When you hop into an NFT project’s chat, you’ve probably noticed that one trader who can’t stop talking about the floor price. They’re obsessed with finding ways to increase it! The floor price, which is the minimum price for buying or selling an NFT, is a big deal in NFT communities. But is it really the ultimate measure of success as many believe?
While high NFT floor prices have traditionally dominated discussions, the NFT market is evolving, offering a wider range of price points that cater to more than just traders looking for big profits. The rise of compressed NFTs (cNFTs) on the Solana blockchain has made the creation of NFTs cheaper. Projects like Drip Haus, an NFT distribution platform for artists, are taking advantage of cheap NFT minting and helping change the narrative that high floor prices are the only measure of a project’s success.
The influence of Web3 and blockchain games is also growing. Games need players, and most players won’t spend a fortune on an NFT just to play a blockchain game. Instead, the focus is shifting towards accessibility and inclusivity, promoting larger communities over exclusive clubs.
At Stache, our vision focuses on individuals and their communities, providing sellers with their own shops and the option to join and sell on our soon-to-be-released Community Hubs. Floor prices are not the primary focus as we continue to shape our new Web3 Bazaar.
Time for a Reality Check
While floor prices for NFTs matter for some projects, they’re not everything. They’re not as important as traders want you to think, especially for items that are not highly sought-after collectibles. Not every NFT collection must be made into a set of luxury items to be a success.
To help put things in perspective, let’s consider Pokémon cards, which are popular and highly collectible. Most cards are affordable and easily found in stores, often sold in inexpensive bundles on secondary markets.
eBay’s data shows that the — weekly average sold item price — for ALL cards is around $25, while ungraded cards (not professionally verified) go for about $16.
What if all card sellers demanded The Pokémon Company increase the floor price of their cards on secondary markets? Sounds crazy, right? The reality is, many NFTs are more like collectible cards. While some view NFTs as investments, the primary goal is not to turn them into high-priced investment products or securities. Raising the floor price for NFTs might not be the most practical or sensible strategy.
Motivations Beyond Trading
With high floor prices, are we truly welcoming more people into NFT communities? What’s the end goal here?
People buy NFTs for various reasons. Just like collectors of physical cards, each individual has their own motivations. Some collect for the joy of it, while others may play card games and seek specific cards for their deck. Different motivations lead to different buying, selling, and trading behaviors for both physical and digital items.
Most NFT marketplaces are designed for traders since they’re currently the primary buyers and drive up floor prices. But what if we started creating collections for people beyond traders? What if we considered motivations beyond increasing the floor price?
Enter Compressed NFTs & Drip Haus
Compression on Solana significantly reduces the cost of creating NFTs (read more about cNFTs here). The cost-effectiveness benefits creators as they can create many more NFTs at more affordable prices. Unlike traditional NFTs, collections of cNFTs are generally much larger (the largest on Solana so far is 500k) and have relatively low floor prices. But the price is largely irrelevant to a collection’s success and isn’t used as a metric. Instead, the focus is on building engaged communities, making the value of collections extend beyond mere floor prices.
The low costs of minting cNFT have enabled projects like Drip Haus, to freely distribute millions of cNFTs, forming a massive community of collectors in the process. Being free and having large collection sizes means low floor prices, but the primary focus is on distributing art and providing artists with a platform to showcase their work to a large audience.
For example, the first generative pfp (profile picture) collection distributed by Drip Haus was The Faceless by Wombat, which has a current floor price of 0.0096 $SOL ($0.25 USD). What makes The Faceless special is the appeal of collecting different combinations, leading to the creation of sub-communities that collect different variations in the traits of the art.
The Faceless also served as a catalyst for the creation of the McDegens DAO (decentralized autonomous organization) and is the first DAO focused on developing the tech and infrastructure needed to further support cNFTs on Solana. The value is in the art and community, not the floor price.
Drip’s success shows that NFT value is no longer just about expensive price tags; it’s also about building an engaged community that appreciates the art and community itself.
Affordable Game Items & Web 3 Games
Unless a blockchain game is exclusively designed for the wealthy, a high floor price for entry can discourage potential players. Many popular games (that don’t use NFTs) are free-to-play, where the barrier of entry is having a device that can run the game, not the cost of access to the game itself.
Some of the best examples come from non-blockchain games, as they’ve been lowering barriers for decades now. Take a game like Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO), a popular tactical first-person shooter on Steam. In CS:GO, players can earn weapon skins and cases (loot boxes) of different rarities, which they can sell on Steam’s marketplace.
Over the years, businesses have developed third-party apps dedicated to selling digital collectibles for games like CS:GO, providing a diverse range of items at varying price points. These collectibles are also supplied by individual sellers from the game’s player base. While rare items can be expensive, players have the opportunity to collect a variety of weapon skins across different price brackets. This enables players to find options that fit their budget while still enjoying the thrill of collecting unique in-game assets.
Having ownership of NFTs becomes less meaningful when entry-level items are too expensive. If we increase barriers by raising prices for the sake of raising the floor price, we risk creating exclusive clubs and slowing the growth of Web3 games. Instead, we should prioritize affordability and community involvement, as they are crucial for creating a thriving and inclusive Web3 gaming ecosystem.
To fully embrace the Web3 ethos, we must also promote permissionless and decentralized marketplaces, where players actively participate in shaping and driving the market. Once again, it’s not just about traders; the entire gaming community should play a large role in the growth and success of NFTs within the Web3 ecosystem.
Within Stache’s Bazaar, we’re actively creating community Hubs for individual shop owners (players) to join, much like an affiliate program. The Hubs will showcase player collectibles on the game’s official page, but the items are still listed and sold through player-owned shops. This approach gives players more power. It also helps build a sense of ownership and control within the marketplace and community.
Conclusion
Floor prices are no longer the only measure of success. While they still matter in some cases like luxury items, we must shift our focus toward accessibility and inclusivity. Compressed NFTs on Solana have opened up new possibilities, making NFT creation more affordable and showing us that success is not just about high prices.
As we look to the future, let’s remember that NFTs should be for everyone, not just traders. People have different motivations for buying NFTs, and we should cater to their diverse needs. By embracing community-driven initiatives and player-driven economies, we can make NFTs more enjoyable and engaging for all.
At Stache, our vision revolves around empowering both individuals and communities to help redefine NFT success. We want to build a diverse and creative NFT ecosystem where everyone can participate.
Create a shop and explore the Bazaar in our Beta now at — https://app.stache.io/
About Stache
We believe smart accounts will be the key to unlocking everything in Web3, and we’re building the first one for Solana.
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