The secret science behind Metaverse Marketing 🤫

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And with that, onto this weeks topic....

The current state of the 'M' Word

First up, a disclaimer: If your fed up of hearing the word Metaverse, apologies in advance, as you will have guessed by the title, it will get a few mentions.

I too sit in the camp of being fairly fed up of its overuse as I generally find the term is used generously to describe participation in the future of the internet.

Interpretations and opinions on the true Metaverse varies, but I think there will be (at least) three major states of the Metaverse:

1) Metaverse V1 - This is the era we are in now, where virtual worlds such as Fortnite, Roblox and Sandbox are spaces where users can interact, create and develop communities together.

2) Metaverse V2 - The second evolution of Metaverse will connect virtual environments, and allow users to cross interfaces.

3) Metaverse V3 - This is a VR/AR heavy state where the Metaverse overlays across our real world environment, allowing users to interact with computer generated functionality in Ready Player One style.

The insights in this issue can apply to all 3 iterations, so I'm going to the term 'Metaverse' as a catch all to describe current and future immersive digital worlds and scenarios in Web 3.0.

One of the most fascinating areas for me is commerce in the Metaverse.

It can already do big numbers, and is going to become increasingly important.

Metaverse commerce is a $50 billion potential market according to Morgan Stanley, and this principle should have big consequences on how brands unlock this opportunity.

Recently at Metaverse Fashion Week, hosted on Decentraland, Phygital (Physical and Digital) commerce platform Boson Protocol sold over over 8,500 Phygital items from their shopping experience, billing over $7.5m.

So as brands rush to get involved, its clear one big factor is being overlooked...

The opportunity of marketing in the Metaverse

 “Marketers like to be where people are”, said Lindey McIerney, Global Head of technology and innovation at AB InBev, in relation to the Metaverse.

We've seen sports brands keen to experiment with the space due to this. Nike x Roblox, Real Madrid and Man City building virtual stadiums, AC Milan broadcasting the first Serie A match in the Metaverse.

And whilst it's important to go where people are, it's critical to understand why people are there and how their behaviour differs.

With the progression of Metaverse environments, Marketeers of the future not only need to learn how to target the real world consumer, but also play to their avatar equivalent.

I think brand and rights-holder marketing have been missing a trick.

Let me explain...

Users change behaviours in Virtual Worlds

This has a name, the "Proteus Effect", and it's something I've become fascinated with over recent months.

It is probably one of the single most powerful psychological principles to understand for the future of Metaverse behaviours and those who unlock it could win big time.

What is it?

• The Proteus Effect describes a phenomenon in which the behaviour of an individual, within virtual worlds, is changed by the characteristics of their avatar.

• It was first introduced by two Stanford researchers Nick Yee and Jeremy Bailenson in 2007.

• Their studies were conducted with participants wearing VR headsets, and equipped with avatars that were either attractive or ugly.

• The participants with more attractive avatars were more confident and showed different behaviour compared to the real world.

• Whilst behaviour is impacted in Metaverse environments, it can also influence habits outside. For example, studies have shown that experiencing discrimination in VR can make you less biased.

Fascinating isn't it 🤯

Naturally this phenomenon can be studied in gaming, particularly role playing games, however it could be argued we have also seen examples of this when it comes to cultural NFT Profile Picture collections.

Do Bored Ape Yacht Club holders flex a higher status and take on a more confident personality on Twitter where they are represented by their Ape vs their work profile picture? Quite possibly.

What are the implications?

We should be considering dynamic marketing and commerce strategies for the Metaverse equivalents of real world consumers based on The Proteus Effect.

This could have a real impact for us in sports, as brands and teams rush to create partnerships with existing Virtual Worlds, or create their own experiences such as Metaverse stadiums.

If creating Metaverse commerce experiences think, are you targeting this to your existing demographic and fan base, or should you be understanding who your target avatar audience is in the Virtual World?

For example, when it comes to luxury or status products, are these targeted to high status avatars due to perception, vs those with the deepest pockets?

Maybe if your'e a brand, rights-holder or athlete, you make the strongest looking virtual avatars designed to attract new fans based on a confidence play?

Could there be be opportunities for new brands to carve out reputations based desirability and who is wearing them in Metaverse environments?

To be clear, this stuff could be a few years out.

However:

“It took 59 years for nearly 80% of humans to use landline phones. It took 55 years for 80% of us to use automobiles. It took 28 years for 80% of us to use personal computers. It took 14 years for 80% of us to use cell phones. And the rate of adoption continues to get faster and faster.” - Venture Beat

In short, I believe it will be a requirement, so why not think about how you can be prepared now.

Thats all for issue #2.

If you enjoyed this insight please feel free to share with like minded friends and colleagues.

Thanks & see you next week,

Richard Johnson

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