How to Make NFT Art and Sell it (Beginner’s Guide + Top Tips)

Creating NFT art, or minting NFT artwork, can be a way to fundraise, support worthy causes, gain exposure, and so much more. These digital assets are more than just pictures; they can be moments in time, forever in your keep, or even pieces of digital land. So, how do you make NFT art, sell it safely, and do it at a reasonable price?

What is an NFT Art?

The first step is to figure out what NFT artwork is. NFTs, short for non-fungible tokens, are forms of art in a blockchain ecosystem. Every single one is unique and has proof of ownership, which greatly increases security. NFT digital art is supported by blockchain tech and is bought and sold in the cryptocurrency native to each blockchain, such as Eth on Ethereum. 

NFT art can be worth a lot or a little; it’s about the cause behind it, the story, the person, the brand, and the hype. Some people choose to purchase digital art as a form of investment for the chance that its value will greatly increase sometime in the future. Others appreciate the art, are genuine collectors, and keep the items in their collection for years to come.

• Why Create an NFT?

On the other side of the coin, creators or artists that create NFT art may want to release their own NFTs to potential buyers to fund a project, put their art out in the world to get more exposure, and NFT art can also help creators make a profit too – that is, if it sells. Let’s take a very successful and famous non-fungible token, the Bored Ape Yacht Club collection. A Bored Ape is over $250,000 for the cheapest one, so you can imagine how much the creators have made selling NFTs. 

• How to Create NFT Art Without Coding

It seems like blockchain tech is complex and only those who are coders and developers know what’s going on behind the scenes and know how to create/ mint NFTs on the chains. However, even the most elementary NFT supporters can create NFT art without coding. The key is to do it on an NFT platform that supports minting or the creation of NFT artwork. Pick marketplaces that are trustworthy such as OpenSea, Rarible, NFT Showroom and other ones that have minting services.

• Is it Only for Artists?

Minting and creating NFTs is not only for artists; they are for everyone. Anyone who wants to create their own collection either to build a brand, be a part of the community, or help a worthy cause can create, list, and sell an NFT or an entire collection. 

Not everyone is an artist, but even if you aren’t the creative type, NFTs aren’t out of your reach. Simply hire an artist whose work you admire to help make and sell your NFTs. Don’t just hire anyone to create the digital artwork; you have to do your research, reach an agreement, and make sure the artist relinquishes all rights to the digital art and gives you high-res files. 

We’ve got you covered with a step-by-step guide below if you’re looking to make your first NFT but don’t know where to start. 

How to Create NFT Art

• Step #1: Choose a Blockchain Technology

The first step for NFT artists and NFT creators is to choose a blockchain ecosystem. Many are out there, such as the most popular and largest Ethereum blockchain. Opting for the accessible Ethereum blockchain has its benefits, such as most NFTs are on this blockchain, so you get more exposure, and most platforms (NFT marketplaces) also operate on Ethereum.

The downside of picking Ethereum specifically is the high gas fees. The gas fees are the transactions fees one must pay for doing something on the blockchain, including minting. Ethereum fees are notoriously high, which is why many creators have turned to other options such as the Solana blockchain, Binance Smart Chain, and more. 

The blockchain you choose will impact the NFT marketplace available to you. Not all marketplaces will support the blockchain system you select, which brings us to the next step. 

• Step #2: Choose a Marketplace

Make sure you pick a blockchain ecosystem that is supported by an NFT marketplace. The popular ones include OpenSea, Nifty Gateway, or another peer-to-peer marketplace that supports the blockchain and crypto you pick. 

• Step #3: Choose and Create a Digital Wallet

You cannot participate in any NFT platforms transaction without a crypto wallet (digital wallet). Not every cryptocurrency wallet supports all cryptocurrency tokens, so you have to make sure to find one that works with the NFT platform and the blockchain. For example, the Metamask wallet is one of the primary ones for Eth, and is supported by most major markets that are on Ethereum.

• Step #4: Purchase Cryptocurrency

You will then need to connect your wallet and fund it with the right cryptocurrency to pay transaction fees, and other fees in order to buy, list, and sell your NFT. The minting process also costs money, so be aware of the minting fee, usually paid upfront unless the NFT market supports lazy minting. 

This feature is often advertised as “free” when the transaction fee is actually just offloaded to the buyer. The buyer will have to pay the gas fee for minting when they decide to buy your NFT. 

Funding your wallet involves purchasing crypto with fiat (regular currency), and buyers can usually do this via Apple Pay, debit, and other common payment gateways. 

• Step #5: Upload Your Art

Once you’re all set up, the next move in the step-by-step guide is to upload your artwork. It’s quite easy as uploading and listing your digital file on an NFT marketplace is similar to other platforms where you need a title and description. The words you will help you target buyers and market your project, so think carefully about it.

Choose the file to upload. Various types will be supported depending on the marketplace of your choice, but the main ones, such as JPGs, MP3s, and GIFs are supported. After you have uploaded your file, you should then be able to choose between a fixed-price listing or the auction feature (if the marketplace supports it). 

If the marketplace does support auctions, then there could be two subcategories to pick from – ongoing and decreasing. An ongoing auction works traditionally for a set period, and the decreasing kind will continue to lower the price of the NFT until it hits the minimum price you set. 

Then comes one of the most important parts – the royalty fee. Artists and creators get royalties when buyers sell NFTs on the secondary marketplace. If a person who buys your NFT successfully sells it on another marketplace, you will get a percentage (the royalty) of that sale. Some platforms allow you to set your own royalty percentage without a limit, but others set it at 10%.

It may sound great to have no limit on the royalties when selling NFT art, but it disincentivizes the buyer to buy or sell NFT art created by you if you take such a large cut. 

• Step #6: Mint Your NFT

We finally get to the minting. Minting is when your file gets transformed into an NFT. Don’t forget about the gas fee if there isn’t a lazy way to mint on the platform of your choice. Because crypto prices are volatile, the gas fee can fluctuate easily. Since you don’t need to mint right away, you can just do it when you want to sell NFT art when the prices are lower. This can be an effort to mitigate the risk of creating an NFT that does not cover the costs when it sells. 

Aside from that, don’t forget the platform fee, which is usually 2.5%, which the marketplace charges as a form of commission. 

• Step #7: Sell and Price Your NFT

Perhaps the trickiest part of selling and minting NFTs is finding the right price. You want to set a reasonable price with a fair royalty percentage for future sales. 

You don’t want to lower fees until you make no money off of your own tokens because you have to pay fees. A good idea is to account for all the costs to create an NFT on the platform and blockchain of your choice and go from there. If you’re new to the scene, lowering your prices (but still earning a profit) is a good idea until you’ve established yourself. 

• Step #8: Promote Your Art Online

Anyone can create an NFT, but there are no guarantees that it will sell. Promoting and pumping your collection is what will make a difference. Besides sharing your story behind your project, offering bonuses is always a great way to get your audience’s attention.

Offer discount codes, create giveaways, and offer deals for subsequent releases; all of these moves can help boost sales and prices too. Make sure you are easily accessible to potential buyers who may have questions about your collection and engage in the NFT crypto community through platforms like Twitter and Discord. 

How Do I Make NFT Art for Free?

You can make NFTs for free via platforms that support lazy minting. As previously mentioned, this process offloads the minting costs to the buyer that purchases your NFT. However, there may still be platform and other transaction fees separate from minting fees that you will have to pay. 

How to Keep NFT Collectibles

NFT collectibles are stored in a wallet. You can do it via a hardware wallet, such as Ledger, which is very secure and what we recommend. The hardware wallet is locked and can only be opened via a password (seed phrase), and some even have touch authentication to keep hackers out. 

Conclusion

When you think about how to make NFT artwork, your head may be swimming with questions, but the process is fairly easy. A rule of thumb is to pick a blockchain ecosystem, a marketplace, and a wallet that are all compatible. Once that’s done, do the calculations for the optimal time to list, the price to set your NFTs, and the royalties before listing.