Your news feed has been filled with stories regarding high-value sales of NFTs (non-fungible tokens). These blockchain assets are changing the game for millions around the world. From gaming to art, the NFT revolution is underway.
Joining the NFT movement is a smart decision, especially since the market is still in its infancy. In the past, creating blockchain assets was a difficult and expensive task. At the very minimum, it required a developer with experience and resources. Luckily, all of that has changed over the last year with the introduction of NFT creation portals and protocols.
Creating your NFT is a lot more than just pressing a few buttons and paying some gas fees. There are a variety of steps you should take before the process to ensure you get the most out of your NFTs. Here is how to make an NFT the right way.
Select the Type of NFT You Want to Make
The first thing you need to do is consider is the type of NFT you want to create. There are a lot of different styles of NFTs in the market today. Depending on the type you wish to issue, you may find a certain network more conducive to your strategy. Here are some of the different types of NFTs in circulation today
In-Game NFTs
In-game NFTs are collectibles or other items that hold value to a gaming ecosystem. Projects like Cryptokitties changed everything by enabling users to breed their cats and create new NFTs. These new NFTs contained a mix of a 256-bit DNA code from their parents. This code holds the token’s rare features and characteristics.
Cryptokitties was the first NFT game to gain traction in the market. However, it was by no means the only type of NFT in use. The play-to-earn sector is on the rise. There are in-game NFTs of all varieties. These tokens range from weapons and vehicles, all the way to custom-built avatars.
There are two main types of in-game NFTs in the market, game relevant and user-relevant. Game-relevant NFTs hold value because of their scarcity and in-game characteristics. These tokens will increase in value alongside the growth of the gaming ecosystem. They offer different features versus user-relevant options.
User-Relevant NFTs
User-relevant NFTs are different in their functionality. Like game-relevant NFTs they can be tracked and the platforms they operate in can determine their overall value. However, the main difference between the two types of NFTs comes down to the effect the player can have on the token. User-relevant tokens gain value based on the actions of the user.
When you think of user-relevant NFTs, you should think of items like avatars or upgradeable vehicles and weapons. All of these items can gain functionalities and style based on our performance. User-relevant NFTs are changing the game atmosphere as avatars and other user-built items can take thousands of man-hours to develop. Now gamers can unlock these efforts and profit.
Metaverse NFTs
The metaverse is a 3D virtual environment that operates 24 hours a day. There are multiple Metaverses in use today with some already worth billions. The metaverse provides a host of opportunities for NFT collectors and developers alike. This digital landscape is the perfect place to showcase your NFT collection.
Already, there are huge virtual mansions that showcase rare NFTs as part of their décor. Notably, the rapper Snoop Dogg has an NFT gracing his digital home in the metaverse Decentraland. Like in real life, if you want to be Snoop’s neighbor, you are going to have to fork out some serious pay. Currently, there are Decentraland NFT properties that cost more than real-world properties.
User Created NFTs
Another popular option that continues to gain steam in the market is user-created NFTs in games. These protocols enable gamers to bring virtual items into existence. These tokens can be art, collectibles, or in-game items to help you complete a quest or mission. There are a lot of different ways user-created NFTs can be integrated into gaming titles.
In many instances, the NFT generation engine will leverage advanced AI (artificial intelligence) to ensure the NFT is both original and created quickly. AI has been a game changer in the digital art movement. Combining these aspects with NFTs can be a smart way to ensure each creation is uniquely trackable and valuable.
ART NFTs
ART NFTs consist of images, music, and videos. These are the most expensive NFTs in the market in terms of the highest sold value. There are art NFTs that have sold for over +$50 million. Art NFTs help to improve the experience for both collectors and creators. These tokens provide blockchain-verifiable scarcity and authentication.
The art sector is one of the biggest areas in which NFTs have upended the market. There are a variety of NFT marketplaces and art galleries available to users. There’s also a growing number of artists and celebrities using these tokens to provide memorabilia to their fans.
Imagine receiving a custom art NFT with a special unreleased song from your favorite band. Now, imagine if that same NFT showed that the lead singer of our favorite band was the previous owner. All of these factors improve the collector’s experience and provide more value to the entire market.
Business NFTs
NFTs are making a splash in the business sector as well. There are already firms using NFT technology to provide added security and identification to the sector. Businesses are using NFTs in a variety of different ways. They can leverage the tech to make their products more trackable.
ID NFTs
NFTs are ideal for identification purposes due to their unique nature. The use of NFTs as a form of digital ID is on the rise. The current login process for the majority of centralized protocols is highly flawed. These networks require you to input too much personal information to gain access to their platforms. Sadly, it’s these extensive requirements that put you at risk.
It’s not wise to provide a third party with all of your personal information such as name, email, and address. The reason this scenario is an issue is that these firms are not particularly great at keeping your data safe. There are endless tales of firms becoming victims of data breaches and users losing all of their information to hackers.
Prevent Data Loss
Once your data makes it to the dark web and other underground marketplaces, there is no way to get it back. You can become a victim of identity theft or worse. To avoid this scenario, businesses have begun exploring the concept of blockchain identifications. Blockchain-powered ID systems leverage special ID tokens to prevent unauthorized use.
One of the best things about these systems is that they make it easy to see if a data breach has occurred. Unlike traditional systems where it can be weeks before a company is aware anyone has breached their systems. Blockchain systems provide real-time updates on the situation and validity of your data.
Digital Credentials
Another major advantage of digital IDs is that they can attach a massive amount of information to your ID. Your token ID could have a plethora of vital information including health records, past tasks, and much more. Best of all, these systems are being set up to provide the token holder with complete control over who has access to this information. As such, these protocols can often leverage technologies like zero-knowledge proofs to remain valid.
Real Estate NFTs
Notably, NFTs enable firms to sell off large ticket items like real estate more efficiently. NFTs lower the entry bar for these actions which, in turn, opens up more opportunities to users. For example, imagine you were selling your million-dollar home.
In a traditional setting, you would need to find a buyer that qualifies for a loan or has all the funding gathered already. The process can be time-consuming. The introduction of FNFTs (fractional non-fungible tokens) sparks new opportunities.
Through the use of FNFTs, the same property could be broken down into smaller ownership tokens. These tokens could be sold at a much lower price like $100. Additionally, since the property is tokenized, it can be sold to international clientele in a streamlined manner compared to traditional real estate sales. The same goes for all big-ticket items. Tokenization is a better option that helps businesses access more funding securely.
Ticket/Lotto NFTs
NFTs can also be used as tickets for events or competitions. The unique nature of each token makes them easy to validate. This approach eliminates fraud and helps to keep events and competitions more transparent. The cool thing about NFT tickets is that they gain value from both scarcity and usability. Notably, when you combine NFT ticketing services with the metaverse, you get interesting results.
One of the most recent uses of NFT ticketing systems is in the hosting of metaverse concerns. These massive digital gatherings continue to make headlines for their sheer size and growing list of talent. Recently, the metaverse Decentraland hosted a festival that saw millions of participants in October 2021.
4-day Festival
The four-day event required users to hold a special NFT to enter the digital premises. Once you gained entry, you were privy to a host of cool options. Notably, +80 different performers graced the digital stage. Additionally, there were five stages to keep you entertained.
The event created an enormous amount of revenue for artists, vendors, gaming booths, and merchandise creators. Among these vendors were NFT artists who offered real-time creations to users. Also, every concert participant was issued a rare NFT collectible as part of their entry. Notably, the event was headlined by Dj Deadmauu5, 3LAU, Nina Nesbitt, Paris Hilton, and many more.
Collectibles
NFT collectibles are one of the fastest sectors of growth for these powerful digital assets. NFTs are perfect for use as collectibles. Collectible NFTs can be issued in a couple of different ways. The most popular is a direct collectible, meaning it’s a work of art, photo, or gif.
The sports memorabilia market has been upended by the introduction of NFTs as well. The NFT collector’s marketplace NBA Top Shot is one of the most successful NFT marketplaces to date. The network enables users to purchase short NFT video clips of NBA moments. Already the network has sold video clips of Lebron James dunking for +$130,000.
NBA Top Shot
NFT top spot was an early entry into the sports memorabilia collectors market. The platform was unique in that it leveraged a custom-built blockchain called FLO to avoid any Ethereum-related congestion issues. The reasons why developers went this route was due to their experience with the first NFT collector title to gain popularity, Cryptokitties.
They learned early on that network congestion will kill gameplay. As such, they created FLO to be scalable and secure. Today, NBA Top Shot remains the most popular sports-related NFT marketplace. However, other sports leagues have taken notice and made platforms to support NFT collectors. Soon, you could see NFT collectors become a crucial part of the sports experience.
Select the Network You Want to Use
Now that you understand the type of NFT you want to use, you should consider what blockchain to use. There are a variety of NFT-capable blockchains to meet your needs. For the vast majority of users’ projects, protocols like Ethereum will function great.
Ethereum is the largest and most popular NFT launch network. However, it currently is the most expensive due to high fees brought on by congestion issues. The Binance Smart Chain and Polkadot offer low-cost alternatives to Ethereum. Both of these networks are much cheaper than Ethereum to issue assets on and conduct transactions.
However, both networks have far less liquidity than Ethereum. For those seeking to create regulatory-friendly NFTs, Avalanche offers solutions as well.
Start Building Today
The NFT market is going into overdrive in 2022. Those who get in on this ground floor will, at the very least, gain a valuable understanding of a technology that is destined to change so many aspects of life. The good news is the market is filled with easy one-step NFT-building protocols. This way, you don’t need to mess with code and can get your crypto ambitions started without delay.