As a newcomer in the world of NFTs you will definitely need Guides to walk you through this fascinating world in a step by step manner. Below you will find all the necessary tools to make you slowly but surely an expert.
How to research?
As I always mention everyone should do a proper research on a project and you should never get into one without even taking a peek at its website just because someone told you about it.
In the real world sooner or later someone will try and deceive you, now imagine what can happen in the digital world where you cannot be sure about anything or anyone! And how can you? You haven’t even met most of them, not to mention give them your hard earned crypto. Even though there cannot be a sure way to determine whether the NFT project you are about to buy is even worth it, there are certain hints to catch in order to minimize your risk.
First and foremost, you need to look at the artwork. What is the effort that the team put into creating it? Is it original and unique or another rip-off? Does it contain any details or is it the simplest vector you have ever seen? Then answer some personal questions Do you like it? Would you hold it whether the project is a scam or not? Is it worth your time and effort to get it? The more positive the answers to the above questions, the better the rating for the artwork.
Second, you need to look at the team. Do we have a team bio somewhere in the website or at least discord? Is this bio linked to a social account? Does anyone besides their community know they exist? What is their background? Are they active in their own social accounts & their project’s social accounts? Are they willing to collaborate with other projects of the same space? This part is crucial because many projects prefer anonymity which is usually the starting point of a red flag.
Third, check their community (i.e. Discord & Twitter). For newer projects this part can be noticed better a couple of days before the drop and can be linked with the amount of supporters they have. For example, they cannot be launching a 10k drop with a community of 500 members, this is a rushed drop and usually a rugpull!
Furthermore, check if the community is active end engaging in both socials. Even the smallest communities can show signs of activity but you cannot have a 13k member one and receive 1 tweet or have the same amount in Discord and the server seems like a cemetery. This shows signs that the growth of the community was artificial and that most of the members are bots.
Fourth, you will need to check for a roadmap. Does it exist? How much effort was put into creating one? Is it detailed enough? Do you understand it clearly? Does it have a clear path & a clear goal? Although a roadmap is very important, it is not always the case because sometimes it is just about the art – which should be respected.
Fifth and final, the website. Yes! You may think I am crazy but this part is equally important to the aforementioned steps. A website can reveal the intentions of the project just at the first glance. How professional it seems to you? How much effort did the team put into it? Does it match the whole theme of the project? How much information about the project does it contain (e.g. Roadmap, Team Information, Concept etc.)? Is it user friendly?
Generally, it does not need to be complicated but rather simple and to the point. So the more negative the answers to the above questions the more negative and the rating.
Conclusion
Those five steps are the ones that help me pick projects for my personal collection and I hope they will help more of you make a better decision. It does not matter whether you are a veteran or a newbie in the NFT space, you should follow certain steps in order to save your precious time and hard earned crypto. Now, I am not implying that my method is perfect and all of you should follow it, I am just giving you a guide that I know works for me.
Cardano NFT Guide
Assuming that you already know how to purchase your ADA, because that is the currency that you will need to use to purchase a CNFT, let’s move on and learn everything necessary about the Cardano NFT world.
The first thing that you need to make sure of, is to have your ADA in a native wallet and not in an exchange wallet! This is truly important because if you will try to mint a CNFT through an exchange wallet, the CNFT will be lost!
Which wallet to use then?
There are a lot of options to consider whether you want to mint through your desktop or your mobile phone. The following wallets can be used for the minting process:
How to find projects?
If you are reading this then you already know that raqoon.io can help you get familiar with a plethora of CNFT projects. But there are CNFT calendars out there that will help you check for upcoming launch dates long before my review website. A small hint raqoon.io will get its own NFT Calendar as well. Your calendar options are:
What’s next?
Now that you have your ADA ready in your wallet and you know exactly which CNFT you want to mint, the only thing that you need to follow is the instructions of each project! It usually is the following process:
*Legacy Minting:
When the time of the launch arrives a Cardano wallet address will appear either on Discord or the project’s website. What you need to do next is connect to your wallet and send the amount of ADA required to this specific address in order to mint the CNFT. Pretty simple right? Wrong, you actually need to move quickly in order to mint one, especially with very hyped projects.
Multisig Minting:
Additionally, there is the multisig method, with which you connect your wallet to a minting address (by signing) and the minting happens instantly from inside your wallet.
What if I did not make it?
No worries, there is always the secondary market, in which you actually can choose which CNFT to purchase. There are several marketplaces in the Cardano NFT ecosystem and those are:
How can I view my CNFT?
You can view your CNFT in three ways:
- Through the marketplace that your wallet is connected
- Through pool.pm
- Through your wallet (function that most wallets already have)
I do not want to check the rarity of my CNFT manually, is there a tool to do it for me?
Yes of course, the below tools will help you determine the rarity of your CNFT:
Is that it?
Yeah pretty much, now you can run wild in the Cardano NFT world but remember, this is an investment and you should never invest more than you are willing to lose and always DYOR.
Elrond NFT Guide
Speaking of Elrond (eGLD), I will assume that most of you are aware of how to purchase the token. Because eGLD is the token that you will need to use in order to purchase an Elrond NFT.
So now that you have your eGLD you need to send it on a native Elrond wallet, because there cannot be a NFT buying in an exchange wallet! (Not yet at least)
Which wallet to use then?
There are some options to consider if Elrond is the blockchain of your choice, ranging from Desktop to Mobile wallets. Those options are:
- The Maiar App Wallet (Android)
- The Maiar App Wallet (IOS)
- The Maiar extension Wallet (Browser Plugin)
- Elrond Wallet (Web wallet)
How to find projects?
One of the best ways to find Elrond NFT projects is to keep reading my reviews on raqoon.io. However, there are some platforms, which are also used for the project drop. So we have:
What’s next?
Now that you have eGLD in your wallet and you found the Elrond NFT project you want to invest in. All you have to do, is connect your wallet to the aforementioned platform that supports your project and make the purchase. The purchase process is very easy because the only thing you have to do is to make sure you possess the right amount of eGLD needed and to sign the transaction.
What if the project is Sold Out?
There are no worries here! If you truly want to make the purchase there is always the secondary market and the most used marketplace for that is eMOON.
How can I view my Elrond NFTs?
You can view your NFTs in the aforementioned platforms!
Is that it?
Yeah that’s basically it. Now go dive into the Elrond NFT world, by always doing your own research first!
Ergo NFT Guide
Ergo is one of those coins that the assumption that someone knows where to purchase it would be wrong. ERG of course is needed to make your Ergo NFT purchase and here you can find the most notable exchanges which support it:
Now that you purchased your ERG coin you need to send it to your wallet and this is important because you cannot make a purchase using an exchange wallet!
Which wallet to use then?
There are a lot of options to consider whether you are using your desktop or your mobile phone. The following wallets can be used:
How to find projects?
It is of course self-explanatory that you can read reviews on projects in raqoon.io and make a decision yourself but there are useful community-based websites that can help you out as well, such as:
What’s Next?
In the Ergo Blockchain the NFTs are minted and dropped in the Ergo Auction House where the potential investors bid on their favorite NFT. So, now that you have your wallet ready and you know what project you want to purchase, the only thing you need to do is head over to the Ergo Auction House, connect your wallet and purchase the NFT that you desire.
Ergo Auction House works as a secondary market as well, where the owners of the Ergo NFTs auction their purchased artwork.
How can I view my Ergo NFT?
You can view your Ergo NFT through ergonfts.org, where you only need to paste your wallet address.
Is that it?
Yeah, now your Ergo NFT collection can finally start!
Solana NFT Guide
Everyone familiar with at least one platform in the NFT world is aware that you need its native token to purchase a NFT piece. And since this guide is dedicated to Solana, the first thing you need to do is purchase some SOL.
I will assume here that you already know all the markets in which you purchase the SOL token. So let’s move to the first step, which is the creation of a native wallet and move the SOL you want to spend on mints in there.
Which wallets to use?
There are multiple option for you to use in order to mint your NFT in both your computer and your mobile and those are:
- Phantom Wallet (Chrome extension)
- Sollet (Web wallet)
- Solflare (Chrome extension & Web wallet)
I will have to add here that Phantom Wallet is the most popular!
How to find projects?
It goes without saying that I will be updating raqoon.io with my Solana project reviews and you will be able to check them from here. However, there are many websites to check and find upcoming Solana NFT projects. Some of them are:
- NFT Sol Calendar
- NFT Calendar (pick the Solana NFTs option)
- Solanart (Although a secondary market it has its own coming soon section)
It's needless to add that Sol Calendar is the most popular out of the three.
What's next?
Now that you found your project and you have your wallet funded; it is time for you to mint your favorite Solana NFT. The process is quite easy and its similar to most projects. So, you will just have to enter your selected project's website and in there you will notice the "Mint" button. By pressing that you will have to connect your wallet and sign the transaction. The mint will take seconds to confirm and your NFT will appear in your wallet. It's that simple actually.
What if I did not make it?
So you really wanted this particular NFT and you missed the mint for some reason or the supply run out. No worries here, as there is always the secondary market in which you can purchase your desired NFT. There are two main secondary marketplaces you can use and those are:
How can I view my SNFTs?
Well the aforementioned wallets, have the option of viewing your SNFT right in there. However, there is one website in which you can view your SNFTs in larger quantities (as in a gallery) and this is NFTeyez . In there you just have to paste your Solana address or connect your wallet to the website and voilà.
Is there any tool to check my NFT's rarity?
Of course there is and that would be Howrare.is
Is that it?
The answer is yes. Now you can let yourself be free in the Solana NFT world!
