In the past few years, there has been a rapid increase in demand for investment vehicles. From Bitcoin’s rapid rise to power to crypto assets such as Ethereum and Dogecoin putting their stamp on the market.
While these are the baseline currencies that make up the current market, the ability to actually use any of these currencies in transactions remains slim. NFTs (or Non-fungible Tokens) allow crypto-enthusiasts the opportunity to invest and spend their hard-earned cryptocurrency in other types of tradeable assets.
OpenSea is a platform that allows users to quickly purchase, make, and sell NFTs. Let’s take a quick look at OpenSea’s features and pricing.
Before you continue, you may want to watch this video by Lite Liger on YouTube that gives a quick overview. After, you will want to read the rest of the article for a more comprehensive review of OpenSea.
What is OpenSea? OpenSea Api
OpenSea was created by Alex Attalah and Devin Finzer in 2018. Both had extensive technology backgrounds at Google and Palantir. Not only that, but they’ve also previously worked on two successful businesses, Claimdog, and hostess.fm, which have been sold to larger parent companies since their inception.
Their store of OpenSea directly follows the inception of CryptoKitiies, a 2017 crypto-asset that gave rise to what would then be developed as the modern NFT. Through lean collaboration and a desire to invest in new and exciting technologies, OpenSea was developed into one of the largest general marketplaces for user-owned digital items.
What is an NFT Market Place?
An NFT marketplace allows you to buy and sell digitally-created goods. They can be traded, just like any other digital asset. They can be used on different platforms but NFTs are unique because of their Blockchain-induced scarcity.
Digital goods have been plagued by scarcity for a long time due to their inherent ability to duplicate and copy any item. This makes it difficult to create digital art or other collectible memorabilia as their scarcity can only be controlled by platform controls or release limitations.
You can manage scarcity with NFTs by creating a digital token that is non-fungible. This token can be attached to your creations to verify that it is the original. This functionality allows people to buy, sell, or invest in digital art that they value. From virtual experiences, sports memorabilia, and even digital clothing, NFTs have only expanded in breadth and width ever since its soft inception in 2017.
> > Click Here to Explore OpenSea < <
What is OpenSea Doing Differently?
OpenSea’s primary focus is its drive to put this new technology within reach of all digital creators out there. OpenSea allows digital artists to list their work on the platform without any fees or commissions. This is similar to traditional e-commerce sites like eBay, where sellers can post items to sell regularly without paying any consignment fees.
OpenSea is a great choice for artists and other creators because of its sheer size. Since its inception, it has grown to be the largest NFT market available online, increasing the chances for interested buyers to find and invest in your work. They even have the mobile app available for iOS devices so you can transact on the go.
Managing said transactions is much easier with OpenSea’s Collection Manager, giving users the ability to mint and sell NFTs with no attached fees.
Does OpenSea Have Any Costs?
OpenSea must generate revenue to keep its operations going and the platform operating. As is typical with other NFT marketplaces, OpenSea charges a percentage of the NFT’s price as an additional selling fee on top of any transaction. This additional fee is usually paid by the buyer, allowing the sellers to reap the full benefits of their price. The buyer will pay $102.5 for a $100 NFT. This is in addition to the NFT’s listed price.
Sellers can even attach an additional fee on top of the price if they deserve an artist’s fee for their work. Suppose they don’t feel like adding extra fees. In that case, they can easily opt for the built-in royalties system inherent within NFTs. That means that any subsequent sale of your NFT after your initial sale will still generate yours at a max of 10% of the sale price.
Take note, though, that, unlike other NFT marketplaces, OpenSea does not accept payment in the form of bank deposits, credit or debit cards, and Paypal. To make transactions on OpenSea, you’ll need to have existing wallets that have compatibility with the Ethereum network. There are many wallets available, but trustWallet, MetaMask and Coinbase are some of the most popular.
> > Click Here to Explore OpenSea < <
Is OpenSea Easy to Use?
OpenSea’s platform makes it easy to use. It can display bids and auction times, in different ways. You start off with a gallery page of different NFT art available. They can be purchased using either the traditional auction process or a faster “Buy Now” option, similar to eBay’s sales.
You can view and follow different artists as well. You may find additional information about some artists, such as biographies and anecdotes that explain the meaning or purpose of their work. You can also see information on each listing’s price, offers made, and even the artist’s price history.
If you want to create your own NFT, a process called NFT Minting, you can do that through Open Sea as well. Simply click the create function on the OpenSea homepage and click “Create a Collection.”
Once you are here, you can design the overall logo, banner, and other design elements of your collection and the name for the NFT and even URL layout. Make sure to include any relevant social media links and portfolios to lead prospective buyers to your other work.
You can now set your royalty rates up to 10% and choose which Blockchain you would like to add your NFT (as of this writing, Ehtereum and Polygon are the current Blockchains). You can then designate what token you’d like to accept payment in, either EtH, WITH, DAI, or USDC. To allow buyers to pay you, you will need to verify the transaction using your wallet. OpenSea Api
Click Create to watch your collection space grow. Once the collection is set up, you can add items to it and upload your work up to a maximum of 100MB per file. Add a name to each item you upload and a subsequent description, mark it for sale, and just like that, you’re a certified NFT creator. The NFTs cannot be stored in OpenSea, but in your wallet. Make sure your wallet can support web3!
> > Click Here to Explore OpenSea < <
How To Open An Account
To properly set up an account, you will need a wallet. Doing so is one of the prerequisites to having an OpenSea account, but the process is relatively easy after that.
Register with your email and set a password. Then, personalize your account by adding a banner or your personal bio. The OpenSa FAQs has the dimensions guidelines for banners. OpenSea Api
You used to need to verify the validity of your collection. Still, OpenSea has since removed this requirement, expanding the searchable items on their website. High-traffic profiles have the advantage of having a “verified status” (signified by a blue check) that indicates the authenticity of their account.
Is OpenSea safe?
As with all the different crypto platforms, safety is always a concern (especially when dealing with potentially large transactions). OpenSea’s transactions, like all crypto transactions, are safely secured on the Blockchain. Specifically, Ethereum’s smart contract allows the platform to facilitate transactions instantly without any oversight from third party auditors. OpenSea Api
OpenSea can also be described as a non-custodial market. OpenSea doesn’t hold any crypto funds. It only moves cryptocurrency from one wallet into another when there is a transaction. All of this is possible because of the smart contracts mentioned above, which keep everything secure and verifyable.
Last words
OpenSea is an essential stop for any NFT creator or investor. The fact that it boasts the most extensive collection of NFTs currently and that it has such a simple interface for minting makes it a bit better than other marketplaces currently out there. It also has additional checks and balances to ensure your purchases are secure.
> > Click Here to Explore OpenSea < <
Frequently Asked Questions OpenSea Api
What is an NFT?
The Non-fungible token (or NFT) acts as a certificate you attach to digital goods. This certifies their authenticity and creates a sense of scarcity. This increases the value of things and decreases the chance of inauthentic or pirated work appearing on different platforms.
Although it isn’t perfect, it has allowed digital artists to start earning from projects that they previously struggled to solve.
What is Blockchain?
Blockchain would be the core of the entire process of making and transacting any crypto-asset that is currently on the market. While NFTs mostly use the Ethereum blockchain (utilizing their smart contracts function in the process), other crypto assets have their own blockchains in which their own transactions occur.
Think of a blockchain as an automated leger– sustained by what’s known to be crypto miners– that can manage, record, and execute deals between parties. In traditional financial settings, this would need third parties to verify the validity of each transaction. Modern technology is almost instantaneous, but back-end operations still rely on audits to ensure that each transaction was conducted in good faith.
Because the Blockchain relies on the transactions of the past, it eliminates the need to have third-party authenticationators. To defraud or duplicate trades within a blockchain, you must decouple and undo all the other transactions that succeeded. This is why Blockchain and the surrounding crypto market are interesting as they act as stepping stones towards the possible future of automated transactions between parties.
Can Anyone Make an NFT?
NFTs have become known as the “people’s token” as it allows what was usually a very centralized and exclusive art market to suddenly open up to newcomers and potential disrupters that can create quality artwork and distribute it to fans.
The best part about NFTs is that these distributions would be controlled. Every piece of art will be marked with an NFT token, indicating that it is authentic. This means that anyone can label any piece of art as their own by attaching an NFT receipt. However, abusers can also be found in any new technology. So let’s take the good with the bad.
OpenSea has customer support
Suppose you may need support with your OpenSea account, transactions, or other things related to the platform. You can send an email directly to support@opensea.io in this case. Include in your email a subject line that explains the nature of the problem and details about your account. They also have a ticket system that you can use to send an email.
If you have simple problems, it may be good to check out the FAQs currently listed on their website. One of their many entries may already have the answer to your concern.
