Okay Bears: A More-Than-Okay Milestone for Solana NFTs

The Okay Bears NFT project is one that has been featured in headlines across many tech and crypto news sites recently. Okay Bears is a Solana PFP NFT project with many variations of cartoon bears. Buyers who are considering investing in this new Solana NFT project should first understand what the Okay Bears are, the features of the project’s blueprint, and its performance. This guide will explain all of these points, price trends, and why the Okay Bears NFT project is so popular.

What Are Okay Bears?

Okay Bears are algorithmically-generated NFTs that were released in April 2022 on the Solana blockchain. With a total of 10,000 bears initially priced at 1.5 SOL each, the collection has taken over the Solana NFT market with an alluring culture shift that focuses on good vibes.

Okay Bears tokens were created by a team of people who wanted to cultivate a vibrant and relaxed community. To accomplish this, the community focused on acceptance, progress and good vibes. The Okay Bears characters were generated by an algorithm, and each one comes with utility. Among other benefits, some of these utilities include merch drops, live events and outdoor campaigns. The creators collaborated with global brands to offer the utilities. After the tokens sold out on their first day, the creators broke records and created NFT history.

The purchase price for the Solana PFP NFT bears was equal to almost $150 in American currency at the time of minting. As of late May 2022, each of the bears was worth about 90 SOL, or $8,850. Two reasons why the Solana PFP NFT bears were so successful at the time of their release were the hype the creators built, and the innovative design of the project's blueprint, which we’ll cover later in more detail.

The Okay Bears are "okay" instead of being subpar or extraordinary. Anonymous co-founders who go by the names of Kais and Suby offer a community where people can simply be “okay” together and support one another. The record-breaking success of the Okay Bears has helped reshape the way investors view Solana NFT projects. When Okay Bears reached $18 million in sales in one day, it also marked the first time any Solana NFT project outperformed an individual Ethereum project in daily trading volume.

Why Are Okay Bears NFTs So Popular?

What makes the Okay Bears Solana NFT project different from other NFT projects that are also popular? In addition to the intriguing stories of the bears and their benefits, there were several reasons why the Okay Bears gained momentum rapidly. Consider Bored Ape Yacht Club and Azuki. Both also have exclusive membership structures and benefits, and both are still popular. BAYC has ape characters that may seem similar in some ways to Okay Bears. The membership hangout area allows people to express themselves with a painting wall. Azuki appeals more to anime fans, and has a strong focus on community. While all three projects share some similarities, there are a couple of things that set Okay Bears apart, helping it build stronger hype initially and making people feel like a part of the project, instead of simply a community member.

BAYC and Azuki built hype. However, the Okay Bears NFT team took hype to new levels by offering open spots to random winners who followed instructions. The instructions included creating poems, sharing posts with hashtags, and changing a social media profile picture. By doing that, the creators reached more people to spark interest in their Solana PFP NFT project. The project's Discord was closed, and members still had to work to get on the whitelist after they got into the exclusive Discord. Such exclusivity with a challenge made the hype even stronger.

The Okay Bears NFT project puts emphasis on accepting community members as they are, and even creates its own judgment-free kindness culture. In several ways, the creators help members understand that they are valuable parts of the project. This idea is similar to the concept of corporate citizenship that businesses use to retain workers and help them to feel valued. The creators brilliantly aligned that concept with their promotion of the Okay Bears NFT project from the start when they turned fans into brand ambassadors, and showed them the value of working to become a part of a community.

Okay Bears NFTs Blueprint

Instead of releasing a simple road map, the Okay Bears NFT team created an in-depth blueprint for its community. Demonstrating the creators' desire to let members know that they’re vital to the success of the Solana NFT project, the blueprint page reminds members that they’re "building this together." The interactive blueprint outlines both these key areas, and the plans intended for them.

The Park: Home of the Okay Bears' Good Vibes

This area is in the center of the blueprint. In The Park, members have access to an exclusive Discord channel that’s free of OGs, peasants and kings. Everyone is equal, and participants are encouraged to spread positivity. According to the description, there are conversations that span all hours of the day and all of the world's time zones. The Park has a chilled-out vibe that makes it the ideal hangout or sanctuary for Okay Bears Solana PFP NFT members.

Bear Market: Unique Sales Channel Ecosystem

As a play on words, this area creates a more positive image of the term "bear market.” The market's web 2.0, Web 3.0 and real-life sales channel components make up a collaborative ecosystem that’s exclusive to Okay Bears NFT holders. Bear Market was created through industry-leading brands partnering with the creators. The page lists a few examples of those partnerships. One of the products, Bear Market X Magic Eden, is the result of a partnership with Magic Eden, which is a Solana marketplace. Token-Gated Ecommerce X Shopify is another partnership that integrates Shopify and web3 to offer exclusive merch access. Also, there are IRL Okay Bears Popup Stores, offered through flash popup stores around the world. Finally, there are special tech or crypto events that Okay Bears NFT holders may access.

Workshop: Brand-Growing Activities

Once again emphasizing that community members are a part of the popular Solana PFP NFT project, the creators have made this area a workspace for public awareness projects and grassroots community engagement. The projects include collaborations of corporate social responsibility with global brands, social media outreach, real-world advertising and more. Here are some more details about the three main categories listed in this blueprint section:

• Online community activations focus on shifting culture, and include brand outreach campaigns for the Okay Bears NFT project on social media platforms.

• One-of-one CSR auctions are initiatives that promote innovation and thought leadership throughout leading Solana communities.

• Real-world outdoor marketing campaigns are opportunities for members to boost brand equity for Okay Bears through ad placement on buses, subways and billboards, in commercials, and elsewhere.

In this area of the Okay Bears NFT community, the creators have set the brand apart by innovating a spinoff of a popular acronym in the crypto world. The popular acronym is WAGMI, which means ”We’re all going to make it.” The Okay Bears acronym is WAGBO — short for “We’re are all going to be okay.”

The Studio: Emphasis on Community Art and Music

The Studio is the place where the Okay Bears NFT community fosters and encourages creativity. Holders have priority access to this area and its exclusive content. The following points highlight some of what The Studio offers:

• Access to any potential future NFT drops.

• Access to community lo-fi mixtapes of good vibes and chill beats, which include a collection of curated albums from community members that are then published on Spotify.

• Access to folk tales about the Okay Bears and concept wallpapers.

The folk tales and wallpapers are public to allow the rest of the world to get a glimpse into the Okay Bears NFT world and its good vibes.

Boutique: Exclusive Member-Only Merchandise

In this section of the blueprint, members have access to exclusive merchandise that’s tangible, including special Okay Bears prints, swag and collectibles. All new members are eligible for a complimentary welcome pack in the token-gated shop. Although some general items are available to the public in the boutique, there are several limited-edition collectibles that only Okay Bears NFT holders can buy. There are 3D crafts, concept art prints and more. Giving members a chance to stand out in this coveted Solana NFT project, the boutique also features exclusive Okay Bears fashion items that collaborate with lifestyle, fashion and sports brands.

Gallery: Fan Art Display and IRL Popups

Because members are highly valued, the creators made this space to showcase Okay Bears NFT holders and their talents. In addition, the gallery may feature fan art from non-members. The Okay Bears Gallery is a place where people can view all 10,000 of the bears in the collection. In the Curated Fan Art Display section, top fan art is displayed along with information about artists or communities behind it. Additionally, the section includes information about IRL popup exhibits, which may be found in various cities around the globe. Focusing on global causes and other hot topics, the art brings together NFT communities and one-of-one NFT artists.

The Platform: Meetups and The Honeypot

The Platform is a place that includes information about a series of initiatives that spotlight and promote innovation and thought leadership throughout the Solana communities. In this section, members can learn more about keynotes, meetups and conferences. The events featured in The Platform are those that bring together mainstream leaders and Solana PFP NFT thought leaders. Some of the meetups and events are exclusive to Okay Bears NFT holders, or members of partner collections. Members can also learn about copyright licensing and community grants through The Platform. Some startup concepts may qualify for licensing or a grant through the Okay Bears initiative called The Honeypot, which exists to help the Okay Bears brand grow.

Okay Bears NFTs Breakdown

Traits for the Okay Bears are divided into these categories:

• Fur

• Mouth

• Hat

• Eyewear

• Eyes

• Clothes

• Background

In each of these categories, there are more specific items, so that more than 170 total traits exist for the various Okay Bears in this Solana NFT project. For example, the clothes category has more than 45 specific clothing styles. With clothes, a black suit is the rarest, while a black tee is very common. Purple is the rarest background color, and cream is the most common. As noted earlier, the bears were created by an algorithm. There are six that are especially rare: The rarity of the rarest bear is 0.0000000001562%. Individual cards for the bears show their specific traits and the rarity percentages for each one.

During the last week of May 2022, the average Okay Bears NFT price was 197 SOL, which was equal to about $8,321 at the time. The project’s market cap was 1.55 million SOL, or $65.5 million. After the initial quick selling of all the original NFTs, high secondary trading volume followed. During the month of May, a few bears sold for around 250 SOL, which was over $10,200. One bear sold for over $12,000. And one bear with all rare traits — although it hadn’t yet sold — was listed on OpenSea for 3,001 SOL, which was equal to approximately $123,000. Some were priced upward of 400 or 500 SOL. Several bears have recently sold for between 75 and 175 SOL on OpenSea.

Okay Bears NFTs Floor Price

In the last week of May, there were more than 500 sales. On May 26, 2022, the floor price of Okay Bears was 150 SOL, marking a decrease of more than 13% from the day before. At that time, there were more than 1,050 listings available, with 55 sales during the 24-hour period and a top sale of 555 SOL. Finally, in the week before May 26, the floor price ranged from 150 to 206 SOL.

Where to Buy Okay Bears NFTs

People who want to invest in the popular Solana PFP NFT project can do so with a Solana-based wallet. The most popular Solana wallet is Phantom Wallet. Currently,

Are Okay Bears NFTs a Good Investment?

Price trends and trading volume so far look favorable. On the Okay Bears blueprint, the creators indicate that there will not be new bears released for the collection. The 10,000 that were released appear to be the only ones that will remain in circulation, which helps the bears stay valuable for now. With so many Solana NFT projects in existence or in the planning phases, it’s hard to say if another project will surface that threatens the popularity of the Okay Bears during the next several months. Needless to say, Okay Bears have gained considerable value in comparison with their original price of 1.5 SOL at minting.

Recently, a knock-off of the Okay Bears Solana PFP NFT project called the Not Okay Bears was in development. For a short time, it appeared to be a potential competitive threat. However, OpenSea delisted the copycat project after there were complaints from holders of Okay Bears NFTs. For investors considering a Solana NFT project to invest in, Okay Bears is a good choice. Rarer bears may be better investments for long-term strategies. The creative blueprint and its heavy emphasis on members helping build the brand is also a good sign for the NFT's future. New fans of the Okay Bears are more likely to appreciate the long-term value of these NFTs because of their attractive utilities and community.

The Bottom Line

So far, the Okay Bears NFT project has been the most successful Solana PFP NFT project to date, boosting Solana trading volume significantly. The structure of the community, the design of the project and the utilities make it attractive to buyers — and especially to NFT fans, who like the unique characters with positive vibes. Now that investors know the potential of Solana NFTs, it’s also a good time to start researching and watching for other projects with potential.