A DISCORD OVERVIEW FOR THE NFT COMMUNITY

Discord is one of many social media platforms that the NFT (non-fungible token) community uses to showcase art, chat with one another, and trade NFT tips and advice. It is a popular platform for NFT artists, NFT art collectors, and NFT PFP traders. In this article, I will provide an overview of why the NFT community uses Discord, and how you can get started on the platform. 

My name is Lauren McDonagh-Pereira. I am a photographer, NFT artist, NFT collector, and web3 blogger. I have been fully immersed in the NFT art space since February 2022. And I have been part of the Tezos community since May 2022.

[caption id="attachment_78" align="aligncenter" width="300"]

Lauren McDonagh-Pereira[/caption]

Keep reading to learn more about Discord and the many opportunities it offers you to connect with members of the NFT community. 

Disclaimer

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ⓒ Lauren McDonagh-Pereira Photography 2013[/caption]

Before we get into it, please consider a few quick DISCLAIMERS.

• I am not a financial advisor, an art expert, a lawyer, or an accountant. Always do your own research before purchasing NFTs and never spend money that you cannot afford to spend. 

• This post represents my personal opinions and is NOT financial advice.

• I am an NFT artist. At the time of posting, I have works minted on the Tezos and Ethereum blockchains. Links contained in this article may point to my own minted NFTs or may point to the NFTs of other artists that I have collected from. If you choose to collect NFTs referenced in this article, I may earn money from your purchase.

What is Discord?

Discord is a social media platform that allows users to directly communicate with one another. It was first popularized by gamers who needed a way to chat with one another while they were playing multi-player video games online. Over the years, Discord has grown to accommodate a wide range of groups who need a way to communicate with others within their communities.

The Discord platform offers useful features such as the ability to send images, videos, other media, and custom emojis within its text chat channels. Discord users can also use video chat features to show their faces, or share their screens with others in its voice channels. 

Discord.com

What is a Discord Server?

Discord is divided into servers. When a user joins a server, they can participate in text and voice conversations with other server members. To join a Discord server, you need to accept an invitation link from someone who is  a member of that server.

The Flare community  is an excellent example of a Discord server. The server was built by community leaders in the NFT Artist community, @Tibalism, @itsltlthings, and others. NFT Artists and Photographers are invited to join the Discord server to share their latest work, build social connections, and share their knowledge about NFTs.

Flare Discord Server

What is a Discord Channel?

On Discord, users create channels within a server. Channels are used to discuss a specific topic of interest, to send private messages between specific users within a server, to catalog announcements by the server’s administrators, or to house casual chit chat. 

Within the Flare Discord community, there are channels that only the admin can add to, such as “Rules” and “Announcements”. There are channels for community chats, such as the “general-chat” were people can discuss anything, the “gm” channel where friends can greet each other when they hop on the server for the day, and the “teztunas” channel where artists can share their freshly minted Tezos art NFTs. NFT Artists meet in these channels, which help foster a sense of community.

Channels in the Flare Discord Server

Why Use Discord?

There are lots of social media platforms that NFT artists  and collectors can use to find, promote, and trade art. Twitter is the most popular choice for growing an audience as an NFT artist or as a high-profile NFT collector. (To learn how to grow your Twitter audience read: The 7 Traits that You Need to Gain Twitter Followers in the NFT Community). 

After Twitter, Discord is the second most popular social media choice for members of the NFT community. This is because Discord can be used to build your own community, to collaborate with other artists and collectors, to share and promote NFT art work, and to provide direct customer support to NFT collectors. 

Discord is a great platform for community building. Members of specific Discord servers become a community as they interact with each other through text and voice chats. NFT artists can connect with their fans and collectors in a Discord server on a regular basis.

Collaboration between artists and collectors is easy on Discord. The platform is filled with features that make it possible to plan group efforts via voice or text chat. It is also easy to share files and your computer screen on Discord. This allows NFT artists and NFT collectors who want to collaborate on a project to quickly share ideas and files without having to switch between different programs. 

Discord is a useful tool for NFT marketing and promotion. Artists can promote their work in appropriate Discord channels and can communicate directly with potential buyers. NFT artists and NFT project managers can also use Discord to share news and updates about upcoming NFT drops. This gives loyal community members an opportunity to collect popular NFTs before the general public becomes aware of them. 

Further, NFT artists can use Discord to provide customer support to their collectors. Collectors can directly ask questions about NFT projects within a server about the project. NFT artists can use Discord as another way to be available to their collectors for follow-up and support with their NFT projects. 

© Lauren McDonagh-Pereira Photography

Is Discord Safe to Use?

It is always important to do your own research before getting involved with a new social media platform. The internet, in general, is filled with scams and bad actors who want to steal your personal information, gain access to your financial accounts, or mislead you with false information. Discord is not different.

 When you are on Discord, you are communicating with individual people from all over the world with all sorts of intentions. It is important to behave accordingly. Discord is safe, as long as you practice basic web safety. 

It is important to protect your own safety and privacy on the interent. You should not share anything on Discord that you would not want to become public knowledge. Although Discord servers generally require an invitation to join, they are far from private. Anyone in the server can screenshot any bit of a conversation that they want and share it on the wider internet. Do not share your full name, address, or phone number with anyone that you do not trust, unless you are comfortable with that information being published on the internet. 

You must also be careful about opening links and attachments on Discord. If you do not know and trust the person who sent the link or attachment, it is best to not click it. Scammers often make profiles meant to look like the profiles of popular and trusted Discord users so that they can send out malicious links to unsuspecting users.

While using Discord on your phone or computer, make sure to use a web browser that is not connected to any of your crypto wallets. It’s too easy to be tricked by a link that looks trustworthy. To protect your NFT and crypto assets it's best not to have your crypto wallets open while you are using Discord. 

Another way to keep yourself safe, is to choose who you interact with carefully. If someone is behaving in a harassing or abusive manner in a server, you can report that person to a server administrator. The administrator can give that person a warning, or block them from the server. If a server administrator does not support you in the dispute, you can choose to leave the server and find one where you feel more comfortable. 

By following these basic safety practices, you can enjoy using Discord while protecting your privacy and security. Always be cautious, use your best judgment, and do your own research.

© Lauren McDonagh-Pereira Photography

Can Discord Be Used on a Mobile Device?

Many people think of Discord as a desktop-only application, but there are robust mobile apps available for both iOS and Android devices. You can download Discord to your phone or tablet through the Apple App Store or the Google Play Store. These apps offer many of the same features as the better known desktop app. 

The Discord mobile app will allow you to participate in text chats and voice chats. The app will let you create and join new servers, and it will allow you to create new channels within servers you administer. From the app, you can access your settings, manage your notifications, and customize your  profile. 

A phone or tablet with the Discord app should be perfectly adequate for most NFT artists and collectors to start using the platform. You can download the app today, join some friendly servers and get started!

© Lauren McDonagh-Pereira Photography

How to Get Started on Discord

The easiest way to get started in Discord is to download the app, join a server, and participate in a text channel. To do so, follow these steps:

1. Download and install the Discord app on your phone, tablet or computer.

2. Follow the prompts to create a new account (or log in to an existing account).

3. Join a server by clicking on an invitation link. These links might be sent to your directly by someone that you know, or listed on an NFT community’s Twitter page.[caption id="attachment_1739" align="aligncenter" width="499"]

   

   Discord Servers[/caption]

4. Read the rules and guidelines that have been posted to the server’s welcome section. Make sure that you adhere to these rules or you may find yourself removed from the server.

5. Find a text channel within the server that you would like to participate in.[caption id="attachment_1740" align="aligncenter" width="505"]

   

   Text Channels in a Server[/caption]

6. Scroll up to read the most recent conversation in the server and to get an idea of what people are currently chatting about.

7. Type your response to the conversation in the text field at the bottom of the screen and press “Enter” to send it. (If you are on a desktop, you can press “Shift” and “Enter” at the same time to start a new line for your message without sending it.)[caption id="attachment_1738" align="aligncenter" width="505"]

   

   Text Box on Mobile Discord App[/caption]

8. You can add an emoji to your message by clicking on the smily face icon to the right of the text field and selecting the emoji that best fits your message.[caption id="attachment_1741" align="aligncenter" width="505"]

   

   Add an Emoji[/caption]

9. You can send an image or file to the channel by clicking on the paperclip icon next to the text field and uploading a file from your device. (Note: Some servers restrict who has the ability to add attachments to the channel. If you are having issues, you may not have attachment sending privileges in that particular channel).[caption id="attachment_1742" align="aligncenter" width="505"]

   

   Add an Attachment[/caption]

10. Wait for someone to respond to your message in the channel, then add a relevant response to keep the conversation flowing!

Remember! Be respectful, follow the explicit server rules, try to follow the norms of a server’s culture, and have fun!

How to Participate in a Voice Channel on Discord

One of the most exciting things about Discord is that it offers an option to chat as a group either through voice chat or video chat. To join a Voice chat, follow the steps below:

1. Open the Discord app on your device.

2. Log into your  account.

3. Open a server that you have joined that has a Voice Channel. 

4. Find the Voice Channel (usually at the bottom of the list of channels) and click on it.[caption id="attachment_1743" align="aligncenter" width="505"]

   

   Voice Channel[/caption]

5. Make sure that you have a microphone set up, and that you have given the Discord app permission to access your microphone

6. Click the “Join Voice” button to join the voice channel.[caption id="attachment_1744" align="aligncenter" width="505"]

   

   Join Voice[/caption]

7. If other people are in the voice channel, you should now be able to hear them talking.

8. When it seems appropriate, click and hold the “Push to Talk Button” to unmute your microphone so that you can add to the conversation. 

9. Press the “Mute” button whenever you want to turn off your microphone and listen to others in the voice channel.

10. When you want to leave the voice channel, find the “Leave Voice” button and click on it. 

Remember to follow the community rules and norms or you risk getting kicked out of the server. 

How Do NFT Community Members Get More Involved in Discord?

To build up your presence on Discord, you need to participate frequently. Be selective and join a few servers that you can check in on regularly. Over time, as you participate in text and voice channels, people will get to know you and what you offer to the NFT community. 

Remember to always be kind, be respectful, to do your own research, and to make safe choices to get the most out of Discord. 

Conclusion

Discord is one of many tools that NFT artists and collectors can use to build the NFT community.  When used correctly, Discord is a powerful platform for making connections with like-minded people from all over the world.  

Why are you excited to use Discord as a tool on your NFT journey? Let me know in the comments!

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MEET Lauren McDonagh-Pereira

Lauren McDonagh-Pereira is a photographer from Massachusetts, USA. She captures the beauty of the world around her, favoring Nikon cameras and lenses. She is drawn to shooting landscapes, wildlife, nature, and people authentically enjoying life. 

Tweet me @LAMPphotography

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