Author name: @nobumei (https://twitter.com/nobu_mei)
<aside> 💡 This page explains the sources of value of the NFT.
</aside>
In the previous sections, we looked at NFT cases and how NFT works. In this section, we will look at how NFT is used.
NFT has a background of becoming widely popular as "something that makes you feel Flex".
"Flex " is a slang word meaning "dress up, or show off”. Originally, it meant "to show off one's muscles," but it is also used to say, "I'm wearing an expensive dress today and I'm Flex (i.e., I'm looking good), so look at me.”
In the past, what individuals were able to Flex by "owning" were luxury watches, cool sneakers and cool fashion brands, but as a result of the recent COVID-19 that has rapidly reduced communication in real space, the "opportunity to Flex" is being lost.
The value of a Flex object is "the number of people who feel that the object is Flex. In other words, the community is the source of value. The reason why people think it is great to have a 10,000 yen bill is because they belong to a Japanese community that feels that the 10,000 yen bill has value.
If the community shrinks and the number of people who believe the object has value declines, the value will decay, transforming the object into a decaying shrine or a local ruin.
NFT has exploded as a way to experience "Flex feelings," in the digital world, which until now could only be felt through real-life communication.
Humans are social creatures. Humans have a habit of trying to fulfill their social status by paying for wasteful things.
For example, enthusiastic fans called "idol otaku" sometimes make their own supporting goods with many badges of their idols on their bags and clothes. This is an act of trying to differentiate themselves from other fans by showing people that they can afford it financially, in addition to their love for the idol.
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Humans may engage in seemingly futile and irrational behavior to satisfy their own need for approval. This is the reason why expensive NFTs continue to sell so well. People instinctively want to appeal to others for the difference between themselves and others, and NFTs that can digitally prove that "difference" which is a perfect fit for the Flex concept.
Since the NFT can prove this "difference" to everyone in an obvious way, enthusiastic fans are willing to put up the money to express that "difference". If there are two or more fans who want it, the price is blue sky. It is not that a higher price is better, but NFT is suited for applications to express the difference from others, and if NFT is placed at the point where people want to express [difference] from others, a Flex high value NFT can be created.
When planning and designing NFT, it is necessary to think carefully about adding value to the NFT sales process by designing a Flex experience for the buyer, rather than viewing NFT sales as a simple digital data sale.
There are three conditions for a Flex NFT to represent the difference.