While it may look as though non-fungible tokens, NFTs and NFT marketplaces are a fleeting craze, with over $10 billion transacted in the third quarter of 2021 alone, it has become evident that this burgeoning technology is here to stay.
As a result of this exponential expansion, both individual creators and businesses across a variety of industries, including retail, music, entertainment, consumer products, and fashion, have begun actively investigating methods to interface with the world of NFTs.
While some sellers have chosen to build their own NFT marketplaces, the majority have discovered that partnering with a third-party platform is more feasible due to lower upfront costs, access to a larger existing customer base, and valuable add-on services such as marketing, legal, and technical support.
December 3rd 2021 update: This week, cryptocurrency investors descended on Miami Beach, Florida for Art Basel and almost 200 other blockchain events.
Many people agreed that the momentum behind NFTs is unsustainable, despite the fact that they bring in an estimated $2 billion each month. However, investors remain optimistic about the underlying technology.
update 28th January, 2022 Biden’s government is bringing new crypto rules, but as of now buying NFTs seems safe, we will try and get latest updates for you once it’s available
What is a non-financial transaction marketplace?
In comparison to platforms such as Spotify and Netflix, which offer unlimited access to digital content in exchange for a subscription fee, these platforms are built on the premise that, like physical content, digital content can be scarce. These platforms use blockchain technology to verify the provenance of digital content, similar to how a traditional auction house verifies that a work of art is indeed the original and not a replica.
Additionally, blockchain-based transaction logs may be used to automate royalty attribution, sharing a percentage of money from second-hand sales with the original inventor each time the it is sold.
Of course, as with any investment in a new capability, while partnering with the right marketplace can open up entirely new markets and revenue streams, partnering with the wrong platform can have a significant negative impact — and when it comes to leveraging a rapidly evolving new technology like NFTs, the right choice is not always obvious. To avoid costly errors, it’s vital to understand the existing platform environment and select which platform will be the greatest fit for your solutions.
December 8 2021 Update: Crypto enthusiasts rejoice, while gamers revolt, as Ubisoft announces NFT plans. The first large game developer to implement in-game NFTs was met with criticism from a crypto-averse public on Tuesday.
What types of marketplaces exist?
While there are other aspects to consider, we’ve discovered that categorising these marketplaces on a scale from simplified to enhanced can be extremely useful. While streamlined marketplaces support a wider variety of NFTs and provide merchants with more limited, generic services, augmented marketplaces are more specialised and give a more comprehensive experience.
Streamlined marketplaces are primarily concerned with facilitating efficient transactions, frequently providing payment infrastructure that accepts credit cards as well as crypto payments in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and, on occasion, other specialty tokens. They offer few extra services, and as a result of their breadth, these platforms typically have a sizable and diverse user base.
On the other side, augmented marketplaces typically target tighter niches and include multiple value-added services such as minting, marketing etc.
These specialised services can provide significant value, but they are not without a cost. To cover the costs of developing, integrating, and supporting an assortment of specialised tools and experiences, augmented platforms typically charge a higher “take rate,” or transaction fee, as well as higher upfront setup costs.
While streamlined marketplaces often have reduced initial and continuing expenses, sellers may be required to invest their own resources or pay external professionals to develop, mint, and market their NFTs.
How are you to engage with the market?
So how can you know which platform type is the best fit for your business? Businesses with a huge pool of intellectual property and a specific target audience may find it advantageous to cooperate with an enhanced platform. A greater quantity of monetizable material often indicates that a larger upfront investment is more likely to pay off, and these specialist platforms can leverage their niche expertise to assure a successful launch and add value through secondary tools and services.
If you’re unsure of the types of customised services that would be a suitable fit for your business, it’s worth taking inspiration from other creators’ initiatives. For instance, artists may use these platforms to give unique video content, or sports teams could offer a free meet-and-greet or VIP upgrade in exchange for the purchases.
McLaren Racing introduced a programme in which fans may collect digital versions of the various components of a Formula 1 race car. The first fan to collect all 22 of the NFTs required to create a complete digital representation of the car will receive an all-expenses-paid ticket to a Formula 1 race.
Additionally, certain augmented platforms include complete data analytics on when other NFTs were minted, how many competitors are minting, average prices, and sales figures, among other things. Firms can then utilise this data to make informed decisions about the way their own digital services are minted and priced.
While these industry-specific platforms may have a more limited reach, they can be incredibly productive inside a certain market — Sorare, for example, generated roughly more than $100 million in the preceding year.
However, for products with a broader reach, businesses and creators may benefit from collaborating with a simplified marketplace. Coca-Cola, for example, teamed with OpenSea to auction off a “Loot Box” NFT that includes digital replicas of old Coca-Cola coolers, jackets, and logos, as well as a genuine, fully-stocked Coca-Cola refrigerator delivered to the winner’s home. It was a straightforward solution that did not necessitate much custom, industry-specific specialisation, and hence OpenSea’s streamlined platform made sense.
Marketplaces
The NFTs are a one-trick pony that have ascended the success ladder in recent years. Tokens are exploding in popularity, and according to Pymnts.com, the entire number of Tokens sold will nearly surpass $2.5 billion by the last month of 2021. Surprisingly, the total volume of NFTs sold in 2020 was $13.7 million. When these two figures are compared, it becomes clear that the growth of NFTs over a short period of time is enormous.
This resulted in the emergence of numerous NFT marketplaces in the crypto space like that of Solana NFT marketplace, Cardano NFT marketplace etc and NFT enthusiasts made the best use of the marketplaces. Both Cardano NFT marketplace and Solana NFT marketplace for example are currently the leading marketplaces hosting a wide range of the projects. What are the top NFT marketplaces? This blog is dedicated to discussing the top NFT marketplaces that have dominated the NFT mania.
Rarible NFT Marketplace
(Top-rated among the best NFT marketplace)
It is a decentralised, peer-to-peer Token marketplace that enables users to conduct the transactions seamlessly and without encountering any friction. The UI of Rarible has been deliberately crafted to encourage users to interact with the platform. The pleasant ambience provides a fast-paced, lively, and easy-going milieu for NFT enthusiasts.
Additionally, the marketplace displays top sellers of the day and other paid Token prospects at the top to assist buyers in acquiring their preferred NFTs. While mining NFTs on the Rarible platform is simple, they do charge a minting cost, and because the platform is an Ethereum-based NFT marketplace, the gas fee can be rather high on a busy day. On the other side, it is the industry’s best platform for earning hefty royalties, up to 30%.
NiftyGateway NFT Marketplace
(Popular among the best NFT marketplace)
NiftyGateway is a leading NFT art marketplace for NFTs, often referred to as Nifties. It was formed with the purpose of making them available to everyone. By collaborating with top artists and businesses, the platform offers limited edition Nifties in three-weekly deliveries.
You’ll find works from well-known artists and musicians here, like Steve Aoki, deadmau5, Grimes, Kenny Scharf, and Beeple. Anyone is eligible to apply to create on the platform.
Superrare NFT Marketplace
(Most-promising among the best NFT marketplace)
Among the numerous marketplaces, SuperRare is another promising NFT marketplace that provides traders with unique, rare, and limited-edition digital artworks. SuperRare’s network generates real artwork. Its distinguishing feature is its ability to portray itself as a social network in comparison to other marketplaces.
Industry insiders applaud the manner in which the audience interacts with art, culture, and collectibles in this digital age. In this case, rather of a community vote, the artworks of an artist would be certified directly by SuperRare’s management. This assures that the platform will only feature artwork of the highest quality.
Aavegotchi NFT Marketplace
(Most-promising among the top NFT marketplace)
Aavegotchis are rare cryptocurrency collectibles that reside on the Eth. Aavegotchis are playable non-fungible tokens (NFTs) based on the ERC721 standard. Each Aavegotchi is valued according to three characteristics: spirit force, wearables, and qualities.
They contribute numerous improvements to blockchain games, including dynamic rarity, voting etc. To begin, you must either summon an Aavegotchi via a Portal or purchase one in the Baazaar with your digital wallet.
Institut NFT Art marketplace
Institut is a top NFT art marketplace for the art industry, developed by art market professionals. The team behind the platform previously worked in the curatorial and development sectors and has created collections for some of the world’s most renowned collectors. The platform’s purpose is to increase public awareness of contemporary art and empower artists via the use of modern technologies.
Institut is a leader in this digital renaissance, following developing trends that are reshaping how you collect, perceive, and interact with art. The art market is also shifting as a result of the generational transition and rising digital economy, with Tokens and blockchain technology playing a critical role in the future art world.
Institut’s mission is to bridge the divide between established and emerging art communities by creating a space that prioritises quality over quantity and by delivering a controlled, innovation-only programme. By bringing together traditional and crypto collectors, Institut hopes to foster authentic creative quality.
Mintable NFT Marketplace
(Popular among the best NFT marketplace)
Mintable is one of the most top NFT marketplace for trading artworks, music, pictures, digital collectibles, and other in-game materials. It is well-known for its gasless minting option, which distinguishes it from the competition. There are three sorts of auctions on the market: Timed Auctions, Buy it Now Auctions, and Traditional Auctions. Due to the platform’s Ethereum-based nature, it accepts only ETH payments. It enables creators to earn a 5% royalty on all secondary sales.
What awaits you in the future?
At this point, you may be wondering which of these numerous platforms is most likely to emerge as the industry’s Amazon-like standard. Traditional marketplaces have a winner-takes-all dynamic, which means that once a platform gains scale, it becomes practically impossible for competitors to overcome it — and therefore, it’s understandable to be concerned about investing in a platform that will not become obsolete. In comparison to traditional markets, however, it is believed that no single NFT platform is likely to achieve such dominance.
This is for 2 reasons:
- To begin, NFT marketplace are by definition more open than traditional markets as it brings together artists, creators and crypto enthusiast together. Due to the fact that NFT marketplaces are built on entirely public blockchain infrastructure, the majority of transaction data is public, limiting the extent to which these platforms may create the types of data moats that result in monopolies.
- Additionally, the success of augmented platforms demonstrates the importance of distinctiveness for both customers and vendors. Multiple platforms can coexist within industries as long as they provide differentiated tools and experiences.
While winner-take-all dynamics may be more prevalent on streamlined platforms, where the market with the lowest transaction costs is likely to attract the majority of buyers and sellers, these platforms will never provide the level of customization and industry-specific support offered by a diverse array of augmented platforms. And investors appear to agree: While streamlined platforms have performed well, augmented platforms have also done well.
Updated: By the last quarter of 2021, the volume of NFT trading reached $10.7 billion.
Therefore, if you are a creator, you do not need to wait for the “Amazon of NFTs” to appear. Evaluate the markets that are now accessible in terms of how well they fit your specific offerings and business needs, and if one appears to be a good fit, take a toe dip.
Whether you’re a large brand like the NBA or an emerging independent artist, collaborating with the proper platform is a key first step toward increasing customer interaction and securing your position in the new digital economy.
At Solutiontales we make it easy to understand the throes of cryptocurrencies, but our words should not be taken as a financial advice. Remember, a wise investor can make money in a bull or bear market when given the right data.