Shopping online has become the new normal, even more so in the past couple years with the state of retail and pandemic. It is simple and quick, you can find what you want within minutes and have it on its way to your doorstep. All of the ease of comfort features have come after decades of conditioning and trust in the platforms.

People are comfortable saving their credit card information within apps to allow for instant 1-click buying. People don’t think twice behind why they do it or doubt its security at any point. The reason behind that is because there is a trust built with the platform, buyers are offered protection when using these services, and using third-party vendors for payments adds an extra layer of support.

If the eggs from your Amazon Fresh order don’t show up in your delivery you will be refunded instantly. If your RTX 3090 gets stolen off your porch when being delivered Amazon will step in to help with the situation. All of this is possible because of decades of building an online mega retail establishment focused on buyers first. This is what’s known as ease of purchase, little to no barriers or risk to use of services for visitors. It has become what is expected in all online shopping experiences.

Now stepping into a NFT online “retail” experience things might look familiar, but in these stores you need to make sure to read the signage at the door. The same principles apply to buying NFTs as it would be to order something with Amazon Prime. The terminology in the crypto metaverse differs a little from traditional shopping, but the motions are the same.

• You find the online shopping platform you wish to shop at
• You connect your wallet (Metamask, Trust Wallet, Fortmatic)
• You browse the selection of NFTs that are offered
• Collect your items for check out
• Verify payment and sign transaction
• NFTs delivered to your wallet

What changes in this process is who you are buying from, how the payment is processed, and how those items are delivered. Because there is no “main” shopping outlet for purchasing NFTs there are a lot popular options to choose from. But with more options, comes more opportunities for confusion and frustrations. A lot of the shopping and buying experience with NFTs is still in it’s early phases and is always adapting.

This is why it is important for buyers to spend just much time researching as possible before making their first purchase. Because of the decentralized aspect of NFTs and cryptocurrencies a lot of the responsibility is put on the buyer and much less on the seller. Become familiar with the process behind creating a transaction, understanding how the Ethereum network operates, what GAS fees are, and how to protect yourself.

A shill thread is when someone posts on a discussion board or social media, usually Twitter asking for people to “shill” their token, project, or NFTs. On the surface this creates a non-invasive way for creators to “market” their own work without feeling like they are pressuring their fans to buy. Many times these threads are started with the idea that the collector posting the tweet has the intention of purchasing art. Claiming to have a certain amount of Ethereum or posting wallet screenshots as proof that they are serious. This usually brings in large crowds, creators from far and wide show up to shill their products to the NFT whale. Sort of a bring all your goods to the table to present to a potential buyer aspect to it.

Entering the NFT market as a creator can be challenging and often times a daunting task. But once you mint your first NFT and list it for sale you want the world to know. So seeing these types of “shill your #NFT” thread as an aspiring artist can be welcoming to a new community. Often times this is not the case. Time and time again artist are getting burnt out participating in these fish bowl business card lottery drawings. Whether or not the actual Twitter poster has intentions of following through and purchasing NFTs, this gets the artists hopes up.

When looking for new NFT projects to highlight I am always looking for something that stand outs, something unique, and something that creates an experience. We are seeing new NFT projects coming onto the scene daily. But what makes them stand out from each other?

Right now there is a gold rush in the NFT metaverse not only to be first at something, but also a race in quantity. Make as much as you can as fast as you can in hopes that someone will buy it. New NFTs are being minted by the hour. This will start to create an over saturated market where the supply curve will soon meet or exceed the demand curve. While this might not be something we will see for months or even years with mainstream adoption still taking place. But when it does it will be something that every NFT creator wished they had consider when entering the market with their project.

Create something that will leave an impression months and even years down the line. Look at Cyptokitties, CryptoPunks, and MoonCats. They remain at the core of NFT collectibles because they were original and created an unique experience for everyone involved.

Pulling up the Stickerdex finally I get my chance at the sticker table only to find that almost all the stickers are sold out! Scrambling to connect my wallet to the website, frantically browsing through the different rarities, and trying to add up the total amount of stars I could earn. I’ve found it, I picked out my sticker! I rush back to the sticker vendor throwing my Ethereum at him, begging to add the sticker into my Sticker Album.

Opening up my Collectors Album, I can check my status of album completion. 4.17% or 1/24 stickers collected, is what I find. Wondering how I can increase that percentage, below I can see the break downs: Alpha set, Collab set, Achievement set, Legendary stickers, Foil stickers, and Mystery stickers. Flipping through the pages I find my sticker The Open Sea, animated on the page same as it was when I collected it from the vendor.

His playful animation style mixed with the melancholy reactions of the designer struct a cord with the creative community across social media. He was able to take his personal experiences with clients and translated that into a medium that others could relate to.

Now making a splash in the NFT scene, he’s introduced works like “Quarantine Life” which expresses some of the struggles and joys of life during a pandemic. Bringing his unique motion design style with him, he released his #LetsWalk NFT collection.

The collection is put together with many of his classic characters from Instagram along side many pop-culture icons. DeeKay has set out to apply his signature walk cycle to as many characters as possible while making others happy.