Even if you’ve previously heard about meme coins, chances are that you still have no idea what they are. The simplest explanation is to say that they’re cryptocurrencies inspired by internet culture and memes, whose value depends on the amount of social traction they receive. Now, while this explanation may be enough for some who are just interested in knowing what they are, here are the six things you should learn before actually buying them.
1. It’s one of the most volatile crypto markets
However, volatility doesn’t necessarily mean bad. It just means that things could change quickly and drastically, which could be a problem if you intend to put a fortune in one of these coins and make all your plans depend on its success.
On the other hand, even some of the best meme coins are incredibly inexpensive, which means that you don’t have to put that much money to get started, and you have the potential to grow your assets many times over.
Just abide by the principles of risk management. Figure out how much you can actually afford to lose, and never invest more than that. Also, just because these are all meme coins, this doesn’t mean that they’re all the same or that they’re all equally as promising. The differences among them are substantial, and you should look for reviews to figure this out.
Understand that this is a high-risk investment but one that could pay off.
Remember that a meme coin is still an asset and not just a meme. So, you’re not determining whether it’ll explode based on how funny or creative it is.
2. It originates in internet culture
Meme coins are humorous projects based on a simple but extraordinary idea: that you can capitalize on internet culture. Keep in mind that making a meme coin is not the same as making a meme. This is a serious asset; it’s just inspired by a meme.
The perfect example of how this works can be seen in the example of the biggest meme coin: Dogecoin.
This cryptocurrency was inspired by a popular meme where a dog (comically spelled as doge) would capture its simple, good-natured thoughts in broken English. The dog in question was Shiba Inu, and it became the face of the meme and the Dogecoin.
Now the meme itself became a sensation in 2010, but it didn’t take until December 2013 for Dogecoin to be made. Contrary to everyone’s expectations, the coin became a sensation. It received a lot of celebrity endorsements. A lot of people wanted “in on a joke,” and since the investment required wasn’t that significant, there was no reason to skip it.
3. They have no intrinsic value
When we say that they don’t have intrinsic value, what we actually mean to say is that these aren’t utility coins.
They’re not gatekeeping any kind of technology or service. There is no practical value in owning these coins other than being a part of the community.
Keep in mind that their value is primarily driven by community sentiment and speculation. So, if you see yourself as someone who can recognize an upcoming trend, someone who always has the most upvoted comments on threads, etc., this might be the right investment for you.
Instead of making complex financial or technological assessments, all you have to do is try and figure out what other internet users are going to find appealing or relevant. For someone who spent so much time online, it was about time you got some practical use for it.
4. Celebrities endorse them all the time
Another thing you need to keep in mind is that these meme coins are not just some fringe issue. They’re constantly talking points of some major celebrities. For instance, no one has endorsed more meme coins than Elon Musk. However, he’s not the only one.
People like Snoop Dogg, Jake Paul, Mia Khalifa, and various developers of other coins (like the Solana co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko) have all, at one point or another, endorsed meme coins.
These meme coins thrive on public endorsement, especially from someone with a huge following. For instance, even when someone like Boogie2988, who clearly has no idea about cryptocurrencies, has a bad financial track record, and was caught in a lie so many times, endorses a meme coin, it explodes.
In other words, someone with a large following talked about it, and the attention is all that it takes for a meme coin to thrive.
This was just one of the recent examples, and there are bound to be countless more in the future.
5. Community-building is one of the key aspects
When investing in meme coins, you have to understand what this is all about. You’re not going to get rich from a meme coin, and this meme coin that you’ll buy dirt-cheap won’t become the next BTC, eventually reaching the market value in hundreds or thousands of dollars.
Second, while you may be good at researching and reading online sentiment, you won’t be able just to tell which coin will explode and put all your money into it. It doesn’t work that way.
If this is what you want, if you seek the thrill, there are better ways to get it. Just look for one of those anonymous casinos and put your money there. Your odds will be the same (maybe even better), and you won’t have to wait to get the outcome.
Meme coins have the potential to be profitable, but they primarily exist for community-building. The sooner you acknowledge that the better your relationship with crypto will be.
6. It’s a fast-moving trend
These memes come and go, like real memes. Just think about how one meme dominates the week or a month, and then you will never see the template again. Just go to the internet archive and try to see what a meme site (like 9gag) looked like years ago. How many meme templates that are still in use today do you expect to see there?
Spoiler alert: Not many (if any)!
The key thing you need to understand is that meme coins are generally not something that you’ll hold for too long. Sure, a big one like Dogecoin may have the potential to grow exponentially in the future, but this isn’t the case with the majority of these coins.
Keep in mind that there are so many copycat coins out there, all of which are diluting the value of the original coin, even in a scenario where there’s no connection whatsoever.
Memecoins are a legit asset that a lot of people don’t understand
Memecoins are volatile and have no intrinsic value, but there are a lot of people who make money this way. You can buy and sell meme coins and even use them as a transactional vessel. In this respect, they’ll behave like any other transactional crypto, with the caveat that the value may change several times over unless you trade them right away. Now that you understand them, you’re ready to interact with them.
