AI Agent Project Development: 7 Common Pitfalls and Strategies to Address Them

Driven by the global wave of AI, crypto AI Agent projects have emerged like mushrooms after rain. However, many teams tend to fall into some common pitfalls during the development process. This article summarizes seven common traps and provides corresponding methods to avoid them, hoping to offer useful references for entrepreneurs.

1. Blindly Imitating the Pioneers

Many teams believe that by tokenizing the agent, pairing it with their own token, and launching on a new public chain, they can replicate the success of the pioneers. However, this approach often fails for two main reasons:

• The market already has a large number of proxy tokens, and simply launching new proxy tokens lacks competitiveness.
• The liquidity pools for proxy tokens and project tokens have a complex structure, which can lead to high volatility and impermanent loss, especially for early-stage projects with lower liquidity, making liquidity providers hesitant.

Suggestion:

• Find a unique market position and address practical problems in specific areas.
• Choose more robust liquidity pools for structures, such as pairing altcoins with mainstream coins or stablecoins, to enhance market risk resistance.

2. The founding team lacks sales capability

Many teams are formed by technical developers, but if the founder lacks passion for their product as the number one salesperson, it is difficult to inspire others' interest.

Suggestion:

• Led by the founder, the entire team actively participates in social media operations, continuously discussing product features and advantages.
• Attract users' curiosity through organic marketing methods, encouraging them to try and provide feedback, rather than relying on burning money or token incentives to acquire users.

3. Developing products to cater to trends

Blindly following trends to develop something just because a certain concept is currently popular, without understanding the real problems that need to be solved or the target audience, is one of the quickest paths to project failure.

Before development, one should consider the following questions:

• Who is the real target user?
• Is starting the engine about following trends or addressing actual needs?
• Are you aggressively promoting a product that has no market demand?
• Is the token itself the actual product?

4. Early Token Issuance Before Product Launch

Issuing tokens before the official launch of a product can easily shift the focus to the tokens, thereby neglecting product development. Even worse, the team may begin to concentrate on token trading and listing instead of focusing on product development.

Suggestion:

• Find the product-market fit before issuing tokens.
• Tokens are only considered for issuance when the product has significant network effects and actual value accumulation.

5. Ignoring the "feasibility" of the Minimum Viable Product (MVP)

The MVP should be a basic yet fully functional product that allows early users to have a practical experience, thereby collecting feedback and iterating. However, many teams overlook the crucial element of "viability," resulting in products that lack practical value.

Suggestion:

• Engage in in-depth communication with potential users to understand their real needs.
• Develop a product that users will genuinely use, rather than just being satisfied with one's own assumptions.
• Maintain an open attitude and be ready to adjust direction at any time before proving the value of the product.

6. Lack of clear KPIs, objectives, and vision

Some teams lack a clear development direction, easily swayed by market trends, passively responding rather than actively executing plans.

Suggestion:

• Set clear and measurable Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) from the very beginning of the project.
• Clearly define the criteria for project success, including the problems to be solved and key milestones.
• Stay flexible; if certain strategies are not effective, adjust the direction in a timely manner.

7. Balancing User and Investor Expectations

Web3 projects typically face two types of products: tokens and actual applications. This means they attract two types of supporters: investors who speculate on tokens and real users who care about product functionality. Many projects fall into the trap of overly relying on KOL promotion, attracting a large number of speculators who do not care about the product itself.

Suggestion:

• Develop targeted marketing strategies.
• Do not simply promote the tokens, but clearly explain the tokenomics and value accumulation mechanisms, and explain how the tokens bring real benefits to users.
• Invest resources in building relationships with genuine partners rather than wasting them on short-term KOL promotions.

Summary

Avoid these common pitfalls, focus on meeting the real needs of users, and build products that have actual value. Successful Web3 projects stem from innovation, execution, and resilience, rather than simply following trends or issuing tokens. To thrive in this industry in the long term, one must have a long-term vision, continuously improve products, and develop sustainable growth strategies.