1IP-XX: 1inch DAO Forum Migration Proposal: Commonwealth to Discourse

Executive Summary

The 1inch DAO proposes migrating our community forum from Commonwealth to Discourse to improve user experience and community engagement. This migration will provide a more stable and feature-rich platform that better serves the needs of our growing community. We will be adopting Discourse's Business Plan at $500/month with an additional one-time migration cost of $10,000.

Background

The 1inch DAO currently uses Commonwealth as our primary forum platform for governance discussions and proposal development. While Commonwealth has served our initial needs, we have identified several limitations that Discourse addresses more effectively.

Platform Comparison: Commonwealth vs. Discourse

Commonwealth (Current Platform)

• Web3-native platform designed for DAOs

• Integrated token-gated features

• Limited customization options

• Smaller development team and community

• Occasional performance issues with larger discussions

• Basic moderation tools

Discourse (Proposed Platform)

• Mature, battle-tested forum software used by major organizations

• Extensive plugin ecosystem and customization options

• Superior performance and scalability

• Advanced moderation and community management tools

• Mobile-responsive design with dedicated apps

• Regular updates and active development

• Proven track record with other DeFi communities

Proposed Discourse Business Plan

Based on consultation with Discourse, we are selecting the Business Plan at $500/month, which includes:

• Up to 500K browser page views or API calls per month

• 100GB of Storage

• 300K Monthly Emails

• Unlimited Users

• 15 Staff Users

• Standard Migration support

• Business Authentication (OpenID Connect, Custom OAuth2, DiscourseConnect SSO, and more)

Why Business Plan Over Enterprise

While Discourse offered an Enterprise plan at $2,500/month, the Business plan meets our current needs:

• Our projected traffic falls within the 500K monthly page views

• 100GB storage is sufficient for our forum content

• 15 staff users accommodate our moderation team

• Business authentication options support our wallet integration needs

The main trade-off is that we'll need to work with Discourse partners for the migration rather than their internal team, but this is addressed through our separate migration budget.

Migration Budget

Recurring Costs

• Discourse Business Plan: $500/month ($6,000 annually)

One-Time Costs

• Migration Services: $10,000 (via Discourse partner)

• Budget Buffer: $3,000 (In the event of unforeseen costs)

• Total First Year Cost: $19,000

• Annual Cost Thereafter: $6,000

Note: These funds will be transferred to the migration partner through 1inch Labs. Through this proposal, the DAO asks 1inch Labs to act as a payment agent, and the DAO will compensate 1inch Labs for acting as a payment agent.

Migration Scope

Content Migration

• All existing forum posts and discussions

• User accounts and profiles

• Historical proposal discussions

• Media attachments and embedded content

• Category structure and organization

Feature Mapping

• Commonwealth's token-gated access → Discourse group permissions

• Proposal templates → Discourse topic templates

• Voting discussions → Structured polling features

• User reputation → Discourse trust levels

What Won't Migrate

• Direct on-chain voting integration (will link to Snapshot)

• Token balance displays (can be added via custom development later)

• Some Commonwealth-specific features that lack Discourse equivalents

Expected Benefits

Improved User Experience

• Better mobile experience with responsive design

• Faster page loads and search functionality

• More intuitive navigation and discovery

• Enhanced notification system

Community Management

• Advanced moderation tools

• Better spam prevention

• Detailed analytics and insights

• Flexible permission systems

Long-term Sustainability

• Established platform with guaranteed longevity

• Regular security updates

• Large ecosystem of developers and plugins

• Extensive documentation and community support

Success Metrics

We will measure migration success through:

• Successful transfer of 100% of historical content

• User retention rate of 80%+ post-migration

• Increased daily active users by 25% within 3 months

• Improved average session duration

• Reduced moderation workload through better tools

Community Communication Plan

Pre-Migration

• Announcement post explaining the migration rationale

• FAQ addressing common concerns

• Beta tester recruitment

During Migration

• Regular status updates

• Dedicated support channel

• Migration timeline visibility

Post-Migration

• Welcome guide for the new platform

• Video tutorials for key features

• Feedback collection and iteration

Conclusion

Migrating from Commonwealth to Discourse represents a strategic investment in our community infrastructure. The Business Plan at $500/month provides excellent value for a mature, stable platform that will serve the 1inch DAO's needs for years to come. The one-time migration cost of $10,000 ensures professional handling of our valuable community content.

This migration prioritizes user experience and community engagement while maintaining fiscal responsibility. We recommend approval of this proposal to enhance our governance forum and better serve our growing community.