In the past year, NFTs have attracted a lot of attention and NFT development is getting more and more intricate. NFTs have merged the blockchain, gaming, art, and crypto industries into one massive ecosystem. Furthermore, the market has consistently demonstrated a high interest in NFTs due to their surge in popularity since early 2021.
NFT development is becoming a necessary function for blockchain development. Research indicated that the NFT market would grow to around $41 billion in 2021. These numbers show that the NFT market is almost as large as the conventional art market, which was valued at $50 million in 2020. The demand for NFT development is rising along with the growing popularity of NFTs.
This article will discuss NFT development and how to participate in it. We will also touch on the industry’s origins and the major factors influencing the growth of the NFT industry.
What is NFT development?
Many blockchain developers have recently acknowledged that NFT development can disrupt several industries. For example, blockchain technology serves as the foundation for NFT development services, and NFTs help in creating smart contracts. Additionally, developers are constantly developing new, creative applications for this technology.
As mentioned previously, the NFT market has become quite alluring to many people in the creative world, so software development for NFTs is expanding quickly. Through NFTs, both tangible and digital pieces of art can have their authenticity verified. While some claim that the NFT industry will never extend past this particular use case, it opens up a whole new universe of opportunities.
Those who identify valuable opportunities have generated considerable demand for NFT development services. Many businesses are looking for NFT development services to create the next great thing, even though this technology has not yet reached a more advanced stage of maturity. This is a risky endeavor, but the right NFT collection could shift the course of events.
NFT marketplace platforms are quickly gathering pace to mark the first stage in the forthcoming evolution of blockchain technology, even though the signals are still developing and the market has not yet grasped the true potential of NFTs. This is crucial for any company that wants to employ NFT tokens as the foundation of its operations.
Any NFT business needs a platform that can trade, store, and display NFTs that are fully functioning. NFT tokens may occasionally even be generated right there in the NFT marketplace. Even though there is still more to be done before this technology reaches a tipping point, this feature makes marketplaces incredibly enticing for several reasons.
Benefits of NFT development
These days, musicians, painters, and other creative minds want to get their hands on NFTs since they offer the best security for artistic creations. Fortunately, the advantages of NFTs go well beyond the inventive efforts mentioned above. These are the main advantages of NFTs.
1) Assured authenticity
Sometimes it can be challenging to establish the authenticity of a claim, particularly if the person making a claim lacks expertise in the relevant field. However, NFTs can easily demonstrate the originality of a piece of work. This is because tokens benefit from a decentralized ledger.
2) Simple transferability
In unique NFT marketplaces, NFTs can be traded. Creators can also use them as in-game accessories like weapons, clothing, and cars. For secure trading of these assets, non-fungible transferability is a necessary quality that NFTs satisfy.
3) A new technique for making money
Currently, creating content is a common strategy for making money. However, content producers still rely on conventional methods for creating, distributing, and protecting content. The development of NFT technology has given content producers access to a new system that makes it easy to verify ownership of any content created using the technology. The NFT system also offers a means of making money.
4) Eliminates third parties
Individuals may become irritated when they pay intermediaries to facilitate the buying or selling of anything. Fortunately, those who create NFTs don’t have to go down this path. Instead, they can interact with their customers directly and find out how valuable their digital collectibles are to their daily lives. This is made feasible by the strong collaboration between creators and NFT developers.
Steps to creating an NFT
There are multiple steps to NFT development, including tokens, marketplaces, and smart contracts. However, before you get to any other step of the development process, the NFT itself needs to be created. So let us look at the steps to creating an NFT.
Step 1: Generate the artwork
If someone is already a digital artist, then creating the artwork is the simple part. After all, they have probably already been doing this. The only difference is that any cash gained from digital art outside the NFT realm goes to the websites where the artist places it rather than to the artist.
Of course, digital artists can also commission works of art and produce an NFT. The only true prerequisite is that they possess the copyright for the digital artwork. After all, NFTs are all about ownership, and if the artist doesn’t already own the item, they lack the legal rights to sell it.
People should be aware that before creating their NFT, they might need to demonstrate ownership to a market. Since there has been lots of NFT fraud in recent years, it is generally preferable to develop unique artwork rather than create NFT versions of already-existing artwork.
Step 2: Distribution
The variety of choices available to businesses makes distribution fascinating. Developers should be aware that many blockchains, including Ethereum, Binance Smart Chain, Cosmos, and Polkadot, support the NFT token standard.
People should be aware that it is practically impossible to migrate their NFT from one blockchain to another after they mint it there. Instead, they must spend some time researching each of the many NFT blockchains to see whether they have a preference.
There are two main distribution options. Either listing on an existing marketplace or smart contract development and minting.
If creators intend to adopt the first option, they must remember that the blockchain they choose will affect which marketplaces they can use. For example, if they go with Ethereum, they can choose from a variety of blockchains, including OpenSea, Rarible, and Mintable. The only thing needed to create an NFT on Ethereum is an Ethereum wallet that supports NFTs. Numerous additional services, such as Trust Wallet and MetaMask, as well as Coinbase, will also work well. The marketplace that the creator chooses must be followed, along with any guidelines that may be given.
The second method, developing and minting smart contracts, is a little more technical, so creators may wish to locate a partner in development who can assist them. The web3 CLI is perhaps the most straightforward and fastest tool for building and delivering contracts from the several tools available to developers.
Step 3: Promotion
Once distribution has been taken care of, it’s time to consider marketing and promotion. In general, all of the well-known marketing best practices continue to be relevant, but there are a few additional factors that creators should consider.
One strategy is that creators can create their websites and sell their NFTs there. The benefit of this strategy is that because they are the site owner and have complete control over it, they can personalize it as they want. Moreover, they can implement any tracking and other functionality they may require. Additionally, creators have absolute discretion over which NFTs are sold. However, creators must be aware that many consumers prefer to purchase straight from NFT markets, partly because some trust is already established and a broader selection of NFTs is available. To increase visitors, they will also need to do all of their own marketing and spend a lot of money.
The second strategy is to integrate into other marketplaces. Since marketplaces can handle the distribution for them, this is a good place to connect with creators. Creators may wish to use these marketplaces exclusively as their hub for promotion if they are already utilizing them for distribution.
The drawback is that instead of using a website they control, all of their marketing efforts will be directed to a third-party platform. Additionally, they won’t have the same access to analytical information or other helpful features as they would if they developed their own website. However, there are also benefits. The easiest option may be the most obvious, but creators must remember that they are sacrificing convenience for functionality. Therefore, the ideal choice for each creator must be chosen.
Tips for creating a smart contract
Before the next step, we will dig deeper into smart contracts and how to create one.
Many people are unclear about what smart contracts are and how they operate. A smart contract is computer code that self-executes when the parties involved fulfill specific requirements. A digital contract has rules that govern what happens in particular instances, just like a traditional contract.
Understanding the advantages of smart contracts is crucial to understanding how to develop them. These advantages include high speed, trust and transparency, security, and efficiency. Firstly, smart contracts are automated and virtual. The agreement is immediately implemented once the relevant parties have satisfied the predetermined requirements. As a result, they eliminate written material that is prone to mistakes. Secondly, smart contracts operate in a transparent, decentralized context by sharing encrypted and unchangeable data. Thirdly, settlements on the blockchain are encrypted, making them difficult to hack. Lastly, digital contracts do away with the need for intermediaries who add on costs and cause delays.
Factors to consider when creating smart contracts
Since smart contracts handle several transactions, creating smart contracts can be challenging. These contracts have the potential to significantly reduce the responsibilities that banks, attorneys, and notaries currently play.
1) Consider the relevance
Assessing whether a smart contract is a good fit for an artist’s business model is critical before learning how to build one. Keep in mind that digital currencies are usually used for smart-contract-based payments since digital contracts are created on a decentralized ledger. Therefore, creators must determine whether digital currencies will be helpful to them. They should speak with a blockchain professional to further understand whether smart contracts are appropriate for their needs. This kind of professional can teach them how to build a smart contract and go through how much a smart contract would cost based on their needs.
2) Evaluate the limitations
Understanding the limitations of smart contracts is crucial while researching into how they operate. For example, these virtual contracts are subject to the following restrictions:
- Based in the online world: Smart contracts may only be helpful if a company does business online. These agreements are carried out on the blockchain ecosystem without interference from the law or other offline authorities. Therefore, these agreements are not applicable to any issues that call for participation outside the network.
- Run-on facts: When learning how to create a smart contract, it’s essential to remember that the contract is based on facts. The contracts are written to avoid making subjective decisions.
- Work on an “if-else” basis: It is crucial to understand this while developing smart contracts. This allows developers to steer clear of any complexities.
3) Strategize
The next step is for creators to plan to put a digital contract into action if they know what it can be used for. It is crucial to know precisely what they want the smart contract to do for them at this point. They may, for instance, design a crypto smart contract for payment or one that confirms their transactions.
4) Look for an experienced developer
The process of developing smart contracts is not simple. Therefore, one needs an expert who is proficient in writing smart contracts. In addition, this professional should be skilled in auditing and testing smart contracts. Therefore, it would be beneficial if designers took the time to choose a team or specialist who can handle their development requirements.
5) Check the regulations
Digital contracts are completed online. At the moment, they are not uniformly regulated. Therefore, if any issues emerge from the agreements’ execution, government bodies will not intervene. Nevertheless, using virtual contracts in the blockchain context is excellent news. Open-source blockchain technology employs encryption techniques to guard against the modification of contracts. For this reason, creators should look for a developer who understands how to design a smart contract to avoid mistakes. Furthermore, they must ensure that their cryptocurrency-based smart contracts are secure and fault-free.
6) Avoid reinventing the wheel
When learning how to design a smart contract, it is not advisable to spend a lot of effort rewriting an existing contract. Developers must refrain from reinventing the wheel if they already have a smart contract. In this case, improving the current version is the best course of action. Likewise, instead of creating something entirely new, it is better to search the available libraries for existing smart contracts and replicate their features.
7) Make it available
Creators must share their smart contracts with others. This can assist them in finding bugs that may have escaped their notice. Remember that other people’s opinions can help to improve a smart contract. Asking for feedback can also help developers to avoid paying a smart contract fee for a final product that contains bugs and faults.
Steps to developing an NFT marketplace
In the past two years, young people have been increasingly interested in the crypto and NFT spaces. This is because they believe it is the future and that blockchain technology will alter the virtual world during this time. So much so that young people are still investing thousands of dollars in the cryptocurrency industry. As a result, the NFT marketplace now has a market value of $1 billion.
The development of an NFT marketplace might start fresh, with a ready-made solution or to meet the client’s demands. NFT marketplaces are being developed to higher standards to serve user needs better and draw more users in. The following two suggestions are ways to expand the NFT market:
The first approach is conventional, in which the NFT market is created from scratch. This will take a long time and a lot of work. In time, the cost will increase. The second approach is to invest in NFT marketplace development, which is both time and money efficient. Adjustments can be made to this white-labeled product to satisfy a creator’s needs.
Step 1: Perform in-depth market research
The first step in developing an NFT marketplace is to conduct in-depth research on a target demographic, key competitors, and current crypto industry trends. However, if they have a general concept, they should discuss it with marketplace developers to determine a plan and discuss when the market will start.
Step 2: Create a UI/UX For A Project
Once creators clearly understand the product strategy, they can go on to prototyping the user interface (UI). At this point, they ought to already be aware of whether their users favor desktop experiences or mobile apps.
In the prototyping phase, user journeys are described, mock screens are made for their NFT marketplace, and the complete user experience is fleshed out and tested (UX). After testing, they might want to modify the design to take into account user comments.
With this method, writers can avoid wasting their time and resources on creating content that won’t appeal to readers. In addition, the agile development method includes prototyping because it enables quick modifications and the creation of a product that customers want and can understand.
Step 3: Develop smart contracts
We have discussed this in major detail above, but the usage of smart contracts is one of the most crucial components of creating an NFT marketplace. Smart contracts can be created on a variety of blockchain networks. The platform’s smart contracts are designed in accordance with the requirements of the corporate entity.
Smart contracts manage all parts of the activities in a marketplace, from listing to transactions. Smart contracts control every aspect of a decentralized network. As a result, developing a smart contract will be the main priority.
Two common NFT smart contracts are ERC-721, which produces a single asset, and ERC-1155, which enables creators to have many products. These are built on the Ethereum blockchain.
Step 4: Storage & integration
The NFTs placed on the market after minting must be saved. The best strategy is to keep them in Interplanetary File System (IPFS) while user and NFT data is stored in a database. Users then contribute digital items to promote their work. After building the user interface and setting up the NFT storage, the developed marketplace will be uploaded to the server, and the front and back end will be integrated. The primary responsibility of this stage is to provide the NFT marketplace with reliable and quick processing capability.
Step 5: Testing & deployment
The process of creating an NFT marketplace ends with testing and deployment. After the marketplace has been developed and designed, it is crucial to execute several tests to check for errors or functional defects. Several testing procedures will be used to ensure that the market operates appropriately. The marketplace will open to all users globally once all the testing is over. This phase guarantees the reliability and usability of the software.
Conclusion
In order to design the best solution for their business, creators can benefit from understanding the major components of NFT development. First, they need to understand the various NFT development steps. We’ve covered the most important ones, like blockchain technology, marketplace development, and the development of smart contracts. The NFT sector is undoubtedly expanding and has a promising future. Considering how popular NFTs have been, this is an excellent opportunity to develop assets for the NFT marketplace. In addition, entrepreneurs now have a better chance of creating their own NFT marketplace thanks to the availability of online marketplaces like OpenSea, Rarible, Super Rare, and others in the NFT industry.