Memes are some of the best things about the modern Internet. They never fail to make us laugh and anchor us in present events.
Their purpose is to go beyond parodies and intertextualities. People have been using memes for some time for activism, virtual volunteering, and vigilantism, so we can say they’re more than pieces of entertainment.
That’s why they quickly became part of the crypto industry, especially since investors’ communities are partly fans of meme culture. Therefore, developers created meme NFTs and meme-based cryptocurrencies to engage with different audiences, which proved to be a successful strategy.
Meme digital coins like Dogecoin, created after the Shiba Inu meme, or Pepe coin, based on Pepe the Frog, became a digital sensation. But meme NFTs also became popular, so let’s explore the reasons for their fame.
What are meme NFTs?
Meme NFTs are basic memes turned into NFTs by artists who want to capitalize on the assets and authenticate their work. Considering how old some memes are, investors tend to be nostalgic and buy NFT-based memes for their own portfolios to maximize their value.
Memes can emerge from any piece of entertainment, including movies, music, and regular photos of people. That’s why they should not be taken seriously (in most cases, except when their purpose is to create space for discussion), especially since they’re made by people with different perspectives.
What are the most profitable NFT memes?
Of course, not all NFT memes are successful, just as not every meme is trending. Their popularity is fluctuating on social media, coming and going, which is what happens to assets as well.
Besides, these meme NFTs are also pretty notorious around crypto communities:
- The disaster girl;
- Dodge;
- Stonks;
- The grumpy cat;
- The keyboard cat;
Ethereum’s role in the making of meme NFTs
Ethereum was the main blockchain leveraged by developers to create meme NFTs since its tool package is continuously developing, and as expected the eth price spiked after the introduction of non-fungible tokens. Of course, blockchains like Solana are also useful, and Bitcoin has developed its own NFT technology called Ordinals.
However, we can identify two reasons why the Ethereum blockchain is more suitable for meme NFTs. First, its infrastructure offers access to smart contracts, the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), and decentralized applications (dApps).
Therefore, developers leverage the Solidity programming language to deploy smart contracts on the EVM runtime environment and use decentralized peer-to-peer networks.
On the other hand, Ethereum’s community is more likely to be into meme NFTs since it’s one of the most expanded audiences in the crypto industry. People from diverse backgrounds and perspectives, from advocates and researchers to investors and contributors, are engaging in the Ethereum blockchain.
Will meme NFTs be relevant in the future as well?
The popularity of meme NFTs cannot be ignored, especially since they provide both entertaining and financial benefits. But are they an investment for the future, considering the passing trends of memes? Some believe they’ll lose their value as Web3 approaches our internet era when entertainment is supposed to change.
However, others consider memes an opportunity for NFTs to receive greater monetization, as artists can sell their creations as digital assets to remain relevant to the changing market.
After all, memes became a new way of communicating to the masses, as they help people express their emotions and thoughts in a way that others can relate to and understand.
Should you invest in meme NFTs more?
Investing in the decentralized meme economy is great for portfolio diversification and market exposure. Remember that most of these NFT memes travel across social media platforms like Reddit and Telegram, where users hype them for increased value, so there will always be demand and supply.
On the other hand, if your main goal is to monetize meme NFTs, it would be best to keep up with the latest news and invest when specific projects are popular on the market. For example, Pepe coin experienced a massive price explosion this year, as social media played an important role in bringing it back to life after some time off.
That’s why you should adjust meme NFT investments as time goes on. Using them as long-term investments might not be optimal. Based on trends, their prices and popularity change quite fast, so they’re only beneficial at their best.
What about other meme-based assets?
Memes are prominent assets in the crypto market, and they expand across different technologies. For example, meme cryptocurrencies are gaining the media’s attention after Elon Musk made coins like the Dodge and Pepe coins famous through social media posts.
Meme stocks are also pretty popular, although not on the same level as cryptocurrencies or NFTs. Regardless, all these meme-based assets can pave the way towards new technologies and app development since they bring a new perspective on investments and what users should pursue in terms of financial tools.
Luckily, the Ethereum blockchain makes it easy for developers to create new assets and delve into trends, especially since it’s following an upgrading roadmap that will improve all its infrastructure and make it available to a larger user pool.
At the same time, Ethereum’s smart contracts help users check and provide NFT use of authenticity, verify ownership, and tokenization, facilitating the trading and exchange process. Decentralized marketplaces also ensure access to various types of NFTs through which investors can expand their portfolios.
What do you think about memes in the crypto industry?
Memes have been around for some time and are one of the most prominent internet features. They make people relate to one another and are a great source of entertainment, but that doesn’t limit their use cases.
That’s how meme NFTs were created, as developers wanted audiences to relate to their passions, resulting in a new trend. Meme NFTs like Dodge, Pepe, and Shiba Inu became popular examples of how a mere distraction can be capitalized on.
