Collectors are the life blood of NFT art.
Of the tens of billions of dollars that have been poured into this space over the last 12 months or so, most of it has come from the pockets and wallets of individual collectors.
Yes, VC money is now a part of the story, but it was the collectors who paved and proved the way.
Collectors were the first to take the risk.
Without collectors, the entire NFT art world would simply evaporate.
Which is why… if you’re on the team of an NFT art platform, or you’re a creator… you might want to share a little extra love with your collectors.
“But, hey, we do love our collectors. They know that.”
Sure, and we all love our moms. But once a year, on Mothers’ Day, we go the extra mile.
That’s all I’m suggesting.
And if mom has had a really tough year, maybe we’ll do a little more for her.
Well, many collectors have had a really hard time of it over the last few months.
How can you reward your collectors?
Let me share a close equivalent from the real world.
My wife and I are members of Montreal’s Museum of Fine Arts.
We pay an annual membership fee.
In recognition of our support, the museum pays us back with a few benefits and privileges.
We get a card which we can show to get free admission, and bypass the line-ups. That feels good.
We get a newsletter, and email alerts, which keep us informed.
We get invitations to exhibition previews, and lectures, which makes us feel special. The preview evenings are great, as we can enjoy the art without the crowds.
All in all, the privileges that come with membership make us feel recognized and valued.
And that’s the core of it. It’s not about money or freebies… it’s about that feeling of being recognized and valued, separate from the hundreds of thousands of walk-in visitors the museum attracts.
We’re part of the few. A select group. We’re special.
At least, that’s how it feels.
As the online art space evolves, I believe artists and platforms will need to find ways to do the same for their core collectors.
The privileges that come with being a collector of digital art won’t be the same. There’ll likely be no physical card, and no real-life previews.
But there’ll have to be something.
But hey, this is really HARD.
I’ve spoke with a few people from different platforms and projects about this.
More often than not, I’m told that they get it, but have more pressing problems to deal with… mostly on the development side.
They tell me it’s really, really hard to identify what I call “core” collectors. And once identified, it’s hard to figure out how to reward them.
I have two reactions to this.
My first reaction is to be sympathetic. I understand. Web 3 is a new and fast-evolving space. And in a pseudonymous space, it isn’t even easy to compile a list of core collectors.
My second reaction is to bite my tongue, so I don’t say, “I don’t care if it’s hard. Not my problem. I’m sure it’s hard for Amazon to meet their promise of next-day delivery, but they put in the work to make it happen.”
Some artists and projects are already rewarding their collectors.
I’ve collected work from artists who, sometimes months later, have rewarded me with a surprise airdrop of another piece of art.
Amazing.
And some projects – The Proof Collective comes to mind – are very deliberately pursuing a model where collectors get rewarded in proportion to how long they hold their NFTs.
In both cases, some of the value created by collectors is being funneled back into their hands.
That’s the heart of it… give back some of the value created.
Through the billions they spend on NFT art, to the millions of hours they spend supporting projects through Twitter and Discord, collectors are consistently adding value.
Take just 5% of that, however you choose to measure it, and find ways to funnel it back into their hands.
Collectors will love you for that.
And they’ll stick with you, and help you build the next stage of your project.