Jessica is the Founder & CEO of Valux Digital, a nationally recognized full-service marketing, and PR firm.
-getty-
Just when you’ve wrapped your head around one technology trend, another one pops up. I’ve been in the digital industry for over 20 years, and one of the hottest trends currently is non-fungible tokens or NFTs. You know you ought to take them seriously when a 22-year-old Indonesian man makes the equivalent of $1 million selling his selfies. Still, many people don’t truly understand what an NFT is.
What is an NFT, really?
An NFT is basically a unique digital asset. From art to a video clip to a music sample — anything that lives on a machine could be an NFT. The difference is all in the term “non-fungible.”
Fungible tokens or things are not unique. Also, fungible tokens are divisible. non-fungible tokens may be used to represent any asset. According to Investopedia, this can include online assets such as digital artwork and real assets such as real estate. Other examples of assets include “in-game items like avatars, digital and non-digital collectibles, domain names, and event tickets.”
Another important aspect to understand is that NFTs live on the blockchain. The blockchain serves as a record of who owns the digital token. Yes, there’s this debate about taking screenshots of NFTs, but according to the blockchain, the NFT belongs to its owner, no matter how many screenshots you take of it.
Why are people buying NFTs?
From the Bored Ape Yacht to Twitter’s former CEO’s first-ever tweet, NFTs have sold for thousands and up to millions of dollars. Some of the biggest names in music, sports, and social media have also jumped on the bandwagon. At its core, NFT is nothing but bits and bytes stored on a blockchain. But it’s the concept of value that’s driving this surge in its popularity. The value a prospective buyer associates with the NFT also ultimately determines the price.
This concept isn’t new. For example, a basketball jersey hanging in a duty-free shop at the airport may sell for $30, but one that LeBron James wore in high school sold for $512,000. That’s because whoever bought it thought that it was worth that amount.
That’s pretty much the case with NFTs. Those who are buying them see value in them. It also has to do with social status and “bragging rights.” Twitter is teasing a new feature that will allow users to use verified NFT owner badges with their profiles.
Lastly, the art can gain value and sell even more down the line. In the last quarter of 2021, NFT trading crossed $10 billion.
What’s this about NFTs and digital art?
Digital art has seen the most impact from the concept of NFTs. Once the NFT buzz hit social media, many graphic designers and artists started creating digital art to sell as NFTs.
The most notable of stories is that of the artist Mike Winkelmann, known as Beeple. In March 2021, one of his works sold for a record-breaking $69 million at a Christie’s auction.
NFTs are really no different from how real artwork is auctioned and sold around the world. While the artist may still technically have copyrights, whoever buys the art is the owner. They can sell it to someone else. But initially, the artist gets the money, and that’s what many artists are trying with their digital art.
How do you market an NFT?
Best social marketing method for NFT
https://bit.ly/3vkEuMK (copy and paste URL to the browser)
As more people gain awareness of NFTs and get in on the action, it will only get more difficult for artists to sell their digital art as NFTs for a good price. This is where marketing comes in because, believe it or not, like any other product, marketing can have a huge impact on NFT sales and help increase the value.
I’ve helped NFT clients with their marketing and PR efforts, and the first thing we do is mint the NFT and list it on a platform like OpenSea. But we don’t stop there. You need to employ the same tactics you would if you were selling a product on a website or posting a video on YouTube. From the way you describe the NFT to the leads you reach out to, a solid marketing plan for the NFT could add your name to the list of artists who have made millions.
There are essentially two paths, or strategies, if you will, that you can take when marketing NFTs. First is traditional digital marketing, which is more suitable for targeting a broad audience. That approach has its limitations because NFTs are still a new concept for many potential investors. The other approach is to leverage the blockchain and cryptocurrency communities. This may involve targeted marketing using crypto influencers, communities on Telegram and Discord, and social media, especially Twitter.
Optimization on the very platform where the NFTs are listed is another key aspect of marketing. Like any other marketing campaign, an NFT marketing campaign can also benefit immensely from the expertise of a professional. So it’s also a question about investing in marketing the NFT, not just creating it. As NFTs are still somewhat nascent, it’s best to go with marketers who, at the very least, understand and believe in NFTs.
In conclusion, NFTs are revolutionizing digital art in many ways. If the NFT trading volume is anything to go by, the term “starving artist” may become a thing of the past. Whether you are a digital artist just trying to make ends meet or a future-savvy investor, NFTs have potential.
Best social marketing for NFT...
You can now Market your NFT through Social media:- https://bit.ly/3vkEuMK (copy and paste URL to the browser)