While it has appeared to be a challenging year for the NFT market due to a crypto winter and the market a little down across all trackable metrics, during 2022, the total sales value still increased year on year. Analysis by CryptoPresales.com showed a 10 per cent global NFT sales rise, taking the value to $ 21,9 billion in 2022.
Despite high-value NFT sales booming in 2021 and seeing a rise in the number of new investors, the market saw trading slow in the second half of 2022, with crypto prices dropping in the wake of the crypto winter. However, vigorous trading activity saw annual NFT sales value increase year-over-year by $ 2,1 billion.
2022 also saw a considerably higher number of NFT transactions, with around 78.5 million taking place over the year. This is more than twice the number seen in 2021, which saw 34,8 million transactions.
The NFT marketplace shows unique flexibility
Many financial experts believe there is still a considerable knowledge gap regarding NFTs and their usefulness for businesses. Since their introduction in 2015, some people have simply confused them as another form of cryptocurrency. While NFTs are digital tokens that certify unique ownership of an item, they don’t have a fixed value like cryptocurrency, which makes them un-interchangeable.
Speaking with Wesley from Cude.Design (a leading NFT agency), Wesley said the following “While trading volume has taken a considerable dip since cryptocurrency entered the bear market, there is still considerable interest in building projects with real utility behind an NFT collection’.
While NFTs work under a similar system to cryptocurrency using blockchain technology, they are the complete opposite of a currency because they don’t hold a fixed value and are not interchangeable. NFTs confirm ownership of unique digital items, and while you hold a digital version of these items in your virtual locker, they offer a digital seal of authenticity.
An example of how NFTs have supported and boosted funds for a major event during the covid pandemic was the most recent Olympic Games held in Tokyo. Due to the games being first delayed from 2020 to 2021 and then held without spectators, the event was set to suffer financially.
But the NFT campaign introduced by Team GB allowed fans to purchase NFTs for different limited-edition collectables and unique experiences with some of the gold-medal winners of Team GB. The move was an excellent way for fans to support their team without being able to be present in person.
Moves like these have inspired many large companies to look at ways to utilize NFTs in their marketing strategies. Realizing that NFTs have unique selling points that can be of immense value to corporations has begun to attract some big names.
Major companies looking to implement NFTs into their marketing
Some of the best-known fast-food franchises in the world have implemented marketing strategies around NFTs. Brands such as KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell have all jumped in. Taco Bell most notably introduced a range of NFT gifs on Rarible, the specialized digital marketplace, which completely sold out in under 30 minutes of being released.
This shows that NFTs work for rare pieces of art valued at hundreds of thousands of dollars and in popular collectable marketplaces, with purchases selling for as low as one dollar. Taco Bell used this tactic to help raise funds for the scholarship programme they are associated with.
Other companies investing in NFTs include:
- Ticketmaster: Ticketmaster lets event organizers issue NFTs that are tied to tickets on Flow. Flow is a blockchain operated by a16z-backed Dapper Labs. The NFTs are made available to buyers before, during and after events and even include unique experiences such as celeb meet and greets, memorabilia and loyalty rewards. After its Super Bowl debut, Ticketmaster has already minted over 5 million NFTs on Flow through various partners.
- Bud Light: In 2022, Bud Light released its ‘N3XT’ collection of NFTs. It consisted of 12,722 unique tokens granting holders access to benefits such as voting rights on brand merchandise, access to events, a role on their Discord channel, and more. The initial release sold out, so anyone wanting to get in on the action can only purchase an NTF from an existing holder on the secondary market at a higher cost than the mint price.
- Adidas: Adidas released Into The Metaverse NFT in collaboration with Gomoney, Punks Comic, and Bored Ape Yacht Club, which are all big-name NFT influencers. Fashion NFTs have a high growth margin, which makes them attractive to brands such as Adidas. The company introduced NFTs in response to fans’ growing demands for fashion NFTs.
- Coca-Cola: The Coca-Cola Company held an NFT auction in 2021 for International Friendship Day. The campaign released its first collection of digital collectables that digitalized some of the brand’s most iconic assets for the metaverse, such as the Coca-Cola delivery jacket that is wearable on the virtual reality platform, Centraland. Each NFT was inspired by sharing a moment of friendship. The proceeds from the campaign were donated to Special Olympics International, the world’s largest organization for disabled athletes.
It is only a matter of time before more big company names integrate NFTs into their marketing operations. Many people feel that any major brand not considering an NFT strategy right now may be left behind as consumer demand grows.