While the Creature World team released novel NFT experiences throughout 2021 and 2022 specifically designed for holders of their genesis Creature NFT collection, "Crowd" was their first primary sale since the original Creature mint in 2021. “Crowd” is a generative open edition, meaning the supply is limited by time, not by a set quantity. The generative element of “Crowd” was particularly innovative: the color combination of each individual piece changed with each generation, creating a virtually infinite supply of unique pieces. The piece was an expression of the ways the Creature World universe aims to unite people from all walks of life, and an ode to the beauty that results from diverse groups of people coming together.

Creature World sought to make “Crowd” accessible by setting a lower price point (about $50 USD at the time of the launch) and by leveraging OpenSea’s fiat enablement via MoonPay, so new collectors could easily mint using a credit or debit card.

Open editions began rising in popularity in late 2022 as a way for web3 artists and founders to diversify the ways they can release NFTs. Open editions tend to be lower in price point and therefore welcome a wider range of collectors, and they place more focus on the primary sale than volume on the secondary market. By launching an open edition, creators are able to offer lower prices and less scarce NFTs, alongside their higher priced and more exclusive NFTs, reaching both ends of the market and diversifying their revenue streams. “Crowd” capitalized on this emerging trend by launching during its peak, and innovated further by featuring generative artwork.

OpenSea not only helped with the technical side of preparing for and executing the “Crowd” launch, but also was a consultative partner, advising on best practices for contract deployment. If they were to do the drop by themselves, the Creature World team would have had to build their own website, develop their own smart contract, and find a way to implement a buy-with-card option. Creature World also found it incredibly valuable to have access to OpenSea team members across product and engineering before, during, and after the drop.

OpenSea created a holistic, bespoke marketing plan for “Crowd,” which included  touchpoints across OpenSea’s social channels, editorial surfaces (i.e. the OpenSea blog), email, and website placements. OpenSea understood the importance of staying true to the Creature World brand throughout all the marketing assets and messaging. At the same time, OpenSea’s marketing team took care to leverage the more accessible price point and supply of the open edition, strategically expanding the audience beyond the current community. For example, OpenSea leaned into historical data to help identify potential interested collectors, like those who had ever owned a Creature from their genesis collection.

If Creature World had built their own independent website and mint experience, it would have been easier for bad actors to create a malicious copycat site, and would have made it harder for the community to know what was the “real” page. Launching on OpenSea allowed the Creature World team to avoid all that headache and simply rely on the trusted OpenSea platform.

OpenSea created a holistic, bespoke marketing plan for “Crowd,” which included  touchpoints across OpenSea’s social channels, editorial surfaces (i.e. the OpenSea blog), email, and website placements. OpenSea understood the importance of staying true to the Creature World brand throughout all the marketing assets and messaging. At the same time, OpenSea’s marketing team took care to leverage the more accessible price point and supply of the open edition, strategically expanding the audience beyond the current community. For example, OpenSea leaned into historical data to help identify potential interested collectors, like those who had ever owned a Creature from their genesis collection.

If Creature World had built their own independent website and mint experience, it would have been easier for bad actors to create a malicious copycat site, and would have made it harder for the community to know what was the “real” page. Launching on OpenSea allowed the Creature World team to avoid all that headache and simply rely on the trusted OpenSea platform.