In the world of NFTs, it’s not true that if you build it, they will come. NFT art, and the exorbitant prices certain pieces have fetched, have made headlines in recent years, leading some artists to believe they can make a killing selling their NFT artwork. The truth is, the majority of NFT artworks — roughly 78 percent — go for less than $700.
The value of NFT art depends less on the pieces themselves than on the artists’ ability to tap into trends, identify demand and, most importantly, promote and market their work. If you don’t want your work to get lost in the vast NFT marketplace sea, read on for a bevy of ways to promote what you create and catch the attention of buyers.
1. Know What NFT Art Buyers Are Looking For
First things first: If you know what NFT collectors want in their art — and from the NFT buying experience — you can find ways to stand out and show prospective purchasers that you’ve got the goods. Here’s what many buyers look for in cryptoart.
Pedigree
Many collectors only buy works they love, whether they’re by well-known artists or some college kid who lives in a basement studio apartment in the Midwest. Others, whether to better their odds of a profit or to avoid scams, will buy only from artists who have a decent following and a proven sales record.
Not pedigreed? Fake it till you make it. With the right promotional strategy, you can at least check the “not a scam” box.
Backstory and Roadmap
Every artist has a story, and all great art has one, too. Your NFT roadmap tells these tales and describes any perks that come with your NFT artwork.
This subtext helps increase your trust factor and enhances the intrinsic value of a work. For example, it was the story and roadmap behind Bored Apes Yacht Club that helped drive valuations of these popular NFTs to soaring heights.
Perks
People love getting more for what they pay. Add a perk or two in your NFT’s smart contract when you mint it to increase its perceived value.
The perk could be anything: a T-shirt with the artwork screen-printed on it, an invitation to a VIP reception, a physical version of the piece, a membership to your private Discord community. Let your creative imagination be your guide.
2. Build Community
Buyers like to see that an artist is part of a community. It gives you legitimacy and helps them trust you. Ideally, even before you create your piece, you’ll find some relevant communities on social channels like Discord, Twitter, Reddit and Telegram and start engaging meaningfully with other members.
A strong and active NFT community benefits everyone in it, including collectors, investors and known and unknown artists. You can connect with buyers, profit from the advice and experiences of fellow NFT artists and offer your own two cents. Although you probably won’t sell your NFTs directly in these forums, you’ll get your name and your art out there, and that can lead to relationships and opportunities you wouldn’t otherwise have access to.
3. Start Your Own NFT Art Collection
It’s fun and easy to buy NFTs, and collecting the work of other cryptoartists is a great way to participate in the community and cultivate a buyer’s mindset. It also adds to your trust factor: Once you’re a “player,” you’ve acquired pedigree.
Many NFT investors pore over selling charts and trends to decide what they should purchase (or sell) next. Learning these skills can help you tap into the right markets and hone your messaging to attract buyers for your own art.
Promote your NFT-art purchases on your website, social channels and where you bought the work. The artists will likely share your posts with their audience, getting your name out there and expanding your credibility.
4. Collaborate
Artistic collaborations help all the creators and organizations involved reach larger audiences. Pieces produced collaboratively tend to have stories that entice buyers.
One way to team up is to create a project with someone whose art complements yours. Release a shared drop to your respective fan bases on social media and in your communities. You could also agree with another creator to promote each other’s work to your audiences in a sort of micro-influencer trade.
NFT collectives are another great way to collaborate with different artists and expand your horizons, both as a creator and a promoter. Remember, web3 is expected to be driven by creators sharing information and entertainment. The more fluent you are in everything non-fungible, the more likely you are to find your niche in the new world.
5. Add Your Drop to NFTCalendar, and Notify the Press
NFTCalendar is the first calendar in the NFT universe, and it’s a valuable community resource. It’s easy to add your token drop to it, and it’s free. But it’s probably not enough on its own to get you the traffic you’re hoping for.
To promote your drop as widely as possible, search out newsletters like NFT Hunters, which issues a rundown of promising NFT-art projects once or twice a week to its subscribers. Google “Submit NFT news” to find publications and organizations that publish press releases related to NFT art. Write your own compelling press release, and send it out. If you have any additional media contacts, get your release to them, too.
6. Promote with Teasers on Social Media
Most people are on social media, and social platforms are particularly effective for promoting NFT art — especially Discord, Twitter, Instagram and Reddit. Meta, formerly Facebook, sees NFTs as integral to the success of the burgeoning metaverse.
Social media can help you reach new audiences, but go in with a light hand. If you make your posts engaging and specific, people are more apt to like and share them. But if you go on ad nauseam about your upcoming NFT release and not much else, they’ll tune you out — and possibly hold it against you.
Here are a few tips for promoting your NFT art on social media:
- Use hashtags like #nft, #nftart, #nftartist, #nfts, #nftcommunity, #cryptoart, #cryptoartist and #digitalart. Include a few in your profile description.
- Share more than just images of your art and info about the drop. Explain your creative process, tell the story behind the work, or talk about your influences. This will help you generate deeper interest in your release.
- Use good social media etiquette. Engage positively and meaningfully with other creators, and be yourself.
Since you’ll ideally have plenty of time to drum up interest around an NFT release, create a series of teasers for your social media channels and other communities. Divulge a variety of details leading up to the drop, and include different views of the piece or photos of you creating art.
Make clear in your teasers what it is you’re promoting and what’s in it for the buyer. If you’re going to promote on a lot of channels, create a calendar to help you schedule teasers strategically and with the appropriate frequency for each channel.
7. Get Everyone You Know Excited for the Release
Ask your friends, family, coworkers and online pals to share your work and teasers on their social media channels. Make it easy for them with posts you’ve designed to be highly shareable.
8. Concoct a Contest or Giveaway
Everyone loves to get something for free. If you want your audience to do something for you, such as like and share or sign up for your newsletter, offer them a chance to get something in return — ideally something they really want and will remember you by, like an original work on paper or a tote bag bearing your cryptoart.
9. Apply to Be a Guest on Reddit’s “Ask Me Anything”
Also known as AMA, “Ask Me Anything” is a series on Reddit where guests answer questions submitted by the Reddit community. It’s a great forum for promoting your NFT art, especially if you have a few friends in the audience who ask the right questions.
The benefit of doing an AMA interview is that you can get people to know, like and trust you — and remember you when your NFT drops. Even if no one asks you about it directly, find a way to weave your cryptoart into the answers you give.
10. Hire an Influencer
This isn’t the easiest strategy to tackle right off the bat, since you may not know the major influencers in your online communities. They are often celebrities, but not every NFT influencer is a celebrity or has a million followers. You’ll need to DYOR (do your own research) to discover who you should be targeting.
The cost of hiring influencers depends on a lot of factors, including their reach and the type of promotion you want. If you’ve got the funds and you think the results will be worth the investment, give it a shot. It’s important to track the performance of any influencers you hire. If their promotions of your NFT art are working, you can choose to continue. If not, put your marketing money elsewhere.
Aside from paid influencers, you may be able to get some likes or shares from people in your community who have reach but don’t wield their influence (only) for money.
11. Try Paid Advertising
If you have a large NFT project you want to promote to a bigger audience, or if you have extra funds to spend on advertising, try paid ads along with the strategies described above. Paid advertising gets you in front of audiences on your social media platforms of choice. But make sure your ads have a very clear call to action, such as signing up for an email list or entering a contest for a free item with your NFT art emblazoned on it.
Promoting NFT art isn’t much different from promoting a gallery show or an online art sale. Know your audience and engage with it authentically, and you may be richly rewarded on auction day.
