Imagine…
Every blog or article that talks about the Metaverse and attempts to define it begins with the same powerful word - “imagine”. A whole new virtual world of possibilities! Well, that’s exactly what the Metaverse is based on. For those of you who still aren’t sure about what this term means, let’s use the same word yet again to define the metaverse.
The metaverse and its infinite possibilities
Imagine an immersive virtual environment where you can recreate almost all your real-world experiences – a world where you can build your own avatar, design your dream home (heard of Horizon Homes?), remote work is here to stay, and the ways in which we connect and communicate are becoming more immersive, connecting with people all over the world has never been easier - just by using a headset, you’re transported to a virtual version of your real world. Bring with you your books, clothes, music, games and so much more! This new universe is called the Metaverse.
The continuous rise of Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) over the past few years has given rise to a whole new phenomenon called the Metaverse. According to an article by Forbes, “Influencer Marketing Hub does a great job breaking down the components: a metaverse is always active, exists in real-time, players have individual agency, it’s a self-contained and fully functioning universe and contains user-generated content.”
Now that is a brilliant way to describe what makes the metaverse so unique!
Here’s what makes the metaverse a brilliant space for marketing –
1. Virtual meetings with your colleagues’ avatars
In the metaverse, you can have virtual office meetings set up with your colleagues or teammates, allowing you to experience sitting at a desk, in your virtual office, using your avatar, and actually being present at a virtual meeting. Unlike a zoom call where you only see the faces of your colleagues in small, 2D boxes, the office rooms in the metaverse will give you the opportunity to sit right next to other people’s avatars, shake hands with them and connect with them, all in real-time. Many things you cannot be a part of during a regular video call session can all be done in this virtual space. What’s more? You can even transport yourself to different cities and countries if you wish, saving both time and money.
2. Exponential growth of the audience size
We all know how difficult it is to make a mark in the social landscape. With communication saturation and busy lives, the general public is no longer as easy to convince as they historically were. Marketing a product to the more savvy Gen Zs and Millennials means bringing out all your creative skills. But to do that you need to find the audience that belongs to this age group. The metaverse is where you’ll find them, playing games and using gaming platforms (like Fortnite and Roblox), and connecting through social media. You can attract them using metaverse marketing. The next point will tell you how.
3. Replicate the retail experience virtually
The metaverse is not just a virtual space where people can socialise, work and play but also a place where people can shop! Giving your viewers/potential customers ways to customise their avatars and see how comfortable they are with the virtual items they wish to buy (like clothes, jewellery or a new table) will be the highlight of the virtual retail experience; this will make the viewers more confident when it comes to choosing what product/ items suit them best. For example, you’ve seen a sofa online but you’re not sure if it’s going to work in your living room…what do you do? Metaverse marketing has a solution for you - pick the sofa you like, place it in the virtual version of your living space and instantly see how it looks; a virtual copy of the real world, accurate and detailed!
Thinking of unique marketing strategies will make the metaverse marketing experience even more attractive to customers. Using the metaverse for retail will allow flexibility, safety, instant access to collaboration, and a great amount of freedom as well as equality when it comes to geographical locations. Many well-known brands, especially in the field of fashion, already have virtual platforms within the metaverse to market their products.
4. Big brands are already one step ahead – You can be next.
Yes, it’s already happening. The campaigns and collaboration suggested in the previous point are already being tried out by the big names in the industry. Brands like Gucci, Facebook, Snap, Nike, etc., are already exploring marketing in the metaverse. Here’s an example:
According to the article by Forbes (referred to previously), The Verge reports that the luxury brand, Gucci, released an exclusive digital pair of sneakers in March 2021 called The Gucci Virtual 25 that “can be ‘worn’ in augmented reality (AR) or used in partnered apps like Roblox and VRChat.”
5. Low price, more impact + SEO – Start off your campaign now!
Remember that marketing and advertising in the metaverse are still relatively new. So that means it’s cheaper! The prices are still quite low, making it a great place to run your marketing campaigns.
There are also discussions around how search engine optimisation (SEO) can be used in the metaverse. Just like the process of SEO in regular digital marketing, when you add the keyword “metaverse” to a product, brand name, or title on virtual platforms, it helps the brand with being found quickly by those who may be interested. So that could be the future of SEO in the metaverse. An article by Search Engine Journal talks about this in more detail.
The future is metaverse!
We are talking about great evolution in technology – a world that’s completely virtual, possibly with a whole different economy and ecosystem (provided Mark Zuckerberg keeps his promise about privacy and safety being built into the metaverse from day one).
If this futuristic technological concept is taken seriously, the marketing industry, especially digital marketing, is going to undergo a massive shift in the process of lead generation, advertising as well as brand building.
So, is the metaverse convincing enough? Only time will tell.