A few years ago, when one of the younger minded brand managers requested the consultancy on record to get back to them with a report of how the brand could do something with NFTs in the metaverse, it raised eyebrows. Partially because of surprise and partially from nervousness. None of us really understood the mechanism of NFTs or the Metaverse – but we had to pretend otherwise.
I spent the next few days studying the world of this universe we call the Metaverse. How brands are entering the space and why. The what, why and how of NFTs. Opportunities and threats. But my own manager preferred that I scrap my presentation and stick to 10 examples of brands that have released NFTs. Let’s keep it simple, he said. Well, I don’t blame him. The subject can be intimidating. On the other side, the brand manager who made this request of us was in a similar situation – unable to convince their leadership that had mandated her to make the brand relevant to a younger audience. Oh! The irony and struggles of a good brand strategist today.
A lot of companies parrot that they want to be loved by a newer, younger audience, then deny the reality of the younger audience. This sadly doesn’t stop the Metaverse from getting more real everyday. The average gen alpha kid in this country even from say a Palakkad in Kerala are glued to Roblox. The Metaverse, for the still confused – who I am fully aware is most of us – is the idea of an internet which is more immersive, social, engaging, more 3D. Imagine the internet being unrestricted by our laptops, PCs and SmartPhones. If that’s hard, then do what I do – just recall various sci-fi movies you may have watched with everyone wearing AR glasses. The Metaverse is what the world we live is transforming into where we simultaneously exist in the real and the virtual world at all times.
For younger gen Z and gen alpha, this is nothing unusual. They already spend a lot of their time on online gaming platforms where they play, socialise and buy from brands like Nike (NikeLand) and Gucci for their avatars in addition to learning about the history and essence of these brands through games. There’s a WalmartLand where they can attend concerts and buy virtual merchandise. For this generation and the upcoming ones, they exist in a continuum of space that smoothly transitions from the real to the virtual. For them, everything they experience in the virtual world through AR, VR, 5G, 6G etc will be as real as the physical world. They make friends both online and offline who are equally real.
Features such as spatial audio and 3D photography that can be experienced with Apple’s Vision Pro provides us with an immersive view of what human experience of the real and virtual will look and feel like in the years to come. What’s most notable is that they don’t isolate us from the real world. The Vision Pro enables us to see what’s in the real world as much as what we are viewing in the virtual world. If this mixed reality is where humans are headed why should brands be limited to only one dimension? Many brands have still not transitioned to social media channels effectively. And just like so many new-age start-up brands have made their fortunes being born on social media alone, there will be companies that cater to the metaverse audience from the beginning to become more loved than legacy brands. Except the ones that respond to the potential. BMW which is a nearly century old company, opened the world’s first virtual factory in Nvidia Omniverse – which is comparable in nature to what we refer to as the Metaverse. 90 year old Lego Group joined hands with Epic Games to build a kid-friendly place in the Metaverse.
Mixed reality is real. Visionary brands would have strategies in place to stay relevant and loved in the coming years. Visionary individuals and start-up companies are thinking of how to capitalise on the untapped potential this offers.
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