The metaverse is one of the most important trends in (content) marketing in 2023 because it opens up new potential for the marketing industry. As we noted in our introductory knowledge article on the metaverse, Bloomberg forecasts enormous growth potential for virtual platforms. And this already in the following one and a half year. However, metaverse marketing also comes with challenges. Find out what these are and how you can master them in this article.
Metaverse: New Future in Interaction and Communication
The metaverse was celebrated at SXSW 2022 in Austin. Mark Zuckerberg gave the metaverse a further boost by renaming the Facebook group to “Meta” in 2022, which is likely to continue in 2023 and make the metaverse the central content marketing trend of the year. In addition to Facebook, several major companies are already involved in the metaverse. These include tech companies such as Microsoft, Nvidia or HP. In most cases, it is the companies from the gaming sector that are taking on pioneering roles here, developing concepts for virtual togetherness in the metaverse. Most companies’ opinion: The metaverse will significantly reshape daily communication in the future. This will also have an impact on corporate marketing. What challenges as well as potentials marketers can expect in metaverse marketing is clarified in the following. In addition, this article provides you with some tips for metaverse marketing.
Mixed reality opens up new opportunities, but also introduces two key challenges
In the metaverse, real and virtual reality merge. A mixed reality is the starting point for all concepts in the metaverse. Augmented and virtual reality technologies are at the center of this merged reality. And these technologies open up countless possibilities for the digital space. Companies can hardly stand out in the metaverse with classic virtual events alone. The trick is to create new experiences, like the musician Travis Scott. In the video game Fortnite 2020 he gave a concert in front of 12.3 million gamers who were online at this time. Augmented or virtual reality are tearing down boundaries in the metaverse and enabling marketers to reach any number of users – simultaneously and regardless of location. In 2020, 3.5 billion people owned a smartphone (german language) and thus mostly had direct mobile access to the Internet. The Metaverse enables marketers to digitally reach and connect with potential customers in real time and with interesting, moving and new content. One of the possible outcomes: The formation of unique communities that strengthen the connection to the own brand.
Virtual meeting places – communities, events, content marketing and co.
Companies should see the metaverse as an extended, virtual meeting place. An extension of today’s omnichannel marketing through the seamless fusion of the virtual and real worlds. As in the past, this offers the potential to form one’s own communities or to organize events for people around the globe. However, new approaches are also possible in content marketing. Up to now, potential customers have usually received their information either via online channels (google search, social media, websites, blogs, etc.) or offline in the store. The metaverse, on the other hand, enables digital content and information to merge with the physical world, for example through augmented reality. In the metaverse, for example, it is possible not only to have tips and instructions displayed directly, but also to try them out immediately. 3D experiences instead of 2D are the new content marketing credo in the metaverse. The biggest challenge, however, is probably one thing in particular: Marketers are required to be very creative in order to deliver unique experiences in the metaverse. In addition, there is of course the technical implementation especially for small and medium-sized companies.
Tips for metaverse marketing
To be successful in metaverse marketing, it is important to understand the concept behind the metaverse. For this, you should remind yourself of the characteristics of the metaverse:
- Consistency: the metaverse is continuous, whether you are online or offline. Consistency is provided by the underlying technologies of AR and VR.
- User-defined: in the metaverse, users are the center of attention. They interact, network, and co-create the metaverse. The metaverse follows the bottom-up principle.
- Everyday: one of the most important characteristics is the everydayness of the Metaverse. It seamlessly merges real and virtual worlds.
- Interoperable: the metaverse is not tied to any platform! This is crucial to enable seamless user exchange and networking.
- Limitless: no limits in terms of user numbers and experiences or worlds. The metaverse basically offers infinite scope for you and your marketing.
- Social and reactive: the Metaverse is a space of interaction and encounter. It needs to be perceived as such and promote the community in real time, independent of location and time – just like your marketing measures in the metaverse.
Your metaverse marketing should definitely take into account the characteristics of the metaverse. This means, in addition to the necessary creativity, that the following requirements arise:
- metaverse marketing needs to be built on augmented reality and virtual reality basis
- Metaverse marketing needs to focus on users and encourage interaction
- mertaverse marketing needs to be platform-independent.
But how do you meet these requirements? Basically, you can already draw on some concept building blocks of your existing marketing – depending on the current state of your marketing activities. But beyond that, you should also pursue innovations in content marketing. Here are our 4 tips for metaverse marketing:
1. Extend social media marketing strategy to the metaverse.
Do you already have a social media concept for your marketing mix or have you been on social media for a long time? Then you can expand your existing concept to the metaverse. But keep in mind that if you build out a virtual 3D infrastructure in the metaverse, you’ll end up moving your social media communities from Facebook, Instagram and similar sites into the metaverse. Your social media marketing strategy is merely your first point of reference for getting started in the metaverse. You then continue to develop the virtual space together with your users.
2. Integrate new elements in metaverse content marketing
The metaverse offers you much more freedom in content marketing. At the same time, however, it also imposes a condition: Content must be brought from the two-dimensional into the three-dimensional world. Texts do not work in the metaverse. But 3D graphics, animations and digital applications do. The same applies, of course, to products that you want to sell exclusively via the metaverse. For example, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) or tickets for digital concerts in the metaverse are suitable.
3. Preserve individuality even when addressing the metaverse
Personalization continues to play a significant role in the metaverse. Therefore, you should also look at personalization strategies here. Integrating AI into your metaverse helps you tailor content to your users here as well. Many platforms already offer such AI integration. Personalization also means giving your users the opportunity to digitally express their own personality. A classic example is the individualization of avatars.
4. Collaborate with influencers
Influencers are already a factor in marketing outside the metaverse that shouldn’t be underestimated. As you move into the virtual space, you should also think about collaborating with digital influencers and thought leaders and evaluate possible collaborations. Thought leaders like Gary Vaynerchuck, for example, can contribute to your community with info and exciting content in a specific topic area.
Conclusion
The metaverse will most likely change communication and marketing. As a marketer, it is therefore important for you to start looking at the possibilities in the virtual space now and to think about strategies for metaverse marketing. Our tips give you some clues on what to look out for in the metaverse.
