NFTs have become somewhat of an overnight trend, becoming extremely popular in a short amount of time. Now NFTs and NFT marketplaces have become household words that are tossed around in daily conversation. 

Although NFTs have become crazy popular so fast, many people still do not understand the basics of NFTs, what can be done with an NFT once it has been purchased, and other general knowledge about NFTs. That’s why this article is going to explain 9 different and popular uses of NFTs.

If you have questions about NFTs, specifically what you can do with an NFT once you buy it, you are in the right place! We have all the answers to your questions about what NFTs are for!

Disclosure: I need to disclose that I am not a financial adviser, and the information in this article and website should not be used as financial advice.

What Are NFTs?

First, let us go over the basics of what NFTs are! An NFT, or non-fungible token, is a form of digital ownership of digital property. Almost everything is done over NFT marketplaces, and all aspects of selling, buying, and marketing NFTs are digital. 

Most NFT marketplaces are on a blockchain called Ethereum (yet, there are numerous other blockchains used for NFTs like Polygon, FLOW, and Solana, to name a few). All use cryptocurrency as the primary currency to buy and sell NFTs.

NFTs can be a wide variety of things. Think of an NFT as anything you can sell or own digitally, like art, music, website domain names, GIFs, memes, or pieces of writing like poems or Tweets

If this is still confusing to you, then try to think of it like this: NFTs can be seen as an investment! You are buying an asset to use for some purpose that serves you and not just intrinsic value.

It’s also possible that you could resell the NFT to try and turn a profit when the time is right. 

NFT Games Spider Tanks
In-game shot of “play to earn” Spider Tanks

Game NFTs

The first type of NFT we will talk about in this article is game NFTs! Game NFTs have been a somewhat controversial type of NFT in the NFT world and the gaming world, so let us explore the controversy surrounding game NFTs and what you can use them for!

Game NFTs are somewhat different depending on the game that the NFT is for and/or used in. Game NFTs can be customizable options for your character’s appearance, particular kits, or other things that you can use in-game and then resell if you want. 

Essentially you can use game NFTs in the game that you buy them in to achieve status, levels, power, or other marketed uses.

Game NFTs are pretty reliant on the game they are a part of, so it can be hard to specifically say what game NFTs are used for in a general sense.

Game Controversy Issues

Game NFTs, as stated earlier, have a little bit of a controversy surrounding them.

It seems to some people that there is a fear that game companies will ride the wave of the NFT craze too fast and too quickly so that people will be buying game NFT packs to try to get something incredibly useful for the game or something that they can resell, but that the chances of getting something valuable will be so low that it will be a waste of peoples money.

Again, this concern is primarily based on specifics. The NFTs in question would have to have a sense of mystery behind them, like a mystery character pack that could be incredibly valuable or worth nothing. 

Folks are also worried that game developers will try to shove NFTs and blockchain technology into all types of games, including ones that do not need or benefit from this type of digital asset.

The bottom line is that a game NFT is a type of in-game purchase that has exclusive value to that game and thus gives the owner power or different character appearances that others may not have access to.

Of course, the NFT can eventually be sold for a loss or profit.

Music NFTs

Music NFTs are thought to be a way to balance the scales and provide musicians with more equity and equal payments for their work.

The way most NFTs and NFT marketplaces work is revolutionary when it comes to giving credit and payment where it is due and giving the original creators of the NFT fair royalties.

NFT marketplaces often have secondary sale royalties, where if an NFT is resold, then a percentage of that second sale and all future sales goes to the original artist, in this case, a musician!

So the world of NFTs is an excellent place for musicians to begin to explore new ways of attaining more revenue without middlemen!

Plus, it’s a fast and easy way for beatmakers to sell beats without a hassle. Just turn that dope beat into an NFT and sell it to another artist.

Of course, when the NFT is sold, the owner relinquishes the technical rights to the music NFT, but because of secondary sale royalties, anyone who buys the NFT contributes to the artist.

There is also so much room for creativity with music NFTs. Musicians creating NFTs can attach perks like VIP seating at concerts, merch NFTs (digital and physical), meet and greats, early access to new newly released music. The sky is the limit.

If you are a musician ready to get involved, check out this guide: How to Sell music as an NFT (Ultimate Beginner’s Guide).

NFT uses

Collectible NFTs

Collectible NFTs are best for, well, collecting! Collectible NFTs are an excellent option for people who love all kinds of art, music, gaming, sports, literature, CryptoPunks, and even Tweets and memes. (This list is extensive and getting more creative as time goes on.)

Collectible NFTs can gain value and can be resold. This makes them potentially great for investment. They can also make your NFT collection increase in value, as the more rare NFTs you have in your collection, the more exclusive and valuable your collection becomes.

There are also other values these types of NFTs provide: intrinsic and social status. You’ll see owners use their bought NFTs on social media like Instagram or flat out use the NFT as their social profile picture. (Just don’t screenshot an NFT and say you own it, that’s lame.)

If you have a super desirable and rare NFT, it’s pretty natural to want to show it off.

And speaking of showing off, there are now specific social media sites dedicated to NFT collections, and people even throw them in galleries in Metaverses like Decentralnd.

Or, if you want to display your collection on high-res 4K screens with natural wood frames in your home or office, this company, Token Frame, will help you out.

Need more ideas of how to show off? There is a whole article dedicated to showing off your NFTs here.

Utility NFTs

Utility NFTs are pretty cool, and just as their name implies, they are pretty useful! A utility NFT is sometimes when, along with the metadata ownership of the NFT, there is a physical and/or digital component that is also purchased.

So, a utility NFT can be exclusive in-person events, invites and access to future whitelists, memberships to exclusive clubs or groups, access to airdrops, or for physical use in the digital world, like in a video game.

Utility NFTs are almost redeemable if that makes it easier to think of. It is like bidding on an experience at an auction, you are buying the “metadata” of the experience, but when the time comes, you go to the experience.

Thus, the best thing to do with utility NFTs is to use them for their purpose! In games, they can unlock different experiences within the game. Some sellers use NFTs to sell access to unreleased products or experiences, while others have virtual or physical events that buyers can attend. 

Depending on what utility NFT you buy, you can increase your social standing, in-game status, or product collection, so they are pretty valuable, especially when it comes to products or experiences that are not usually available to the public (non-NFT owners). 

Art NFTs

Buying art NFTs is one of the best ways to directly support artists and help to create an even playing field for all artists to compete on.

Art can be an incredibly cutthroat industry, very similar to the music industry. Many artists struggle to gain attention because they are not known or do not have a connection within the art industry yet.

Buying art NFTs helps to put money into the pockets of artists, as well as raise their status in the art world. 

The best thing you can do with an art NFT is to display the artwork, resell the NFT (remember artists automatically receive royalties on secondary sales through smart contracts), or add it to your collection! Any of these options may put more money in your pocket and the original artist’s pocket or shows your status with your art. 

Since you own the rights to the metadata and digital art, you can do what you want with it (except make copies and resell them.) 

Domain NFTs

Domain NFTs are a cool way of creating websites and places for people to discover on the internet. Domain names are often already bought when someone goes to try and create a webpage under a particular domain name. 

So, domain NFTs are a perfect way for those companies or people who already own the rights to the domain to resell the domain to those who want to use the domain. Here are the other differences and advantages with domain NFTs:

  • Blockchain and Web3 Compatable: you can recieve crypto and login in with wallets.
  • No annual fees: if you own a website now you understand that you have to pay an annual fee to say GoDaddy or Google. With NFT domains it remains attached to the blockchain and no annual fees are necessary.
  • Wallet Address: you can use the domain name as a wallet address and not some long numerical code.

It is also great for the original owners to receive royalty payments if their NFT domain gets resold at any time. 

NFT uses
Picture showing NFT art displayed in TokenFrames

So What Exactly Can I Do With My NFTs?

Now that we have gone over the specifics of what you can do with certain types of NFTs let us look at some more general uses and things to do with NFTs!

#1: Investment NFTs

Like we said earlier, you can buy NFTs to invest in! For this, you have to know what is going to be valuable, popular, or desired in the future, just like how you view the economy and stock market. 

Investment purchasing of NFTs is a major risk, like with any type of investment. It is easy to think that there is no consequence when buying an NFT as an investment, but there are the same risks associated with NFT investment buys and stock market investments. 

Doing this with your NFTs is a long-term project and requires monitoring the NFT marketplace of your choice and remaining up to date with all that is happening in the world and marketplace to know when to sell your NFT.

Generally speaking, there are more losers than winners, and you need to be aware of oversaturation.

#2: Display

Your NFTs, typically, are yours once you buy them and have the certificate. This means that within the ownership rights that you have, you can display and use your NFT to your heart’s content!

This means making it viewable and, depending on what you do with it, available to public view.

What you can’t do is make physical prints copies of the NFT and start selling them. This would be copyright infringement.

#3: Using the Utility 

Some NFTs and utility NFTs can be used or cashed in, in a sense. This is another thing to do with your NFTs that have this type of ability.

Some gaming NFTs have this kind of thing, where you can cash in your NFT at certain times in the game when you need or want something that the NFT can give you.

You can also use these kinds of NFTs to exchange them for skins, customizable game features, avatars, or exclusive access to games earlier than other people.

Some NFTs, as mentioned in the section on utility NFTs, allow you access to real-life, non-digital events, like clubs, events, parties, members-only or exclusive places, and other events of the sort. In this case, your NFT is kind of like your ticket into the event, so you would use your NFT to gain access to the event.

Other NFTs can get you products that have yet to be released to the public! This is great for influencers, product reviewers, and people who need to remain on-trend to stay popular.

Nothing makes you more popular than knowing the hottest new thing on the market that no one else has access to. 

Conclusion

Getting into NFTs is an excellent way for all types of artists, musicians, and other types of owners to make money and create a name for themselves in the artistic realm that they exist in!

There are so many types of NFTs and more that keep showing up every day, with unique and new uses, so the most important thing is to remain updated with what is going on in the NFT world and keep learning about new revelations! That’s y this website exists to help you get involved in the digital revolution.

For more insight and help, check out these three super popular articles:

  1. 10 Reasons Why NFTs Will Change the World
  2. How to Attach an NFT to Digital Art (7 Easy Steps)
  3. What is the Average Cost to Mint and Sell an NFT? (Top Marketplace Examples)

Sources

Gemini

Nintendo Life

N26

NFT Desire