Trust vs Paid Features

Understanding the difference between community-driven trust signals and paid promotional features.

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The Core PrincipleTrust cannot be bought. A project's trust score is 100% community-driven and based on real votes from verified users. No amount of money can change a trust score.---

Trust Features (Free & Community-Driven)

These features are earned through community engagement and cannot be purchased:

Trust Score

The percentage displayed on every project represents genuine community sentiment:

• Calculated from weighted votes of all users

• Higher reputation users have more influence

• Older accounts carry more weight

• Updated in real-time as votes come in

A 95% trust score means the community trusts the project. A 15% score means they don't. Simple.

Trust Badges

Badge	Meaning	How Earned
Trusted	Community approves	70%+ score, 10+ votes
Neutral	Mixed opinions	40-69% score
Suspicious	Proceed with caution	20-39% score
Suspected Scam	Community warns against	<20% score

Verified Ownership

When a project team proves they control the project:

• Adds credibility (they're not hiding)

• Enables them to respond to comments

• Does NOT affect trust score

• Free to verify

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Paid Features (Premium Listings)

These features provide visibility but do NOT influence trust:

Premium Badge

What It Is	What It's NOT
Shows project paid for visibility	An endorsement by DappScore
Indicates serious team investment	A guarantee of legitimacy
Unlocks promotional features	A factor in trust calculations

A project can be Premium (paid) but still have a low trust score. Always check the community trust score, not just whether something is "Premium."### Premium Benefits

Feature	Description
Featured Placement	Appears at top of listings
Premium Badge	Gold badge on listing
Priority Support	Faster response from team
Analytics Dashboard	See who's viewing your project

What Premium Does NOT Do

• Does NOT boost trust score

• Does NOT hide negative comments

• Does NOT prevent downvotes

• Does NOT guarantee approval

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Visual Indicators

How to Spot the Difference

Trust Indicators (Community-Driven):

• Green/Red trust percentage (e.g., "87% Trust")

• Trust level badge (Trusted, Suspicious, etc.)

• Vote count

• Comment sentiment

Paid Indicators (Premium):

• Gold "Premium" badge

• "Featured" label at top of lists

• Premium border/styling

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Why This Matters

For Users

You can trust that:

• Trust scores reflect real community opinion

• Premium projects aren't being "pushed" as trustworthy

• Your votes genuinely matter

• The platform isn't pay-to-win

For Projects

You should understand:

• Premium gets you visibility, not credibility

• Community trust must be earned

• A good product + transparency = good trust score

• Paying won't save a bad project

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FAQ

Can a project pay to remove bad reviews?

No. Comments and votes cannot be removed by paying. Only spam or Terms violations are removed by admins.

Does Premium affect search rankings?

Premium projects appear first in "Featured" sections, but standard search results are sorted by trust score and activity, not payment status.

What if a Premium project is a scam?

The community can still downvote it. Premium status does not protect against low trust scores. If a Premium project gets flagged as a scam, it may be removed and forfeit their payment.

Is there any way to buy trust?

No. Trust scores are calculated purely from community votes. The only way to improve trust is to build a legitimate project and earn community confidence.

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Summary

Aspect	Trust Features	Paid Features
How obtained	Community votes	Payment
Can be bought	No	Yes
Indicates legitimacy	Yes	No
Affects visibility	Through high scores	Through placement
What to trust	Always	Never alone