With overnight sensations like Beeple and A-list celebrities investing millions in digital art, NFTs have been taking the world by a storm. As an artist, NFTs are a cool and unique way to market and truly own your art. This guide will teach you how to easily and efficiently mint your very own non-fungible token.
Step 1 – Figuring Out NFTs
Let’s be real here, most people don’t know what NFTs actually are and how they work. If you are one of them, don’t worry! Although it can seem like a complicated concept at first, it’s nothing you can’t understand if you’re eager to learn. As an artist or creator, your priority is to focus on the quality of your product rather than how to monetize it. Well, at least that’s the case in the beginners phase.
Check Our In-Depth Guide About How NFTs Work
In summary though, NFTs or non-fungible tokens are digital tokens stored on the blockchain. Unlike fungible fiat currencies, cryptocurrencies, or other digital assets, each NFT is unique. It is important to note that the digital artwork itself is never actually stored on the blockchain. The token only acts as proof of ownership of whatever it links to.
Step 2 – Type of An NFT Art
An NFT can technically be any digital file so your options are wide. However, you should only turn your file into an NFT when completely sure of it. This is because NFTs are mostly created on the Ethereum blockchain, which is known to have high fluctuating fees due to a congested network. These fees are called “gas” and pretty much anything you do on the blockchain, from mining to sending, will cost you gas.
It should also be mentioned that a transaction isn’t guaranteed to go through once the gas is paid. Transactions work fine most of the time but sometimes, very rarely though, they fail but still eat up your cash in gas fees.
Things can get mixed up in the creative process where you go back and forth with final touches. But you’re looking to make money instead of going broke making NFTs, so always make sure the actual minting is made on the very final version of your work
Furthermore, the Ethereum blockchain is very energy-intensive. So, if you’re not concerned about saving your own money, do it at least for the environment.
Step 3 – Setting Up A Wallet
In order to sell, buy, or possess NFT collectibles you’ll need to open a crypto wallet. Since most of the interaction is happening on the Ethereum network, Metamask is hands-down the best and safest option. It’s free, secure, supported by pretty much all NFT marketplaces, and extremely easy to use since it’s a browser extension.
There are alternatives such as Coinbase’s own wallet or Wallet Connect but for this guide, we’ll be sticking to Metamask. The setup process is mostly similar anyway so you can use this process as a reference.
- Download the Metamask extension for your browser (Chrome, Firefox, etc.)
- Create a password for your account
- Store your secret unique 12-word backup phrase
Your digital wallet is essentially ready but – and this is extremely important – note the mnemonic backup phrase. Unlike regular apps, crypto wallets are completely non-custodial. All power and responsibility are in the hands of its user. If you were to lose your backup phrase neither Metamask nor Coinbase could help you retrieve it. Write your phrase on a piece of paper and store it somewhere safe or use a password manager like 1Password.
Step 4 – Choosing An NFT Marketplace
Although you technically do not need a third-party site to create an NFT, platforms such as OpenSea or Rarible make it extremely easy. Instead of interacting with the blockchain technology yourself and making your own smart contract these sites mint your NFT in a click of a button.
They are extremely beginner-friendly and ultimately lower in cost for most NFT creators. Their main benefit is their lazy minting feature, which lets you mint NFTs at your buyer’s expense. It helps to prevent you from wasting money on an NFT that you may not be able to sell.
However, they do come with certain downsides. OpenSea’s entry fee is quite high. You’ll be asked to pay two initial one-time payments. The first one is for initializing your account and costs anywhere from $70-$300. The second is much cheaper, between $10 and $30, and allows OpenSea to access your items. On the other hand, Rarible doesn’t require an entry fee but instead will charge you a flat fee of around $10-$20 for every listing. In addition, both sites take a 2.5% commission.
These sites are of course only a recommendation but the point being is that you choose an NFT platform you’re comfortable with. A site that has the most benefit to you as a creator and aligns with whatever your goals are.
Step 5 – Connecting Wallet To The Marketplace
Now that your wallet is ready and your marketplace is chosen, you need to connect your wallet. The process is very straightforward as NFT marketplaces make this very easy. Simply find the “Connect a wallet” button and pair it with your wallet extension. You’ll be prompted with a few notifications that need to be confirmed.
OpenSea and Rarible are well-known and secure marketplaces. However, you need to be on high alert whenever connecting your crypto wallet to any website. Do not accept connection requests from sketchy sites that you don’t know. This is a common crypto scam, and you are at risk of losing your entire funds and NFTs.
Step 6 – Creating Your NFT Art
After you’ve connected your wallet, you can start with your NFT artwork creation, which is just as easy. Click the ‘Create’ button on the top right side and upload your file. OpenSea and Raribly support gif, jpg, png, svg, mp4, mp3, WebM, wav, glb, ogg, gltf, formats with a maximum size of 100MB. The process will instantly turn your digital art into a marketable NFT.
Step 7 – Listing Your NFT Artwork
After uploading your file you’ll be brought to the final stage page where you can customize your listing. Select the NFT you’ve uploaded and give it a name or a title. You can also add a few optional features such as a description, external links, and NFT properties such as unlockable content. Once that’s done you’ll be offered multiple monetization choices.
- Fixed-Price – A predetermined price that is sold to the first person who meets the figure
- Timed Auction – A limited-time auction that sells an NFT to the last bidding person
- Unlimited Auction – Auction with unlimited time where you have the control to sell whenever you wish
All auctions also need a minimum price where the auction begins. With all listings, you’ll need to set royalties. As the creator, NFT royalties will reward you each time your artwork is resold on the secondary market. A standard practice in the crypto art space is around 5-10%. All that’s left to do now is to give your artwork some time on the market.
However, simply listing your NFT might not get you so far. There are thousands upon thousands of competitors on the NFT market, especially now that digital art is taking over the mainstream. If you want your creation to really take off, you’ll need to take that extra step to truly stand out.
