The metaverse isn’t just for entertainment. Businesses and brands worldwide are actively pursuing opportunities to grow their brand recognition, profit margin, and networks in the metaverse.
Additionally, they’re all exploring the question: Is it worthwhile to market in the metaverse? The short answer is yes. However, there are quite a few things to consider before diving entirely into a comprehensive digital marketing strategy for the metaverse. Let’s discuss marketing in the metaverse in more detail.
The Evolution of AR/VR and the Metaverse
First, if you aren’t familiar, experts define the metaverse as “a future iteration of the internet, made up of persistent, shared, 3D virtual spaces.” People can create avatars to represent who they are in the metaverse and conduct life in this digital reality.
Although the metaverse seems like it came onto the scene just a few years ago, the term was actually coined in the ’90s, while the idea of creating an alternate reality dates back to the ‘80s.
People use AR and VR technologies to navigate and interact in the Metaverse. AR adds digital elements to a real-world setting, while VR is an entirely fictional digital reality. VR came about in the 1900s. However, both AR and VR evolved in the ‘50s, ‘60s, and ‘70s, with early examples of their technology.
Ultimately, it’s essential to note that AR, VR, and the metaverse will continue to intersect with, support, and propel each other forward.
To make marketing in the metaverse worthwhile, you must learn and experience the metaverse for yourself.
Learn and Experience the Metaverse for Yourself
It’s imperative to learn and experience the metaverse for yourself. By doing so, you better understand the inner workings of the metaverse and where marketing fits into it.
It’s also essential for marketers to get the training, experience, and knowledge they need to keep up with emerging technologies that make metaverse interactions possible. This will help you stay current in the digital marketing game and get a leg up on competitors who’ve yet to explore this branch of digital marketing.
In addition, target audience research is still critical if you’re going to market in the metaverse.
Target Audience Research is Still Critical
Knowing the ins and outs of your target audience is just as crucial for marketing in the metaverse. Unfortunately, there may not be much data on your target audience’s behaviors in the metaverse as of yet. But you can still speculate and brainstorm how you think your target audience would navigate, interact in, and view the metaverse.
Think about how they would want to be marketed to in the metaverse. This means exploring:
- What they do in the metaverse
- What content they consume
- What advertisements resonate with them
- How they create their avatars
- How often they visit the metaverse
- How they interact with businesses and brands in the metaverse
- What they buy in the metaverse
You must also think deeply about how you will generate revenue from your marketing efforts in the metaverse.
Think Deeply About How You’re Going to Generate Revenue
Alternative investments, like virtual real estate, collectible items, and others found in the metaverse, are huge money-makers. Marketing and selling these kinds of brand assets can potentially generate revenue fast in the metaverse.
Also, don’t bet everything on generating revenue in the metaverse. Instead, you should approach marketing and selling in the metaverse in stages, strategically implementing campaigns and tracking their performance.
Marketing in the metaverse also requires a thorough assessment of potential risks.
Thoroughly Assessing Risks is Key
Not only do you want to think deeply about how you’re going to make money from your marketing in the metaverse, but you also want to think about how you could lose it. Assessing the risks associated with marketing in the metaverse is key.
The metaverse encompasses all of the modern business risks, including evolving cybersecurity needs, losing control over gathered data, the spotlight on ethics, business partnerships going south, and the consequences of a network disruption.
Because of these risks, you must err on the side of caution when navigating opportunities in the metaverse. Keep a close eye on developments that will help minimize these risks in the metaverse.
The chance to explore various marketing opportunities also makes it worthwhile to market in the Metaverse.
Explore Various Marketing Opportunities
There’s plenty of room for experimentation concerning marketing in the metaverse. But, at the same, it’s best to start small.
You can take advantage of marketing opportunities like:
- Placing ads on virtual billboards in the metaverse
- Creating products for avatars that mirror your real-life products
- Teaching classes in the metaverse
- Partnering with metaverse influencers
- Creating NFT collections
- Putting on live events
Whatever marketing opportunities you decide to explore fully, be sure they’re thoughtful and well-done.
Lastly, if you’re going to embark on a marketing journey in the metaverse, be sure to document your every move.
Document Your Journey
Of course, you’re probably already in the habit of documenting your marketing efforts. But it’s crucial with metaverse marketing because of how new the alternative world is and its untapped marketing potential.
Track your marketing efforts in the metaverse digitally, physically, or both. Write things down; include images, screenshots, videos, and so forth to make it easy to visualize the details of your strategies and campaigns. Furthermore, if analytics tools that track marketing activities in the metaverse are available, hop on them immediately.
Ultimately, it’s incredibly wise to document your marketing journey in the metaverse because it will help you construct a blueprint for future metaverse marketing endeavors.
Conclusion
Answering the question, “Is it worthwhile to market in the metaverse?” is easy. Not only is it worthwhile to market in the metaverse, but it’s also a wise business move. A full-fledged metaverse might be years, if not at least a whole decade away. But it’s best to adopt it early. Learn how to market your business and brand in the metaverse so that you’re already at your best when the rest decide to explore this emerging world.
technology illustrations by Storyset
Jori Hamilton is an experienced writer living in the Northwestern U.S. Her areas of expertise and topics she typically covers revolve around business productivity, marketing strategies, and web design. To learn more about Jori, you can follow her on Twitter: @HamiltonJori