making skills to handle strict client demands. "This experience made me understand the importance of speed and scale, allowing me to make real-time decisions without hesitation. I excel at digesting large amounts of information and distilling it into actions we need to take." This ability has enabled her to quickly adapt and be effective in a data-driven environment like Binance.

When talking about the uniqueness of the crypto industry, Rachel pointed out that her experience in the sports and entertainment sectors at Creative Artists Agency helped her realize that marketing is not just about functional display, but also the art of building emotional connections. This principle is also applied in Binance's marketing, and she emphasized, "This is also what I proudly consider to be a core part of Binance; we are not just a functional product, we have an emotional connection with our users."

The fast pace of the crypto field excites and challenges her simultaneously. She mentioned that she now spends several hours daily on social media platforms, and her husband even complains that she is always on her phone, but she insists that this is work, and she feels immersed in it. Because this is where she understands the major market trends, "helping us capture these trends and know what we should do."

Binance's Global Market Expansion: The Key Strategy is "Localized Marketing"

Over the past seven years, Binance took five years to reach 100 million users and then two more years to surpass the 200 million mark. Currently, Binance's global registered user count is approaching 240 million. Rachel pointed out that Binance's user growth has been a long process. This growth rate positions Binance to potentially become the first crypto trading platform to reach 1 billion users. She believes, "Binance is progressing as planned, hoping to smoothly reach the 1 billion user goal I set as a marketer. That will be a key milestone for the entire industry moving from niche to mainstream."

To achieve this goal, one of Binance's core strategies is localized marketing. Rachel explained, "We operate in over 100 countries, with a diverse user base that includes OGs, newcomers, long-term holders, traditional users, and institutional users. We always maintain a global perspective while taking localized actions, adjusting our marketing plans to better attract users from different regions, such as the Asian market, Mandarin-speaking areas, Japanese users, and Vietnamese users. This is an important part of our work."

Additionally, Binance focuses on partnerships in the sports and entertainment sectors relevant to local users, hosting events related to local communities, and ensuring that different types of content are set for different individuals during large events like Binance Blockchain Week.

At Binance Blockchain Week, Binance invited around 350 KOLs. "We strive to ensure coverage of KOLs of all sizes, from top-tier KOLs to smaller but still significant ones, to connect with different audience groups. We are also continuously monitoring emerging KOLs and inviting them to join our community."

During Binance Blockchain Week, Rachel hosted the Binance Square Creator Awards ceremony. Currently, there are about 800,000 creators on the platform. "We awarded 12 of them. While everyone is a winner, these 12 stood out in the community and were recognized by votes. Additionally, we will hold smaller or more intimate events, having numerous meetings with the leadership team and KOLs to understand the feedback they receive and where we as an industry and company can improve."

In-Depth Analysis of Binance's Marketing KPIs: Brand Growth, User Growth, and Operational Efficiency

As the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, what exactly are the marketing team's KPIs? Is it the price of BNB or the number of users?

Rachel introduced that Binance's marketing team has three core KPI assessment indicators: first is brand growth—social exposure and community engagement, which is similar to media platforms, ensuring that there is enough voice share in the industry to maintain leadership.

The second focus is on user growth, trading volume, and cross-product usage, and how to help users engage more deeply with the platform. This data-driven management allows Rachel to be not just a marketer but also a driver of business growth. She stated that the decisions made by the team are all based on data, and while this is not entirely about ROI and KPIs, it is more important to improve.

Finally, Rachel's team focuses on operational efficiency. As the Binance marketing team has expanded from an initial 5 people to 235, ensuring operational effectiveness and efficiency, especially in a global context and operating in multiple languages, is crucial.

Rachel discussed Binance's recent collaborations with well-known figures and brands such as Cristiano Ronaldo, The Weeknd, and the Alpine F1 team, pointing out that these partnerships not only enhance brand exposure but also bring new user groups into the crypto industry. She mentioned that these collaborations help Binance reach more non-crypto native users.

"These marketing activities are very effective in introducing cryptocurrency to new audiences. Therefore, they can increase awareness and change public perceptions of the industry. Because, as you know, there are many misunderstandings and biases about cryptocurrency, and we have been working hard to counter these views. For Ronaldo, when he considers the next step in his career, Web3 technology and blockchain allow him to connect with his audience in a whole new way."

Rachel stated that as one of the largest trading platforms in the crypto industry, she and her team do not want to communicate only with the same group of users. "We know that the cryptocurrency community is a core group, but we need to attract more other users to join without alienating those core users. Therefore, leveraging strategies like sports and entertainment is part of our approach."

Facing Market and Market Share Volatility: Flexible Adjustments to Ensure Balanced Messaging

Globally, how does Binance's market share vary across different markets? Which market is growing the fastest? Rachel stated, "I think the most exciting market is Asia, which is very mature. The Asian market has always been an early adopter of technology. Asian consumers are young, digitally savvy, trendsetters, and have already embraced the crypto industry."

Similarly, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region also holds great potential, especially the UAE market. The penetration rate of cryptocurrency is close to 20% to 25%. "They see it as part of a diversified financial strategy. So I am very optimistic about both regions. But each region has its own characteristics; for example, LATAM is also showing appeal in different ways. Each region requires different education, interaction, and content strategies for promotion."

In the competitive environment of centralized exchanges (CEX), Binance is the market leader. Nevertheless, its market share advantage can also experience fluctuations. Rachel stated that volatility is an attribute of any financial business, not just limited to cryptocurrency. Therefore, we have developed a core strategy focused on education, ensuring that we always provide content. During volatile periods, we offer different types of content to help people cope with fluctuations, as this can trigger FOMO or fear. "We strive to help traders and users maintain a balanced and focused mindset. This is an important part of our content strategy."

Rachel believes that Binance will avoid a gold rush mentality, "We try to remain neutral in providing information and truly focus on education. Because ultimately, Binance is an exchange with many excellent tokens and listing projects, and we must ensure that the information we convey is balanced."

Addressing Global Regulatory Challenges: Adversity is the Norm, Binance is Still a "Newborn"

Last year, Binance reached a settlement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which attracted widespread attention in the market. Now, under the leadership of a new CEO, Binance has begun a new chapter. In the context of constantly changing global crypto regulatory policies, Rachel emphasized Binance's rigorous attitude towards compliance.

Rachel, along with Binance CEO Richard Teng, co-founder He Yi, and other executives, maintains a flat structure in their daily collaboration, "always staying active." Rachel stated that they stand on the shoulders of giants who created Binance. "We communicate multiple times a day, have meetings every night to discuss important issues from the day so that we can address them immediately. This is a very collaborative and always-online approach, unlike traditional companies that require cumbersome reporting processes. Our processes are very streamlined and efficient, creating a culture where problems are reported as they arise, and solutions are proposed in real-time to quickly seize opportunities. This agility will help us maintain our position as the industry leader."

In her view, facing headwinds is the norm in this industry. Binance has only been established for seven years, making it relatively a "newborn" in the overall industry landscape. "But we always view these bottlenecks as opportunities for improvement. We recognize that ensuring a safe and reliable user environment and compliance is crucial. Therefore, as a leadership team and across all business units at Binance, we actively embrace compliance and are committed to ensuring that our marketing methods do not confuse users and convey clear messages. Everything is for the users. Despite the difficult moments and fluctuations over the past 18 months, we have become stronger and better. This is also the charm of blockchain—bad actors are identified more quickly, and scams are exposed faster. Therefore, we have invested significant resources in infrastructure and supporting law enforcement."

As global regulations on cryptocurrencies continue to evolve, Rachel proposed specific methods from a marketing perspective. She stated that all messages sent to the market are reviewed by the legal department, which confirms that the information is accurate and will not cause issues or misunderstandings for users. "So we are very strict in this regard, but we adjust based on the market we are in. This is also why I work closely with our legal and compliance teams. I have worked in three regulated industries: banking clients, pharmaceuticals, and highly regulated alcohol marketing, so I understand the importance of establishing these norms and governance measures to ensure the safety of our team and users, but we will adjust according to market needs."

The Future of the Industry: Integration of Web 2.0 Brands and Anticipation of Widespread Crypto Payments

When discussing the future of the industry and trending topics, Rachel expressed a strong interest in the re-entry of Web 2.0 brands into the blockchain and crypto space.

She stated, "We saw this trend 24 to 36 months ago, especially during the last bull market. For example, LVMH has been at the forefront of using blockchain to verify product authenticity and implementing seamless payments through blockchain, which indeed provides opportunities to enhance the efficiency I mentioned earlier. Therefore, partnerships and alliances with Web 2.0 will become crucial."

Additionally, she is excited about the widespread adoption of crypto payments in daily life, hoping that crypto payments can become as convenient and widespread as Mastercard and Visa cards, thus achieving true mainstream acceptance of cryptocurrencies. "What I look forward to the most is for cryptocurrencies to become a part of everyday society, integrated into daily life. Just like we use Mastercard, Visa, or Apple Pay now, in the future, you could use these payment methods just like you use cryptocurrencies and Binance Pay. I believe that until we achieve this, we cannot truly demonstrate the full utility and benefits of cryptocurrencies to ordinary users. For example, for me, my father, and my grandmother, they need to be able to quickly access their financial assets. I think this is crucial."

Rachel expressed her hope to see some progress announcements by the end of 2025 to help achieve this goal.

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