NFTs and a Look Toward the Digital Horizon
Those lucky enough to spend their days thinking up new and creative ways to mobilize digital communities are all asking the same question: Are we reaching a breaking point? Many of the tried and true methods for connecting audiences to issues they care about are becoming more difficult to navigate with a clear conscience and more costly to pursue with a reasonable budget. Marketeers, social media managers, and digital gurus alike are in search of what is next for their industry. What if that ’next big thing’ is already here?
NFT, or Non-Fungible Token, has emerged as a common buzzword today. Emerging onto the scene around 2014, these crypto-currency-powered tokens are produced or “minted” through the use of groups of computers that create a digital ledger unique to the token and impossible to change or reproduce. NFTs are made to represent a unique good or asset. They exist in digital landscapes in the form of an image, a video clip, a gif, meme, a tweet, or any other digital format one could imagine. In recent years the popularity of NFTs has exploded. When people took to social media to showcase their newest digital property, companies and investors took notice and, in time, bought in. In 2021, the NFT market surpassed an estimated value of $40 billion.
Like the tokens themselves, the popularity of NFT digital marketplaces has increased commensurate with the growing need to buy, sell, trade, or store collections. As these marketplaces have matured over the last several months, these remarkable digital assets appear to be here to stay. They’ve embedded themselves deep within the digital landscape and are now prominently featured components of big-time advertising campaigns, organizing efforts, and rewards schemes. Brands, politicians, and platforms are evolving to use NFTs to heighten awareness, increase brand affinity, and drive engagement. Developing digital strategies that leverage this momentum may well be something worth exploring in your next campaign. The use cases listed below may serve as a jumping-off point for your next product launch, fundraising effort, organizing tactic, or awareness build.
Developing digital strategies that leverage this momentum may well be the key to unlocking the success of your next campaign.
Proof of Attendance Protocol
POAP (poh-ap) stands for Proof of Attendance Protocol. POAPs act as virtual badges to certify attendance at events held both online or in person. They can be used to keep a legitimate record of life experiences such as concerts, seminars, rallies, and more. POAP collectors may accumulate a rolodex of sorts to showcase their experiences and adventures through interest areas such as politics, sports, food, and art. As an event organizer, what better way to attract a group of highly-motivated, interest-based audiences than through the promise of a POAP. Once lured in, audience member’s tokens link directly to an organizer’s database, creating yet another touchpoint for audience interaction, increasing brand loyalty and the potential for continued outreach.
Redeemable NFT
Are you set to launch your next podcast series? Are you petitioning for signatures? Perhaps you’re hosting a screening of your newest documentary film? Well, consider this: implement an NFT-centered approach by offering audiences unique and fully customizable tokens after they perform your valued conversion action. Pairing the promise of an alluring NFT with the action of a conversion event could capture the attention of collectors in search of these valuable, limited commodities. The benefits don’t end there for the campaign strategist. Once an NFT is minted and handed down, the NFT’s creator receives a portion of the revenue each time that NFT is sold downstream.
Virtual Real Estate
Purchasing virtual land, or pixels, follows the same guiding principle as buying real estate in reality: location, location, location. In a virtual world known as The Sandbox, space is going quickly and the bidding has surpassed even the earliest adapter’s wildest imagination. In short, if your brand has money to spend on increasing awareness then consider an investment in the metaverse. Investing in this form of NFT could mean being among the first to plant your flag in a new world.
Digital campaigning through the use of NFTs is akin to marketing any other product, person, or idea. Embracing this new engagement method means imagining a new way forward for digital engagement. A strategy that disrupts and rejects the notion that a small number of platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Google, et al.) could yield the power to set the rules for their users and the price they will pay, financially and otherwise. NFTs are emblematic of a seismic shift towards a decentralization of data and content. This new digital frontier is upon us and we’d be wise to understand it.
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