Why Minting Multiple Collections is a Bad Idea for Content Entrepreneurs

From gamers to digital artists, musicians to chefs, a new breed of creator has emerged: the content entrepreneur. The world of content creation has evolved from a mere hobby to a transformative force in our cultural and economic landscapes. Today, the creator economy is valued at approximately $100 billion globally, with an estimated 50 million individuals identifying as creatives, either working independently or within the growing ecosystem of startups.

The Struggle for Fair Compensation

However, the path to success in the creator economy is not without its challenges. Despite talent and hard work, many creators find themselves grappling with inadequate compensation. The average income for a full-time creator in the United States falls below $50,000 making it difficult for many to cover food, rent and living expenses. The competitive nature of the industry and high operating costs mean that only a mere 4% of creators manage to earn a sustainable income from their content. According to a 2022 Linktree report, a staggering 46% of creators make less than $1,000 per year.

The High Costs and Diluted Focus

Minting multiple collections comes with a range of costs and resource requirements that can significantly impact a creator's ability to scale to multiple collections. Here’s a look at the specific costs and their implications for content entrepreneurs:

Time and Effort

Each collection requires substantial time and effort to conceptualize, create, and curate. From brainstorming unique themes and designs to producing high-quality content, creators invest countless hours in bringing each collection to life.

Managing multiple collections multiplies the time and effort required, stretching the creator's resources thin. This can result in compromised quality, rushed production, and a diminished overall experience for collectors.

Financial Investment

Launching and maintaining NFT collections involve various financial investments. These can include upfront costs for artwork creation, graphic design, audio production, marketing, and platform fees for minting and hosting. Each collection necessitates a separate budget allocation, and scaling to multiple collections amplifies these financial commitments. Creators may find themselves burdened by increased expenses, impacting their profitability and ability to generate substantial revenue.

Marketing and Promotion

Promoting and marketing collections are crucial for attracting collectors and generating sales. However, marketing efforts require additional expenses such as advertising, social media campaigns, influencers, and community engagement.

Managing multiple collections not only multiplies these marketing costs but also makes it challenging to allocate sufficient resources to effectively promote each collection. As a result, the reach and impact of marketing campaigns may be diluted, leading to reduced visibility and lower sales potential.

Ongoing Costs of Collection and Utility Maintenance

Beyond the initial launch, ongoing collection and utility maintenance also impose additional costs on creators. These expenses may include:

1. Community Management:

Maintaining an engaged and active community around each collection requires ongoing effort. Creators must dedicate time and resources to interact with their collectors, respond to inquiries, address concerns, and foster a sense of belonging. Managing multiple communities can be overwhelming, leading to reduced engagement and community satisfaction.

2. Technical Upkeep:

Ensuring the seamless functioning of each collection's infrastructure and utilities requires continuous technical maintenance. This includes monitoring smart contracts, addressing technical issues, updating features, and integrating new functionalities. With multiple collections, the technical demands multiply, potentially stretching the creator's technical resources and expertise to their limits.

3. Content Refreshment:

To sustain collector interest and ongoing demand, creators may need to regularly refresh their collections with new content, collaborations, or limited edition releases. However, managing multiple collections makes it challenging to consistently produce fresh and captivating content for each one. This can lead to stagnation, diminishing the overall appeal and desirability of the collections.

Fragmented Communities

Building a vibrant and engaged community is essential for sustainable success in the creator economy. However, minting multiple collections can lead to fragmented and disconnected communities.

By spreading their audience across different collections, creators risk diluting the sense of belonging and engagement within each community. A scattered approach can undermine the development of a loyal and devoted fan base, hindering long-term growth and revenue potential, making it difficult to scale efficiently.

By prioritizing the unity of a single community, and focusing financial and personal investment in the growth of a single project, content entrepreneurs can cultivate stronger connections, maximize engagement, and create a more sustainable and prosperous ecosystem within the creator economy.

By embracing a focused approach and leveraging community-specific utility, creators can address the challenges mentioned earlier and overcome the limitations of minting multiple collections. The saved time, money, and resources from concentrating on a single theme or concept can be reinvested in nurturing a unified community, delivering high-quality experiences, and fostering deeper engagement.

Community fragmentation — a result of minting multiple collections — can lead to diluted connections and diminished engagement. However, by focusing on a single collection, creators can cultivate a stronger sense of belonging, encourage deeper engagement, and establish a more dedicated and loyal following. This unified community allows for more personalized and immersive experiences, which ultimately leads to increased collector satisfaction and higher potential for revenue generation.

Instead, those saved resources can be channeled into developing community-specific utility. Understanding the unique needs and desires of the community enables creators to design features, services, and digital goods that enhance the utility of their collection. This tailored approach reinforces the bond between creators and collectors, fostering a vibrant ecosystem where collectors feel valued and rewarded for their participation. The community-specific utility not only deepens the sense of engagement but also contributes to long-term sustainability and growth.

The Impact on Floor Price Across Collections

There's another crucial aspect to consider when debating the strategy of minting multiple collections: the potential impact on the floor price of a creator's work.

In the world of NFTs, the 'floor price' refers to the lowest price at which a piece from an NFT collection is listed for sale on the market. The floor price is a critical indicator of a collection's perceived value. A well thought out and well-funded collection stands a better chance of retaining or even increasing its floor price over time, reflecting a strong demand and higher perceived value.

However, minting multiple collections, particularly those that haven't been well thought through or fail to offer anything new or innovative, can have a negative impact on the floor prices across all of a creator's work. With each new collection, the focus is divided further, potentially diluting the quality and uniqueness of each offering.

With every poorly planned or redundant collection, the overall perception of a creator's work may suffer, decreasing the perceived value and thus, the floor price. This is a significant risk, as a declining floor price can lead to lower earnings from sales and even impact the creator's reputation in the market.

Moreover, from the collector's perspective, too many collections from a single creator might lead to oversupply, reducing the rarity or uniqueness of individual pieces, and thereby lowering the demand and driving down the floor price. Instead, if creators focus their resources and creativity on a single collection, they can maintain a higher standard of quality and innovation. This strategy will not only help in preserving or increasing the floor price but also promote long-term engagement and loyalty among collectors.

It is essential to remember that in the creator economy, success is not merely about quantity but quality and uniqueness. By focusing on a singular vision, backed by tools like Aspen's Revenue Toolkits, creators can navigate the complex landscape of the creator economy and build a sustainable, rewarding career in the world of NFTs.

Like we said, minting multiple collections is a bad idea

In the fast-growing creator economy, the struggle for fair compensation is real. Many creators find themselves grappling with inadequate income despite their talent and hard work. While minting multiple collections may seem attractive at first glance, it's crucial to understand the potential consequences, including diluted quality, fragmented communities, and most importantly, a lower floor price across collections. Focusing on a single, well-curated collection is often a more sustainable and profitable approach in the long term.

The high costs and diluted focus associated with managing multiple collections pose substantial challenges for content entrepreneurs. Time, financial investments, and marketing efforts are stretched thin, leading to compromised quality and reduced visibility. Ongoing maintenance and community management become overwhelming, hindering engagement and satisfaction. Additionally, fragmented communities can diminish the sense of belonging and hinder long-term growth.

However, there is a better approach.

By focusing on a single collection and leveraging community-specific utility powered by Aspen’s Revenue Tools, creators can overcome these challenges and unlock the full potential of their creative endeavors.

In a landscape where the average income for a full-time creator is less than $50,000, it's crucial to make strategic decisions that maximize revenue potential and engagement — not to mention saving time, money and resources where possible

By focusing on a singular vision, supported by an Aspen Storefront, creators can stand out in the competitive creator economy, attract a loyal following, and start or scale new revenue streams to beat the statistics and establish a permanent home (and career!) in web3.