Thread by @chriscantino

1/ A playbook for launching successful NFT collections. 🧵

2/ NFTs are hard. From technical implementation, to marketing, to fostering a community, there are dozens of steps to manage. And ignoring any one of them can tank your brand.

Let’s dive deep, starting from ideation all the way to post-launch execution.

3/ Identify your vision

Root it in what makes you, you. If you’ve been developing expertise for years, lean in. It’s the only way to earn confidence in your project.

Could be your professional experience, art, gaming, defi, community… whatever. Just own it. Broadcast it.

4/ Build a community

Publish content that demonstrates your vision to like-minded folks, inviting them to join you. Provide a place to exchange value, and—this is important—create an equal playing field.

Don’t rely on hype. Without roots, loyalty will evaporate.

5/ Form a dream team

A project is only as good as its team. Founders, devs, artists, community managers, and marketers.

Ensure they are all A+ communicators and properly incentivized, because their participation in the community will be critical to your project’s success.

6/ Write a bulletproof contract

Your contract should be as much a work of art as the NFT itself. Test it relentlessly, make it gas-efficient, get it peer-reviewed, and don’t push it out half-baked.

If there is any possibility of exploitation, it can tank your entire project.

7/ Art

If it isn’t magic, don’t bother. Identify themes that invoke a sense of joy and intrigue.

Be weird. If it feels safe, it’s not going to make it in NFT world.

Your goal is to wow people, providing them with sets of characteristics they truly identify with.

8/ Rarity distribution

Nailing trait distribution and having a clean metadata reveal is key for increasing collectible value. You don’t want too many common traits.

Look to projects that nailed it, like Doodles or CrypToadz. And consider creating rare 1/1s for true collectors.

9/ Side note: It’s also cool to create projects where rarity is super distributed and doesn’t matter so much—where holders are more equal to each other. This is a trend we’re seeing more and more of.

If this is your POV, be public about why and own it.

10/ Stick to a budget and timeline

Don’t get in over your head hiring devs and community managers without the ETH to back it up. We don’t want any drama or missed timelines.

Too many projects announce mint dates only to delay them. Sticking to timelines helps build trust.

11/ Build it for long term

You are designing a project with potential multi-year implications. Whether that’s through utility, DAO formation, companion projects, gaming aspects, CC0 rights, etc., create a moat that is defensible over the long-term.

Design for durability.

12/ Price it right

Scarcity is key, and not every project needs to be a 10k collection. In theory, the smaller the quantity, the higher value you might provide.

It all depends on the intersection of demand for your project, and the long-term utility you’re promising.

13/ Remember, it’s far better to underprice than to overprice. If people have bought in at a “steal,” it could drive demand and help the project sell out.

You might not bank as much at mint, but it could help with longer-term stability. And you can always add more layers later.

14/ Marketing

First of all, publish meaningful content that rallies community. Let them be your flywheel, bringing their networks and influence into the project.

But you won’t earn any support without being authentic and persistent. Get out there and publish.

15/ Marketing pt. 2

Share previews
Prove utility
Create 1/1s for like-minded NFT heads
Collab w brands and other projects
Contests
Influencers

Just don’t rely on FOMO. It will leave you vulnerable. Better to focus on bottoms up community building and content publishing.

16/ Mint mechanism

Minting from your site? Invest in a gorgeous interface and make that process clean af. Dutch auction? Could be frustrating for people who buy at the top.

Whatever you do, publish clear, detailed instructions that are easy for first-timers. Don’t gatekeep.

17/ Avoid gas wars

Don’t ask people to participate in mints where they need high priority fees to win.

1) Most people don’t know how
2) They’re overpaying
3) Your project will get botted
4) You’ll wind up with too many whales

Reward early supporters, and make minting fair.

18/ If you don’t sell out

If mint is slow, don’t give up. Build organically.

If you’re like @crypto_coven, the gradual build will pay off big time when you’ve onboarded first-time NFT buyers, have great distribution of dedicated holders, and wind up with a thin, growing floor.

19/ Post-launch flywheel

Trust, your community will tell you everything you need to know. Reward them for providing feedback, shout them out, and show everyone how their contributions are informing decisions at the highest level.

R&D 🤝 Marketing 🤝 Product Dev 🤝 Community

20/ After launch, be in that community every day interacting and setting the tone. Don’t focus on speculation. Focus on creating value exchanges between members.

Don’t assume what people want—let them tell you. And reward them publicly when they do.

21/ After things settle, get ready to start all over again from step one and create the next big phase of your project.

Only this time, you’ll have a community to back you up.

Thx for reading fam. For more tweetstorms on NFTs and web3, follow along with me @chriscantino.