This article was originally published by Fast Company.
Marketing has always embraced new platforms because it’s where people are. If a brand is in the real world, it’s time to be in the virtual world, too.
AI may have stolen the headlines, but don’t count the metaverse out, particularly when it comes to the future of advertising. Marketers and people need reliable, engaging, and safe ways to interact with each other, and the current adtech and media landscape has seen a tumultuous first half of 2023, to say the least.
Twitter’s rebrand to X tops the list, with the big question still looming: Will advertisers come back, since over half of the top 1,000 advertisers have left? Then there’s the launch of Meta’s Threads, which has swung the pendulum from one of the fastest-growing apps to already losing half of its daily users. Brands continue to hedge their bets as TikTok finds itself in a geopolitical struggle, and Google is still promising to fully deprecate third-party cookies in 2024.
On the flip side, the launch of Apple’s Vision Pro headset has breathed new life into the metaverse conversation and the potential future of augmented and virtual reality.
From sports to fashion to museums, the metaverse continues to expand.
BUT IF META IS DEPRIORITIZING THE METAVERSE …
It was just last May when Meta was heavily defending its investment in the metaverse, followed by companies creating chief metaverse officers, and Gartner predicting 25% of people would spend at least one hour of their day in the metaverse by 2026.
So, what happened to all that talk about the metaverse? First, tech companies started laying off workers by the thousands, a combination of the post-pandemic job market and continued economic uncertainty, leaving little room for investment. And then came the next shooting star, OpenAI’s public release of ChatGPT in November 2022. The discussion around generative AI hasn’t stopped since and now fuels speculative investments and press releases across companies of all sizes and all sectors.
So, did AI kill the metaverse? Quite the contrary—I believe they really are two technologies that will, eventually, benefit each other.
AI is good at processing loads of data at speed and identifying pattern detection to find or create answers. It’s a computing powerhouse. The metaverse is simply an environment where some portion (augmented) or the entire experience (virtual) is computer-generated. Ultimately, the metaverse is about experiences and connecting with people in a new way—a way that also requires data and insights. To view AI and the metaverse as opposing forces is a mistake.
For advertisers, the question becomes: Is now the time to think about the metaverse? Yes. Unequivocally yes, the time is now, particularly for B2C brands.
Why? Because brands’ audiences are likely already in the metaverse in some form.
IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT GAMERS (WE’RE ALL GAMERS)
While it’s easy to dismiss the metaverse as just for gamers, it’s important to understand who gamers are. According to a Deloitte survey, more than 80% of U.S. respondents said they play digital games of some kind, with Millennials and Gen Z logging the most weekly hours. Given that Millennials and Gen Z make up nearly half of the U.S. population, they are a prime audience for marketers.
As Phil Spencer, CEO of Microsoft Gaming, reminded us, gamers and their virtual reality worlds and avatars have been in the metaverse for over 30 years. In many ways, it’s thanks to their radical fandom that the world of mixed reality has evolved to what it is today—a rich experience for consumers and the best kind of awareness for brands. These virtual worlds are filled with real human beings with real spending power. That’s a marketer’s dream when it comes to awareness and eyeball time.
When marketing dollars are stretched, it’s far too easy to believe that new technology and the marketing opportunities it creates are for the few. When trusted marketing channels are under siege, new ones can seem even more frightening.
Now is not the time to stand still. Great marketing has always relied on genuine customer understanding turned into great customer experiences. Brands know this at their core. It’s time to take marketing to the virtual and augmented world in a meaningful way.
A huge indicator that the metaverse is alive and well is that Walmart is diving in and plans to revolutionize retail in this space. Another example for brands to consider is sponsorships. At the 2022 NHL Stanley Cup final, one of our partners created an ad with a Zamboni bringing a giant 3D Chipotle burrito bowl to the ice, which was experienced by fans in the arena and those watching from homes, bars, and their favorite devices. It made the press. It got fans talking. It likely sent them into Chipotle stores. This is happening everywhere with the use of smartphones alone. No fancy expensive headset required.
Marketing has always embraced new platforms because it’s where people are. If a brand is in the real world, it’s time to be in the virtual world, too.
This article was originally published by Fast Company.
