Marketplace & Shopping Guide
What is the Marketplace?
SpiritDAO's marketplace is a community store where members can buy and sell products:
- Crypto Payments: Pay with $SYSTEM, or burn $SELF to pay
- Burn-to-Pay: Paying with $SELF burns it and mints you a soulbound receipt as proof (no $SELF flows to anyone)
- Token-Gated Products: Some items require specific tokens/NFTs to purchase
- Gasless Checkout: Use Smart Wallet for fee-free transactions
- Fund Routing: The $SYSTEM portion of a sale can route to a creator wallet or pod treasury; the $SELF portion is always burned
- Order Tracking: View your purchase history and order status
- Fulfillment System: Automated notifications for order processing
Marketplace Roles
Buyer
- Anyone with connected wallet
- Browse products
- Add to cart
- Purchase with crypto
- Track order history
Product Creator
- Pod members with marketplace access
- Create product listings
- Set prices in $SYSTEM and/or $SELF
- Configure token gating
- Route the $SYSTEM portion to a pod treasury or personal wallet ($SELF is always burned)
Order Manager
- Executive Pod members OR Market Management token holders
- View all orders
- Mark orders as shipped/fulfilled
- Manage product inventory
- Handle customer issues
Browsing Products
View Marketplace
- Go to Marketplace or Market page
- See all available products
- Connect wallet to view token-gated items
- Each product shows:
- Product image
- Title and description
- Price in $SELF and $SYSTEM
- Available sizes
- Token requirements (if any)
- Availability status
Filter Products
By Size:
- Click size filters (XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL, One Size)
- Only shows products with selected size available
- Multiple sizes can be selected
By Token Gating:
- "Show All" - All products
- "Token Gated" - Only restricted products
- "Open to All" - No token requirements
By Availability:
- In Stock
- Out of Stock
- Pre-Order
Sort Options:
- Newest First
- Price: Low to High
- Price: High to Low
- Alphabetical
Product Details
Click any product to see:
- Full description
- All available sizes
- Pricing in both tokens
- Token requirements
- Stock availability
- Shipping information
- Pod association (if any)
Understanding Token-Gated Products
What is Token Gating?
Some products require you to hold specific tokens or NFTs to purchase:
- Pod Membership: Must be member of specific pod
- NFT Holdings: Must hold specific NFT (e.g., Advocate)
- Token Balance: Must hold minimum amount of specific token
- Combination: May require multiple tokens
Check Eligibility
If Token-Gated:
- View product details
- See "Token Requirements" section
- Green checkmark = you qualify
- Red X = you don't meet requirements
- Lists which tokens you need
How to Qualify:
- Join required pod
- Mint required NFT
- Purchase required tokens
- Meet minimum balance
Accessing Token-Gated Products
- Products you don't qualify for appear grayed out
- Can view details but can't add to cart
- Shows what tokens you need
- Once qualified, can purchase immediately
Shopping Cart
Add Items to Cart
- Browse marketplace
- Click product card
- Select size (if applicable)
- Click "Add to Cart"
- Item added with notification
- Can continue shopping
View Cart
- Click cart icon (top right)
- Cart slides in from side
- See all items:
- Product name
- Selected size
- Quantity
- Price
- Subtotal shown at bottom
Modify Cart
Change Quantity:
- Click +/- buttons
- Updates price automatically
Remove Item:
- Click "Remove" or trash icon
- Confirms removal
Clear Cart:
- Click "Clear Cart" button
- Removes all items
Change Token:
- Select $SELF or $SYSTEM dropdown
- Prices update to selected token
- Can switch before checkout
Checkout Process
Step 1: Review Cart
- Open cart
- Verify all items correct
- Check sizes and quantities
- Review total price
Step 2: Select Payment Token
Choose Token:
- $SYSTEM: capital-backed utility token (≈ $1 each); routes to creator or pod treasury
- $SELF: soulbound participation token; paying with it burns it and mints you a receipt
Check Your Balance:
- Balance shown at top
- Red if insufficient
- Need to acquire more tokens first
Step 3: Complete Purchase
Transaction Flow:
If Sufficient Allowance:
- Click "Purchase" button
- Single transaction
- Approve in wallet
- Wait for confirmation
If Needs Approval:
- Click "Approve & Purchase" button
- Combined transaction
- Approves token spending + purchases
- Sign once in wallet
- Gasless if using Smart Wallet
Using Smart Wallet (Recommended):
- No gas fees
- Faster confirmation
- Cleaner experience
- Sponsored by DAO
Using Standard Wallet:
- May have small gas fee
- Confirm network is Base
- Ensure sufficient ETH for gas
Step 4: Confirmation
After successful purchase:
- Cart clears automatically
- Success notification shown
- Order record created
- Fulfillment team notified
- Transaction hash provided
Order Management
View Your Orders
Access My Orders:
- Go to marketplace
- Click "My Orders" button
- See all your purchases
Order Information:
- Order date and time
- Product name(s)
- Quantity and size
- Price paid
- Payment token used
- Transaction hash
- Current status
Order Statuses:
- Processing: Order received, awaiting fulfillment
- Preparing: Being packed
- Shipped: On the way
- Delivered: Completed
- Cancelled: Order cancelled
- Refunded: Payment returned
Track Specific Order
- Find order in list
- Click to expand details
- See full information:
- Buyer address (you)
- Product details
- Payment amount
- Transaction link (BaseScan)
- Fulfillment timeline
- Tracking info (if shipped)
Order Issues
Order Not Showing:
- Wait 60 seconds for sync
- Refresh page
- Check transaction confirmed
- Contact support if missing
Wrong Item Ordered:
- Cannot edit after purchase
- Contact order managers
- May be able to cancel if not shipped
- Explain issue clearly
Need to Cancel:
- Contact order managers immediately
- Cancellation only before shipping
- Refunds processed manually
- May take 2-5 days
Creating Products (For Sellers)
Required:
- Pod membership
- Marketplace access permission for that pod
- Pod must have marketplace module enabled
Step 1: Access Product Creation
- Go to Marketplace page
- Click "Add Product" button (only visible if you have permission)
- Product creation modal opens
Step 2: Select Pod Context
Choose Pod:
- Dropdown shows pods where you have marketplace access
- Product will be associated with this pod
- Funds route based on pod settings
Verify Permissions:
- ✅ Marketplace Module: ON
- ✅ Marketplace Access Permission: Granted
- If no pods shown, contact pod leaders
Step 3: Fill Product Details
Product Title:
- Clear, descriptive name
- 50 characters or less
- Examples:
- "SpiritDAO Logo T-Shirt"
- "Community Sticker Pack (5)"
- "DAO Member Hoodie"
Description:
- Detailed product information
- Materials and specifications
- What's included
- Care instructions
- Use Markdown for formatting
Product Image:
- Click "Upload Image"
- Select image file
- Recommended: 1200x1200px
- JPG or PNG
- Max 5MB
- Shows preview
Step 4: Set Pricing
$SELF Price:
- Price in $SELF tokens
- Supports up to 4 decimals
- Example: 0.5000
- Leave 0 if not accepting $SELF
$SYSTEM Price:
- Price in $SYSTEM tokens
- Supports up to 4 decimals
- Example: 2.0000
- Leave 0 if not accepting $SYSTEM
Important:
- At least one price must be greater than 0
- Buyers can choose which token to pay with
- Consider current token values
- Research comparable products
Step 5: Inventory Settings
Quantity:
- How many come per order
- Usually 1 for single items
- Example: 5 for sticker packs
Units Available:
- Total inventory count
- How many you can sell
- Decrements with each sale
- Can update later
Available Sizes:
- Select all applicable sizes
- XS, S, M, L, XL, XXL, One Size
- Buyers choose during checkout
- One Size = no size selection
Step 6: Configure Token Gating (Optional)
Purpose:
- Restrict who can purchase
- Reward specific members
- Create exclusive items
Options:
No Token Required:
- Open to everyone with wallet
- Requires Executive Pod membership to create
- Most accessible option
Specific Token:
- Require NFT ownership
- Example: "Advocate required"
- Buyer must hold at time of purchase
Pod Membership:
- Must be member of specific pod
- Example: "Contributors Pod only"
- Token represents pod membership
Pod Leadership:
- Leaders of specific pod only
- Example: "Design Pod Leaders"
- Most restrictive
Step 7: Additional Options
Free Shipping:
- Check box if shipping included
- Shown as badge on product
- Affects buyer decision
SKU (Optional):
- Internal tracking number
- Not shown to buyers
- Helps with inventory management
Step 8: Set Fund Destination
This controls where the $SYSTEM portion of a sale goes. Any $SELF a buyer pays is always burned; it can't be routed anywhere.
Creator Wallet:
- Funds go directly to you
- Immediate receipt
- Your responsibility to manage
Pod Treasury:
- Funds route to pod's multi-sig wallet
- Transparent accounting
- Requires pod treasury module
- Multiple signatures for withdrawal
Choose Wisely:
- Pod products → Pod treasury
- Personal items → Creator wallet
- Can't change after creation
Step 9: Create Product
- Review all information
- Click "Create Product"
- Sign transaction
- Wait for confirmation (30 seconds)
- Product appears in marketplace
- Available for purchase immediately
Managing Orders (For Administrators)
Required:
- Executive Pod membership OR
- Market Management token
Access Order Management
- Go to Marketplace page
- Click "Manage Orders" button
- See all orders across marketplace
Order Management Dashboard
View All Orders:
- Chronological list
- All buyers and products
- Current status
- Payment details
- Buyer contact info
Filter Orders:
- By status
- By date range
- By product
- By pod
- By buyer
Order Actions:
Mark as Preparing:
- Find pending order
- Click "Start Preparing"
- Status → Preparing
- Buyer receives notification
Mark as Shipped:
- Order must be "Preparing"
- Click "Mark as Shipped"
- Enter tracking number (optional)
- Add carrier info
- Status → Shipped
- Buyer receives notification with tracking
Mark as Delivered:
- After delivery confirmed
- Click "Mark as Delivered"
- Order complete
- Funds remain with destination
Cancel Order:
- Click "Cancel Order"
- Enter reason
- Process refund if needed
- Buyer receives notification
Add Notes:
- Internal notes for team
- Not visible to buyer
- Track special instructions
- Document issues
Fulfillment Best Practices
Process Quickly:
- Review orders daily
- Acknowledge within 24 hours
- Ship within 3-5 business days
- Update status promptly
Communicate:
- Send shipping notifications
- Provide tracking when available
- Respond to buyer questions
- Be transparent about delays
Quality Control:
- Verify items before shipping
- Check sizes match order
- Include packing slip
- Professional packaging
Handle Issues:
- Address problems immediately
- Offer solutions
- Process refunds fairly
- Learn from feedback
Payment Tokens
$SELF Token
Purpose:
- Soulbound participation token: verified human time, recorded where it was spent, that fades unless renewed and never becomes money
- Earned only, never bought, sold, or transferred (it can only be minted to you or burned by you)
- Fades roughly 6 months after earning, then converts to permanent Tenure standing
- Used to pay for community marketplace items by burning
How to Get:
- Attend accredited events
- Complete bounties
- Contribute verified work
- Earned automatically, roughly 1 $SELF per verified participation-hour
Using $SELF:
- Select in payment dropdown
- Must have enough unexpired $SELF
- Paying burns the $SELF and mints you a soulbound receipt as proof
- No $SELF flows to the seller, only your burn
$SYSTEM Token
Purpose:
- Capital-backed utility token, held 1:1 against funds in the SpiritDAO 501(c)(3) nonprofit (1 $SYSTEM ≈ $1 USD)
- Transferable ERC-20
- Used for events, bounties, marketplace, gifting, and pod treasuries
How to Get:
- Earned by exchanging dollars for $SYSTEM (backed 1:1). On exchange, 8% is a donation: 4% to operations and 4% to the Community Pool
- Special distributions
Using $SYSTEM:
- Select in payment dropdown
- Check balance before checkout
- Approve spending first time
- Routes to the creator wallet or pod treasury on purchase
Token Approvals
What is Approval?
- Give marketplace permission to spend your tokens
- One-time action per token
- Secure smart contract interaction
- Can revoke anytime
When Needed:
- First purchase with $SELF
- First purchase with $SYSTEM
- After revoking approval
Approval Process:
- Click "Approve & Purchase"
- Single combined transaction
- Approves + completes purchase
- Gasless with Smart Wallet
Smart Wallet Benefits
Gasless Transactions
Advantages:
- No ETH needed for gas
- Faster checkout
- Cleaner experience
- Reduced friction
How It Works:
- DAO sponsors gas fees
- Uses ERC-4337 (Account Abstraction)
- Bundler submits transactions
- You sign with wallet
Setting Up:
- Automatically offered during wallet creation
- Or add Smart Wallet in settings
- One-time setup
- Works across all features
Traditional Wallet
When to Use:
- Smart Wallet unavailable
- Prefer full control
- Advanced user
Requirements:
- Have ETH for gas (small amount)
- On Base network
- Confirm transactions manually
Marketplace Etiquette
As a Buyer
Do's:
- Read product descriptions fully
- Check token requirements before adding to cart
- Verify sizes carefully
- Complete purchases you start
- Contact seller with questions
Don'ts:
- Don't abuse cart (add items with no intent to buy)
- Don't purchase for resale without permission
- Don't share account access
- Don't dispute transactions without cause
As a Seller
Do's:
- Accurate product descriptions
- High-quality images
- Fair pricing
- Fulfill orders promptly
- Respond to inquiries
Don'ts:
- Don't create misleading listings
- Don't overpromise shipping times
- Don't ignore order issues
- Don't discriminate among buyers
Advanced Features
Bulk Ordering
- Purchase same item multiple times
- Adjust quantity in cart
- Volume discounts (if set by seller)
- Combined shipping
Pre-Orders
- Products not yet available
- Pay now, ship later
- Estimated ship date shown
- Can cancel before shipping
Limited Editions
- Fixed quantity available
- First-come-first-served
- Sold out badge when gone
- May restock (check with seller)
Product Bundles
- Multiple items packaged together
- Discounted bundle price
- Shown as single product
- All items ship together
Troubleshooting
"Can't Add to Cart"
Possible Causes:
- Don't meet token requirements
- Product out of stock
- Size not available
- Not logged in
Solutions:
- Check token gating requirements
- Acquire needed tokens
- Select different size
- Connect wallet
"Insufficient Balance"
Issue:
- Not enough tokens for purchase
- Shown in red during checkout
Solutions:
- Acquire more tokens
- Switch to different payment token
- Remove items from cart
- Check balance in wallet
"Transaction Failed"
Common Causes:
- Insufficient gas (standard wallet)
- Network congestion
- Rejected in wallet
- Contract error
Solutions:
- Retry transaction
- Switch to Smart Wallet
- Increase gas limit
- Wait and try again
"Order Not Showing"
Steps:
- Wait 60 seconds for sync
- Refresh page
- Check transaction on BaseScan
- Verify correct wallet connected
- Contact support if persists
"Wrong Size Ordered"
What to Do:
- Contact order managers immediately
- Provide order ID
- Explain error
- May exchange if not shipped
"Product Disappeared"
Reasons:
- Sold out
- Removed by creator
- Token gating changed
- Delisted for issues
Solutions:
- Check with product creator
- Wait for restock
- Look for similar items
Best Practices
For Buyers
Before Purchasing:
- Research product thoroughly
- Read reviews if available
- Verify sizing charts
- Check shipping times
- Ensure sufficient balance
During Checkout:
- Double-check cart contents
- Verify payment token
- Review total price
- Confirm wallet transaction
- Save transaction hash
After Purchase:
- Track order status
- Save confirmation
- Monitor delivery
- Inspect items upon receipt
- Provide feedback
For Sellers
Creating Products:
- Professional photos
- Accurate descriptions
- Competitive pricing
- Realistic availability
- Clear token gating
Managing Inventory:
- Update stock levels
- Remove unavailable items
- Restock popular products
- Track bestsellers
Fulfillment:
- Process orders daily
- Ship promptly
- Provide tracking
- Handle issues professionally
- Request feedback
Security Tips
Protect Your Wallet
- Never share private keys
- Verify transaction details
- Use Smart Wallet when possible
- Check contract addresses
- Be cautious of phishing
Verify Products
- Check seller reputation
- Read product details carefully
- Verify token gating is legitimate
- Confirm prices reasonable
- Report suspicious listings
Transaction Safety
- Always verify amounts
- Check recipient address
- Confirm network (Base)
- Save transaction hashes
- Monitor order status
Happy shopping! Support your community by buying and selling in the SpiritDAO marketplace. 🛒