NFT Trading: The Ins and Outs
In this section, I’m going to tell you how to trade NFTs on OpenSea, in the simplest way possible!
NFTs are undeniably a huge part of the crypto space. While their popularity is very volatile, there are new projects coming out within the space, seemingly every day, still! Many crypto enthusiasts will tell you that non-fungible tokens are still a great way to make money with crypto!
You’ve heard about NFTs, love the idea behind them, and are now eager to make money this way, too. However, you’re new to crypto, and have no idea where to even start. If that’s the case - don’t fret, since that’s what I’m here to help you with!
In this section, we’re going to talk about NFT trading. Specifically, I’ll tell you about all of the prerequisites that you need to keep in mind before you actually start trading, as well as walk you through the process of performing your very first NFT trade, too!
Let’s get to it!
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Before You Start
Now, while jumping into NFT trading can be a super-exciting prospect, you need to contain your excitement a tad bit longer, while we talk about a few prerequisites that you’ll need to sort out. After all, if you want to maximize your chances of success in trading NFTs, you need to come in with your homework prepared!
The very first thing that you’ll need to do is create a hot cryptocurrency wallet. You will use this wallet to store your NFTs, as well as perform all of the transactions in the future. If you decide to study how to make NFTs to sell, this wallet will be needed, as well!
There are plenty of different wallets that you can pick, but I’d personally go with MetaMask. You can read a dedicated section for this particular wallet, but in short, it’s one of the most popular Ethereum and ERC token wallets on the market, and it’ll make Ethereum-based NFT storage a breeze.
Moving on, the next big thing that you need to take care of is the actual crypto that you’ll use to purchase your initial NFTs. In other words, if you’re starting completely fresh, and don’t have any assets to your name, you’ll need to buy some cryptocurrency (specifically - Ether) in order to then trade it for your very first NFT. Some marketplaces support credit and debit cards, but if you want complete privacy and anonymity, you’ll need to stick to the crypto route.
This process can sound really intimidating, but let me assure you - it’s really nothing to be worried about! These days, popular cryptocurrency exchange platforms are extremely good at onboarding newbies, and guiding them through their initial purchases. With the best-known exchanges, such as Binance or Kraken, you’ll be able to register and buy crypto with a credit or debit card in no time!
If you’d like to check out a more thorough explanation of how to buy cryptocurrency for the very first time, read this section – it covers the process in-depth. Granted that this section is about how to buy and sell NFTs for profit, I’ll assume that you already have your wallet ready, and with some crypto transferred to it, too.
The final point of preparation has to do with choosing the best NFT marketplace, where you’d perform all of your trades on. Admittedly, the variety of available options is getting bigger, by the day, but if you want to err on the side of caution, your best bet would still be using OpenSea. It’s considered by many to be the best NFT marketplace out there, offering its users access to an unprecedented number of different non-fungible tokens, and a way of how to trade NFTs safely.
Making Your First Trade
So - with all of the big preparation steps out of the way, you are finally ready to learn how to trade NFTs! But a single question remains - what NFT should you buy, as your very first one?
Now, truth be told, this is a discussion for the ages. Everyone is going to have their own opinions about which non-fungible tokens are “worth it”, and which will tank, price-wise.
Depending on when it is that you’re reading this section, the NFT boom might be at its peak, or we might currently be in an “NFT winter”. This is a huge factor to consider, as well - as history has shown, many NFTs tend to lose a lot of their initial value, when the bear market comes!
Your best bet would be to set up a price range, and then look for an NFT project that has some sort of backing behind it. This can be anything - a collection of paintings with free tickets to a concert, each, a piece of digital artwork from a band, containing a link to their new, Metaverse-exclusive album, photos of cars from a famous car brand, each coming with exclusive benefits to the holder, and so on.
No one can say for sure, which projects will blow up, and which will tank in price! However, if you follow the market trends, and educate yourself about the industry, as a whole, you could catch some hidden gems, every once in a while!
Let’s say that you’ve found that one, single NFT that you absolutely love, and think that it’s going to appreciate in price, as time goes on. How do you get it into your digital wallet?
Well, if you’re using OpenSea and MetaMask, this process is going to be super simple.
First, you need to connect your wallet to OpenSea. This can be done at the top-right corner of the screen, on the OpenSea homepage - simply choose to connect via MetaMask, pass a few verifications, and you’re in!
Next, you’ll need to find the NFT that you’ve picked, and either add it to your basket, or buy it instantly. When you navigate to your basket, you’ll be able to view all of the necessary details to complete your transaction - creator fees, payment types, total price, and so on.
If everything seems to be in order, you can complete your payment - if you’re using crypto, and have enough coins in your wallet, you’ll receive a few transaction confirmations, and in a few seconds, your MetaMask wallet will be credited with your newly-acquired non-fungible token. Congratulations on your new purchase!
Trading Your NFTs
Now that you’ve dipped your toes into the world of NFT ownership, you can finally start trading these assets. There are multiple ways of how you can approach the topic, as well!
Think of it like trading candy. You could sell the candy at a physical store, online, or trade it for some other goods, as well. NFTs aren’t any different, in that regard!
The simplest way of how to trade NFTs is to sell your current NFT for a profit, and purchase another token (or, even, tokens!) in its place. While it’s not technically “trading”, per se, you are still exchanging NFTs, albeit indirectly.
The best part? This can be done on the same marketplace that you’ve bought your original NFT on. Meaning, you don’t need to over-encumber yourself with the management of a huge list of different trading platforms.
Alternatively, you could participate in actual NFT trading, as well - in other words, you could exchange your NFT for another one, in a mutually agreed-upon trade with another person.
Is this something I’d recommend doing? Well, not really, no. These types of trades involve a lot of trust, and are usually very complex when it comes to determining whether or not they’re actually beneficial. For the most part, I’d stick to the time-tested buying and selling processes!
The one piece of good news, however, is that there seems to be an influx of marketplaces that make trading NFTs much simpler. These platforms act as middlemen, and facilitate a trade between two parties - you, and another person that you’re trading with. So, it’s definitely something worth keeping in mind, if you do decide to go the trading route!
Extra Safety for Your NFTs
Now that you know how to buy and sell NFTs for profit, and are ready to jump into this exciting realm, there’s one more point that I’d like to stress.
Above in this section, I've mentioned MetaMask, and how it’s the best wallet to use for all of your NFT trading ventures. While that is true, convenience-wise, MetaMask is still considered to be a hot wallet - one that maintains a constant connection to the internet.
Assuming that you’ll find success in your non-fungible token trading ventures, and grow your portfolio, eventually, you might start worrying about the safety of your assets. While MetaMask has a decent reputation, security-wise, there’s still a lot of room for improvement - this is where hardware wallets come in.
Hardware wallets are often considered to be among the safest crypto storage options in the industry. Combine that with the fact that you can actually connect your MetaMask wallet with one of the most popular hardware storage devices on the market - the Ledger wallet -, and you have yourself a pretty strong case for security and asset protection!
That's about it, for now. I leave you with the knowledge of both how to trade NFTs, for the very first time, as well as concerning all of the prerequisites that you need to be aware of before you can actually start trading.