📌 What Are the Steps That Make an NFT Project Successful? ✅
Hello, my dear readers😊
I’m Elif Hilal! 🔮 If there are those of you who do not know me or have heard my name for the first time, I will leave a link here to introduce myself. I am a lawyer working on Blockchain and technology. I have been with Blockchain for six years, I have had a long adventure with Cryptography and mathematics before. But this story is the subject of another article 🙂 I produce content on blockchain, smart contracts, and the legal innovations brought by these technologies. The articles I write are the result of my opinions and research, independent of the companies I work for, and I write to be helpful.
Every day we hear about another NFT project. The continuation of this trend brings some questions to mind. For example, how can I tell if an NFT project is successful and reliable? How can I be sure? If you were an investor, entrepreneur, or follower of an NFT project, how would you know if that project was successful?
In this article, I will answer these questions exactly.
Before answering these questions, we need to know what NFTs are. I had a post explaining what NFTs are before; let me add it here :
If we know what NFTs are and if we are developing an NFT project in this ecosystem, this article has been prepared just for you. I have worked with hundreds of NFT projects before and been involved in the next phase of hundreds of them; I would like to share my experiences and ideas on this subject. There may be a light for you. 💥
✅ Non-Fungible Tokens or NFTs are digital tokens on a blockchain, each representing something unique, such as a digital artwork, a special in-game item, rare trading card collections, or any other distinct digital/physical asset.
NFTs first became popular in 2017 with the release of CryptoKitties, a decentralized application (dApp) on Ethereum where users feed and collect digital cats. However, in 2021 NFTs saw a significant resurgence in interest from collectors and artists alike.
Additionally, NFT marketplaces are platforms that allow users to seamlessly list, buy and sell NFTs, supporting the growth of the NFT ecosystem.
Now I am explaining the success strategies of an NFT project in a few sub-titles as far as I have observed. These steps are the factors that increase the sustainability and success of the projects.
In addition, here is my guide, in which I have discussed in detail the subject of being fungible and non-fungible:
🔎Fungibility & Non-Fungibility🛠️
Simply put, fungibility means that assets are mutable, exchangeable, and have lots of themselves. How does? My Dollar is the same as your Dollar. And you can change $100 into two separate $50. Or you can exchange 5 $20 for $100. Can’t you?
Immutability, that is, non-fungibility, when strictly defined means only one original asset. We cannot exchange any painting for a genuine Van Gogh painting; it is not an equal deal because they must be of the same breed to be equivalent to each other.
What makes a work of art special is that it is unique. This is actually called non-fungible.🌍
Now we understand what it means to be fungible and non-fungible. So, what are the success criteria of NFT projects, which is our main subject, and what are the steps to be taken? Let’s talk here.
📌 Audience and Community
We need to determine here who the audience we are addressing is. You have an NFT project and want to draw attention to the climate crisis; you are developing new projects to take measures and draw attention. Think about it, who would be your target audience?
🟨 Is it more for students, start-ups, businessmen, people in the agriculture sector, and music sector people? Who is the target audience? I can tell you that this stage is one of the most critical stages. Even the most critical.
🟨 A community you address can take the project from point A to point Z., But it can also do the opposite because societies have cultures and traditions/customs.
✅ You should define the characteristics of the audience you are addressing well. You should understand the expectations from you and move forward by getting feedback.
Let’s take the example I gave above. How accurate is it to first share an NFT project you have done to draw attention to your climate crisis with university students or lawyers?
The right audience should be addressed at the right time.
✅ This is the most critical step. Who did you design the product for? Who should you consider collaborating with? Who sees your project as a SOLUTION?
If we pass this stage, there is social media use.
📌 Social Media Management and Usage
⚪ You have to work on how to bring these people together. For example, I can give Whatsapp groups, Telegram groups, or Discord groups. Maybe you want to grow your community through other alternatives and use your social media actively. For example, an NFT project focused on software and technology may need to use YouTube. But NFT collection projects are more likely to use discord.
- Choosing a good social media application ensures that the target audience is always active. Active communities keep the project dynamic.🎌
One of the most important issues here is to be able to respond instantly to questions about your project. In fact, sometimes, questions about the project can change your next stage. For example, a theory that you may not have thought of may occur to someone in your community.
If you’re working with people who are interested in your community, for example, answering questions, directing people to answers, or talking to other community members, it shows they want to be a part of something too. Doing so shows the community that they value their time enough to spend it.
- Rewarding people should be part of project management.
🔴 People who come together voluntarily for a purpose are one of your most sacred treasures. Because they believe in you and trust your project, they are with you. For this reason, sometimes rewarding them and getting together at certain intervals will warm the communication between you.
🔴 In addition, I think you also have a social media account for the content written about you, which is translated into different languages. Most NFT projects start by aiming at globalization but do not stray far from the locality.
🔴 One of the most important factors that will ensure this is the recognition and support of the project by other countries. You should have social media channels in different languages so that people in other countries can hear about you. I can say that the best example of this is the channels in Discord.
📌 Whitepaper & Roadmap
Roadmaps are becoming more critical to successful projects. If your goal is to make a sustainable NFT project and make a name for itself for years, you will need a roadmap that includes your long-term plans. This roadmap should give people important dates and important details. You should add developments that will excite people to your roadmap and whitepaper.
Determining a good roadmap and explaining the future plans of the project in detail will also cause you to win investors and to be trusted by your customers.
- Whitepapers should explain in detail the technical and social aspects of your project in every sense. 🔷
For example, mention the technical risks and the precautions you take in your whitepaper or roadmap. People should know the risks of this project and the precautions taken. You can write down which programs and applications you use technically. Being open-source is also a great way to gain trust.
📌 NFT Projects in Legal Aspect
Regulations are coming :) This is totally my field. As a lawyer, one of the biggest problems I face in the Blockchain ecosystem is that people don’t know that NFT is a token (or what the token is). Understanding exactly what you’re working on makes it easier to take your next step.
Some people want to protect their intellectual property and want to secure their NFTs. In addition, some keep personal data but need to know how it should be kept within the scope of KVKK and GDPR. Of course, there are those who do not know how to agree when working with exchanges or other projects. No problem!
First of all, you should have a legal advisor who knows blockchain to understand the legal issues brought by blockchain technology. :D like me!!
For example, MiCA Regulation will be implemented, and there will be serious changes in the web3 field in Europe. That’s why it’s important to understand where and by whom your project’s data is held. Especially if you work on personal data, you have to be careful :)
You can contact me with your questions on this subject.
By the way, there was a blog about NFTs that I came across in the past, and I read the articles from time to time. If you want to check it out, I leave the link here:
I would also like to share with you my article series on legal cases and regulations regarding blockchain:
📌 Blockchain Preference
The main point we need to focus on here is the features of blockchains. There are many blockchain networks, and they have dozens of different features.
You can first decide which blockchains are the best platform for your NFTs.
For example:
- ✅ How simple is creating an NFT project on a given blockchain? Or is it simple? Is it expensive? How long does it take?
- ✅ What are the gas fees for users who want to mint NFT? How do these fees differ?
- ✅ In which marketplaces will NFTs be listed? What is the difference between these marketplaces? Which marketplace is best suited for your NFTs?
Answering these questions will guide you on which blockchain you prefer.
More established and long-standing chains often have a more robust and time-tested infrastructure and developer tools, allowing projects to launch faster. However, they are also more competitive as more projects are built on them.
Using a blockchain with expensive gas fees creates a higher barrier to entry. However, higher fees are often the result of a larger, more active user base and network. It is important to consider this information.
♻ Users interact with NFTs through NFT marketplaces, but most marketplaces only support a select few blockchains. And people often overlook that. It is useful to consider these situations as well.
♻ Here are a few more details. For example, the programming language that should be used will change according to the blockchain preference. However, these will vary according to the criteria and preferences that you will determine above. When you choose exactly the most suitable blockchain and marketplace, the rest will come.
📌 Artistic Look at NFTs
It is obvious that eye-catching projects and unique NFTs are highly preferred. I’m not an artist, and I don’t know much about art, but if you want your brand to be heard globally, it would be beneficial for you to work with the best artists in this field. In particular, it is now possible to combine artificial intelligence and NFTs using augmented reality. There are dozens of world-renowned experts in this field.
Experts on this subject will guide you better.
But remember, utility is very important. What are you solving in the industry? What benefit do you provide?
You need to explain well why you want to do this art and be well understood. Because if you are aware, an NFT project is minted every week. Probably most of these NFT projects will be projects in the future that we don’t even remember the name of.
🟦 how do you appeal to people’s perceptions and feelings of art?
🟦 how would you express your project's usefulness and sacred purpose?
🟦 how do you develop your project in light of new technologies?
Answering these questions can be a good start.
Here is a summary version of the questions you should ask yourself:
📌 Summary: Don’t Start an NFT Project Without Asking These Questions! 🔴
🔶 Who is your target audience? If you have correctly identified the target audience, have you thought of ways to reach those people?
🔶 Which social media applications have you considered to reach the target audience and grow your community? Will these apps help improve your project?
🔶 Do you have the technical details of the project in your whitepaper? Where should people get these details? How will people be notified of changes in your whitepaper? What are your potential risks? What measures have you taken?
🔶 What are the possible problems and solutions of the project? Is your business model and strategies clear?
🔶 What are the possible problems and solutions of the project? Is your business model and strategies clear?
🔶 Is it a competitive enough project? How is it different from other NFT projects? What is utility? What is the unique feature that will set you apart from others? If you don’t have a unique difference, the probability of the project being successful decreases.
🔶 Have legal measures been taken? For example, have you taken precautions about where the data is stored, which contracts are prepared, and whether it is in compliance with MiCA regulations? Troubled by the SEC? In the end, there will be income from here. Have you received legal advice?
🔶 Does your project excite people? Do people feel happy and privileged to be a part of your project? There is one piece of advice I always give myself in this regard. “You should not give advice that you will not apply to others, Elif” or similar “You should not sell a product that you will not use”. This also applies to NFT projects. If you don’t want to buy NFT or be a part of this project, you should not do that project. You have to believe in yourself first, if you believe, everyone else will follow you.
🔶 With whom are you building this project? Are they goal and solution-oriented people? Productive people? Do they believe in the project and in you?
🔶 Which problem does your project find a solution to or how does it contribute to the sector?
🔶 Have you taken the necessary steps to build a brand? Do you work with artists?🛠
Actually, there are many more questions like these. But I put it this way, in the succinct.
📈 Remember: A seriously detailed roadmap and whitepaper are essential for anyone interested in your project. This is a golden rule. Moreover, regulations care and regulate the Whitepaper.📈
🟩 What do I mean by a detailed roadmap? For example, you can list what should be finished in Q1 of 2023. You can determine what will be prepared until August 17. (I thought I’d squeeze in my birthday :D)
🟩 Specifying a clear date will also motivate you. These dates and timeframes are moves that build more confidence while reducing questions and uncertainty.
🟩 The whitepaper should be updated as needed. But the most important thing is to ask questions of the target audience and consider their feedback.
🟩 The disappointment of the target audience of your project may cause the project to fail. For this reason, it is beneficial for you to be in constant communication with your target audience and to get their opinions.
🟩 The roadmap details will help you compare it to other projects on things like size, print date, and print price. Comparisons will show you how competitive a project is.
🪃 Last Words 🪃
NFT projects with a specific target audience will initially find it easier to engage and find users. This leads to finding investors and customers. However, let’s not forget that NFTs are a very trendy technology, so it can be difficult to expand the user base and grow the project initially.
🧿 But good things take time :)
▶ An impressive brand is the key to a long-term NFT project. A strong brand and purpose can attract users and activate project evangelism. It is useful to go out with brands.❗
▶ Focusing on the purpose or function an NFT provides to users is critical to attracting attention, but focusing too much on it can keep you from building a strong brand.❗
I gave the link above, but I want to share the English version as well.
🔆 By the way, I would like to add a blog post that I love very much here. It is one of the bedside resources about NFTs that I found mind-blowing and really informative. I highly recommend you read it🔆
The success of an NFT project increases the use of Blockchain technology and makes this technology more known. I also want to serve this great purpose and do my best for the development of Blockchain technology. Since you are reading this article, this is your aim, then I say we are together on this road and I will end my article, see you in other articles 🥰
💻 You can sign up for my Meetup page to be informed about the events I regularly organize in the Blockchain ecosystem every month (english and turkish). We host technical workshops, legal workshops, and conceptual discussions.
In addition, you can enter my Telegram group to access the documents of these trainings, and you can follow them on Twitter!👻 You can also write to me for consultancy on the legal aspects of Blockchain technology. I hope that my articles, content and shares are useful to you. You know how to reach me, see you soon🎡
