What\u2019s more, you can spend thousands of dollars on a digital file and wake up one day wondering why. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Not wanting to burst your bubble here, we\u2019re just saying that you shouldn\u2019t go head-strong into buying CryptoArt just because everyone is talking about it. You need to be able to identify these virtual objects as actual cultural possessions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
And now, yes, the elephant in the room\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Is All CryptoArt genuine? How to make sure of it<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The primary, fundamental idea of a tokenized artwork is that it is unique, right? An artist digitally signs a piece of art as the original one, and that information is forever stored on the blockchain. No one can forge it, delete it, or alter it in any way. The blockchain is an entirely decentralized realm. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
You know the theory \u2013 bullet-proof copyrights. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, ironically, the NFTs are now suffering from their own success. There is a lot of spam on the NFT marketplaces; people are selling and buying like crazy, and as a first-time NFT buyer, you will feel lost. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
- What should I buy? <\/li>
- Is this artwork genuinely worth its price? <\/li>
- Is this artwork minted by the rightful owner? <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
I mean, if I want, I can Google funny, cute kitten faces right now. Right-click- save-as on one, and then mint it as an NFT. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Am I the rightful owner of that picture? No, I just downloaded it from the Internet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Who is the owner? I have no idea, and I don\u2019t care. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Does any higher authority check to see if my NFT ownership claims are valid? Nope, because it\u2019s a decentralized system. Hence, the suffering from its own success we were talking about above. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, yes, nothing is perfect in life, but what can we do about it? Give up buying CryptoArt? <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nah. Just tread a bit more carefully. And here\u2019s how. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Join some NFT communities <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Before registering on a primary NFT marketplace such as OpenSea or Nifty Gateway, consider joining a few NFT collectors\u2019 communities. You will find some good ones on Discord<\/a> or Telegram. Also, follow along with some Reddit threads on the matter.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In these groups, you will meet real artists, collectors, and people interested in the crypto world. You don\u2019t necessarily need to interact with them. However, it will help immensely to stay on top of things and do some research. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
![\"art](\"https:\/\/realm10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/05\/connected-art-1024x683.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nSo, where on discord?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
- There is a huge OpenSea discord server here<\/a> (don\u2019t be shy there) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- The NFT Hub<\/a> – a discord community where artists usually promote their artworks, and people ask all sorts of questions about NFT (again, try not to be shy) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Lumun NFT Showcase<\/a> – worth a try<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Superpunks discord channel<\/a> – about 1000 users there<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT World<\/a> – about 6,5 k members, and about 1k online at all times (you might want to filter some of that info, though)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFThub<\/a> – around 2k members; they have a couple of contests, airdrops, and some big NFT connections <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
There are many more NFT discord servers out there. Some of them have a sign-up process that you\u2019ll need to go through. So, read, listen, engage, get the hang of things.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What about Telegram? <\/h4>\n\n\n\n
- Opensea telegram group<\/a> (more than 5k members)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Rarible trading telegram group<\/a> (about 500 members)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT Discussion group<\/a> (about 230 members, artists usually post their last drops)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Music NFT discussion<\/a> (if you\u2019re interested to buy NFT music) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT OTC & Auction Room<\/a> (a trading group for NFT collectibles\/gaming items)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT Room<\/a> – Public (1k members discussing all sorts of NFT projects and items) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
There is a lot of filtering to do in these groups as well, but just don\u2019t be shy, eye the right people, creators and influencers, and get the conversation rolling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Digital artists who are selling NFT are also marketing themselves on Instagram and other Social Media platforms. So, follow them<\/a> there, connect with them. Get in the loop. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Get on one of the most known NFT Marketplace <\/h3>\n\n\n\n
“So where can I buy NFT art safely?” <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s make a checklist of the essential NFT marketplaces of the moment: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, there\u2019s OpenSea<\/a><\/strong> \u2013 probably the largest NFT marketplace at the moment; here, you will find digital art, all sorts of crazy collectible trading cards, popular NFTs from the Cryptokitties project, game items<\/a>. It\u2019s some insane stuff, and you need to be quite careful when selecting through that. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Rarible<\/a><\/strong> \u2013 more focused on artworks; every time you buy or sell an NFT, you will get some tokens representing your stake in the platform and the right to vote on some decisions<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Nifty Gateway<\/a><\/strong> \u2013 more exclusive, reserved for music and artwork; there is actually a team behind curating the NFTs, so there\u2019s an extra layer of protection. This is also the marketplace that has made Beeple rich, where the best NFT artists, famous A stars, are minting and selling their digital products. Digital artists do have to go through a laborious process to be able to sell on Nifty Gateway. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Foundation<\/a><\/strong> \u2013 it is all about NFT art; what is more, an artist needs an invite to join, so it\u2019s pretty exclusive. Overall, it is a good place where you can be 90% sure you buy an artwork straight from the artist who has created it. Yes, 90% because you can never be too sure. It\u2019s Chinatown! <\/p>\n\n\n\n
SuperRare<\/a><\/strong> – another platform for digital art exclusively; they curate the art they sell, and they don\u2019t usually market multiple editions. NFT artists generally struggle to be approved on the platform, so there are high chances you\u2019ll only find good digital art here.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Research, research, research<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Ever since high school, we have been taught the value of research. Who else struggled with those research papers in college? Hands up!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, yes, research has become increasingly important, especially in the era of spam. Before making that purchase, you can always: <\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Do a Reverse Image Search with Google<\/a> or Yandex<\/a> (by clicking on the camera icon) to check if the file you\u2019re purchasing as NFT is just plainly copied from the Internet<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Research the seller (Google, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest \u2013 you know, the stalking essentials); if he\u2019s a real artist, he\u2019ll almost surely have an Instagram page to market his creations<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Pose a question in those groups\/communities we were telling you about above<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
Do I need to worry about the security of my NFTs? <\/h2>\n\n\n\n
So, if you’ve read tweets like this one<\/p>\n\n\n\n
- Pose a question in those groups\/communities we were telling you about above<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Research the seller (Google, Instagram, Facebook, Pinterest \u2013 you know, the stalking essentials); if he\u2019s a real artist, he\u2019ll almost surely have an Instagram page to market his creations<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Do a Reverse Image Search with Google<\/a> or Yandex<\/a> (by clicking on the camera icon) to check if the file you\u2019re purchasing as NFT is just plainly copied from the Internet<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT Room<\/a> – Public (1k members discussing all sorts of NFT projects and items) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT OTC & Auction Room<\/a> (a trading group for NFT collectibles\/gaming items)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Music NFT discussion<\/a> (if you\u2019re interested to buy NFT music) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT Discussion group<\/a> (about 230 members, artists usually post their last drops)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Rarible trading telegram group<\/a> (about 500 members)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Opensea telegram group<\/a> (more than 5k members)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFThub<\/a> – around 2k members; they have a couple of contests, airdrops, and some big NFT connections <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- NFT World<\/a> – about 6,5 k members, and about 1k online at all times (you might want to filter some of that info, though)<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Superpunks discord channel<\/a> – about 1000 users there<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- Lumun NFT Showcase<\/a> – worth a try<\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- The NFT Hub<\/a> – a discord community where artists usually promote their artworks, and people ask all sorts of questions about NFT (again, try not to be shy) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n
- There is a huge OpenSea discord server here<\/a> (don\u2019t be shy there) <\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n