You’ve heard of NFTs, seen NFTs, but are probably either wondering “this is crazy” or “how can I join the hype?” If you relate to the latter, then this post is for you.
Luckily, minting your first NFT isn’t as hard as it’s made to seem. The best part is that you don’t even need any fancy tools or advanced artistry skills. And with creatives benefiting the most from NFTs, it’s not a bad idea to give it a shot.
After following these 5 simple steps, you can become an owner of your very first digital piece of work in the matter of minutes.
A Beginners Guide to Minting NFTs
1. Develop Your Concept
If there’s a “difficult” part to minting an NFT, it would be concept creation. Because NFTs can be anything–we mean anything–it’s hard to know where exactly to start. This first step is a great time to explore your purpose or motivation behind creating the digital piece in the first place.
Maybe you have a project or business you’re trying to fund, or maybe you simply just want to get into the NFT game while it’s still young. Regardless of what your motive is, it’s important that whatever you create lines up with the purpose you’re pulling together.
Gary Vaynerchuk’s Vee Friends is a great example of an NFT project with a personalized fun twist. Similarly, crypto influencer, Tai Lopez, launched his own NFT project after his own content. These are just some of the ways to make digital art tie into your personal branding.
2. Choose a Platform
Like e-commerce, there are many platforms to mint and sell NFTs. One thing to keep in mind is that your options are in fact limited given how early in the adoption phase NFTs really are. With a small list to choose from, it’s just a matter of choosing which fees you and wallet options you prefer.
Setting up your profile is as easy as setting up a Facebook profile–although, we’d argue setting up Facebook is even harder. To better help you decide which platform is best for you, here are three beginner-friendly marketplaces where first-time creators can start.
OpenSea
If you’re reading this blog post, then more than likely you’ve already heard of OpenSea. The popular platform is known for its easy-to-use interface, home to all types of NFTs. While the Ethereum blockchain has the reputation for charging high service fees, or what’s regularly called “gas” fees, OpenSea now offers the option to skip it initially. This means that creators can upload and mint their artwork, and only pay gas fees upon their first sale.
Blockchain(s): Etherum and Polygon
Wallet Needed to Start: An ETH wallet
Creator Fees: 2.5% of your sale
Holaplex
It’s no secret that Ethereum is the most popular blockchain, however, Solana is known for its super fast, cost-effective performance. The platform has also been known to be the more sustainable of the two, as its speed and efficiency also cuts down on energy usage. So alternative to Ethereum, Holaplex has been gaining the reputation of being the new, less environmentally damaging marketplace.
Blockchain(s): Solana
Wallet Needed to Start: Phantom wallet and ArConnect Wallet
Creator Fees: Reportedly 0.000005 SOL ($0.00025), but can fluctuate
Rarible
While just another platform with all sorts of creations, Rarible considers itself a community-owned marketplace. Using their unique token (ERC-20 RARI) makes you an owner of the Rarible project. Besides the ability to democratize platform ownership, Rarible also offers more fun features to launch NFTs. Creators are able to show a sneak peek of their creations to Rarible visitors, limiting the full projects to purchasers only.
Blockchain(s): Etherum, Flow and Tezos
Wallet Needed to Start: A wallet compatible with your choice of blockchain
Creator Fees: Vary depending on the blockchain used, but there’s a free minting option
3. Build a Community
Why should you focus on building a digital marketing plan before you mint your first NFT? While most think waiting until after you create your project is a smart play, you need to start some buzz well before you launch your project.
Building a buzz around NFT projects doesn’t require any sophisticated marketing, if you’re not active on them already, you’ll want to turn to social media, particularly Twitter. Other platforms like Discord, a chat network of gamers and crypto enthusiasts, are great tools.
These channels are most saturated with other fluent NFT creators and buyers. By becoming active on them and raising awareness around your projects early on, you better the chances of giving your NFTs a head start. After all, community is key.
4. Create Your Project
Because everyone’s goals with NFTs are vastly different, creating them looks different too. If your goal is to launch as many projects as possible, you may want to explore resources like NFT Art Generator, a program designed to generate a mass group of NFTs.
Alternatively, if your goal is to launch one or just a few meaningful pieces of work, you’ll need to get to the drawing table and create them yourself. Outsourcing your projects is also another strategic way to get the job done fast.
Ways to Develop Projects:
- Use artwork or projects you’ve already created
- Partner with other creators and create with them
- Base your projects on your audience’s interests
Whichever option you choose, always keep your preferred platform in mind. This is especially important because you’ll need to consider the platform’s acceptable file types and file size. For example, OpenSea’s file limit is 100 MB, which can be restrictive for over-capacity ideas.
5. Mint, List & Share
Once you’ve created an account on the platform of your choice, the steps to getting your project uploaded is simple. You can start by visiting the creator tab, which is most likely sitting on the platform’s navigation bar or somewhere near your profile page.
When you’re ready to mint your first NFT, you can simply begin uploading your project files, inputting your collection’s description, determining your royalties (used in the future case if your art is sold in secondary marketplaces), and completing your listing.
Once your NFT is minted, you’ll likely see it on your profile immediately upon upload. While this means it’s in fact minted, you’ll need to list it for sale by giving it a price–which is entirely up to you. Don’t forget to leverage all of the pre-planning work you’ve done before for this step.
At this point, you’ll want to launch your projects on social media–tweet it, share it, discuss it. The more you put your projects in front of interested and affluent audiences, the more likely your first NFT project will reach the stars.
Fortunately, as NFTs have gained popularity, it has become much easier and affordable to create your own. One thing to keep in mind is that your projects will only do as good as you make some noise. Creating a buzz around your work by becoming your own promoter is key to getting eyes on NFTs. That task, however, we’ll leave in your hands.
