NFTs and the metaverse: What communicators can do to prepare

So, you may have heard that NFTs (non-fungible tokens) are trendy. Consequently, we will need to discuss how we can manage communications in this new and exciting realm!

This article argues that all communicators should care about NFTs because it is an upcoming trend in the content space. It will have significant implications on what companies are willing to invest in, which brands are seen as authentic and how people consume information. Brands will have to prepare to embrace emerging technology that NFTs and the metaverse will offer.

Why should communicators care about NFTs?

NFTs, or non-fungible tokens, are becoming more popular. NFTs are unique items that cannot be replicated or destroyed (i.e., users can spend their NFTs but not the digital asset itself). The use of NFTs is increasing because it increases authenticity, content quality and control over messages. This has significant implications for how brands are seen as authentic in the future.

If communicators want to be successful in this space, they should start caring about NFTs now because it will become a major part of the content space.

How will NFTs impact branding in the future?

NFTs present an opportunity for brands to place products in movies, shows or epic games that are seen as authentic. If companies are able to successfully build relationships with media creators, they could gain access to coveted assets that audiences will see as more valuable or authentic.

NFTs will also impact how brands manage content and messages. When consumers cannot create unique experiences, it is impossible for companies to control their brand’s message across all channels and platforms (i.e., custom media).

If a company is able to invest in NFTs now, they could make those assets more valuable to their audiences.

What does this mean for communicators?

If you are a communicator or marketer, start learning more about NFTs because it will have major implications in the future. This could impact your company’s current and future investments in content.

NFTs present several opportunities for brands to build relationships with media creators and consumers, but it will take time for companies to understand how NFTs work and what they can do with them.

Since NFTs will have a significant impact on the content space, communicators should be thinking about how they can use this new format to advance their brand. As more companies start to understand what NFTs are and how they work, it will increase the value of these assets for brands. 

What should a marketer do about the metaverse?

The Metaverse has been depicted as a collaborative virtual shared space, formed by the confluence of virtually enhanced physical reality together with physically persistent virtual space.

The Metaverse is an entirely immersive, shared experience. It will be a parallel reality that blurs the line between what is real and what is a computer-generated artefact. This metaverse will be composed of the sum of all virtual worlds, augmented reality and the internet.

While this technology is still quite in its early stage, should communicators care about the metaverse and NFTs?

The short answer: yes. The future of NFTs has major implications on how brands can create links between their own platforms and consumer spaces.

In the past, virtual experience has been used mostly in video games and other forms of media. In recent years users have begun to explore VR in fields such as social media, education, healthcare, psychology, and more.

Virtual experiences are made up of all sorts of factors; from the environment, we view our avatar to how we communicate with others.

Everyone in the ad world is talking about virtual reality and its potential to create an immersive engagement with consumers, but virtual fashion—known as virtual clothing or virtual items (NFTs)—is just as big a draw for brands looking to target their audiences in the virtual universe.

The virtual-fashion market alone was valued at $759.5 billion in the year 2021. Globally, virtual fashion will reach new heights on the back of increased virtual reality adoption and digital advertising spend growth, according to a report released this week by Research and Markets.

Since the Facebook metaverse is not yet available for mainstream audiences, there are some other ways that you can get started building virtual worlds today. For one, it's definitely worth looking at Facebook spaces, particularly if you have an Oculus Rift.

Not only does the metaverse company power many social VR apps, but you can use it today to virtually meet up with your friends for a game of cards, or to watch Netflix together.

Marketing in the metaverse

Communicators should take note because blockchain technology, combined with virtual reality (VR), will change the way we use media and the internet.

For quite some time already, social media platforms have been at the forefront of connecting people online. Facebook revolutionized how people keep in touch with friends and family all over the world.

Twitter allowed people to have conversations easily and provide up-to-date news. With many of our social interactions taking place over the internet, it only makes sense that we would want to interact via virtual reality as well.

Many of us already live our daily lives through screens; watching tv, scrolling through Instagram, or talking on the phone. Virtual reality and the blockchain allow us to combine our real and virtual world experiences.

The metaverse, in its simplest, is a virtual community. With that comes the need for connection, especially when we're speaking about business and commerce.

The metaverse today: What steps can the brands take?

Brands and digital marketers can prepare for the future of marketing in the metaverse by taking steps towards building that connection. For now, this includes opening new virtual commerce stores and even creating AR advertisements in the digital world.

In the future, this will help companies capture a user's attention and showcase their brand in a way that feels natural to them. In other words, it can be one of the first steps towards making your company feel like a part of a wider community.

First mover advantage

A fully realized metaverse is still far off on the horizon. There has not been a better time ever to consider the impact it can have on your business and customer journey. As you start to plan for what this could look like, don't forget that one of the easiest and best ways to prepare is by simply acting now.

If you're a small business that doesn't have a lot of room in your budget for an itemized ad spend, consider the location and context of where you're ad will be shown and who it's targeted to. It could mean all the difference in finding your next customer.

Additionally, think about how voice search is going to play a role in your metaverse marketing strategy. You can't pretend that Google Home or Alexa don't exist, so it might be time to consider how those devices will fit into your social media plan.

Metaverse marketing: What can be done as of now?

If you're looking for ways to market now, start with integrating AR ads on your website or in-app experience. It's quite easy enough for even the smallest of businesses to do, and it can make a huge difference.

No matter where your virtual space is hosted, Facebook, or another similar platform, you can use AR to boost engagement and features like sound effects.

It's also not too late for larger companies to consider building interactive spaces in their real world stores. By creating a fun way for customers to interact with augmented reality in the virtually enhanced physical world surrounding them, it could be the start of an exciting future.

If you're a company looking to take a big leap into the world of metaverse marketing, consider building your own VR game. This could become an excellent way to both engage with customers and advertise your brand in an exciting new way that feels like something out of Ready Player One.

There are no guarantees when it comes to the future of VR and AR, but one thing's for sure: standing still is never a great marketing strategy.

In order for you to better prepare for the next development in this field, put some time into thinking about your approach on social media platform strategy and advertising now. You can't go wrong by starting small and building from there.

What could be coming in the future?

Many brands have already started to embrace AR and VR — for good reason. Now, we're entering the next phase of development: specific platforms that connect with commerce.

It's time to start exploring different ways to reach customers and potential leads in a new way. If you are someone who is struggling to find a starting point, consider the strategies we have put together in this article and how they can help you improve your brand's presence in the metaverse.

Roadblocks: What to expect realistically?

No matter how much marketers may want to, they can't reach everyone with advertising on the internet. Metaverse, on the other hand, has an even smaller market as of now. Only people who own high-end computers and VR lenses are able to enter these virtual universes where you experience 3D content as though you are actually there.

This makes mass marketing in metaverses more challenging when they are reliant on hardware that not everyone has. Even though the market is small, that does not automatically mean that it isn't worth exploring. Metaverses offer a unique experience to consumers and will only gain in popularity in the future.

Metaverses are still relatively new, though. There aren't a lot of users and the stores with virtual items are still not as common as those on the internet, but there is potential for future growth.

What will it take a metaverse strategist to rank for queries in search results?

The search engine will search these environments, and digital marketing experts need to ensure their web pages are found for the keywords chosen. In addition, they have to make sure that those images searchable will be relevant, high quality, and useful because of the VR/AR spaces.

It is like search engine marketing in that search engines are used to direct traffic to specific web pages, but it references the 3D environments of VR and AR spaces where people go when they put on their headsets or glasses.

The search results can be overlaid on top of one's vision, so digital marketing experts have to ensure that they build their search engine graphics carefully. They also have to place search engine web pages in the metaverse to drive search engine traffic. User generated content is yet another factor that digital marketers will need to explore in virtual environments.

Trust building: How to market NFTs successfully and set the expectations right

The first and most important task before launching an NFT is to ensure that there is no ambiguity left over what is being sold and what rights are being granted to the purchaser. [Though this sentence does mention "ambiguity," it doesn't give any specifics on how to avoid it.]

This can be achieved by clearly confirming, in a manner that is easily accessible and understandable, that:

- The NFT is a virtual item and does not exist in the real life.

- The seller has no obligation to retain the NFT after the sale; [The legal implications of this statement seem very broad. It probably needs more definition.]

- The seller will have no rights over the use of the NFT;

- The seller will have no right to reverse a transaction, cancel it or withdraw the item from the market after the sale. [It's unclear whether this is referring to preventing consumers from reselling or if this would also prevent brands themselves from re-selling.]

- The consumer has no obligation to retain the NFT after the sale. [The legal implications of this statement seem very broad. It probably needs more definition.]

In order to achieve greater understanding, these points should be clearly explained as part of a purchase process that is accessible and easily understood by consumers. In addition, all terms or disclaimers must not conflict with any applicable consumer protection laws and cannot be unreasonably limited.

As a general rule, the seller cannot impose unreasonable limitations on a purchaser's ability to resell or use the NFT because that would be inconsistent with their legal character as property – even if they are already not marketed as such – and thus could result in significant liability for the seller.

Additional key considerations

In addition, the following should be considered when selling to consumers:

- First and foremost, the seller must ensure it is compliant with applicable consumer protection laws. For example, certain jurisdictions have strict rules about pre-contractual information that should be provided to consumers before they make a purchase. If disclosure requirements are not met, purchasers may be entitled to withdraw from the transaction.

- Before selling to consumers, the seller must ensure that it complies with applicable consumer laws in relation to liability for faulty or defective products. The seller should be aware of their potential civil and criminal liability in cases where the NFT is not fit for purpose or its quality is below normal standards.

For example, if an NFT has a shorter lifespan than consumers are led to expect, the seller may be liable for refunds. - It should also consider whether its terms of sale should include an NFT warranty (e.g., quality guarantee or similar), which is generally favoured by courts and provides the purchaser with recourse against the seller in case of defects.

- The seller should also ensure that its terms of sale are clear, transparent and appropriately tailored to the intended transactions. On this point, particular care needs to be taken with disclaimers that may invalidate or limit the seller's liability.

- Finally, it is important that consumers are made aware of their rights if they feel they have been misled about an NFT's characteristics. Consumers may have a right to cancel a purchase or claim damages in certain circumstances where the seller has not complied with consumer protection regulations, which vary from jurisdiction to jurisdiction.

- In order for brands and businesses to take advantage of opportunities offered by NFTs, they should also be aware that there are various limitations on their ability to protect the NFTs from resale or reuse.

The legal implications of selling NFTs as the property may be complicated and must be considered carefully before doing so. In some jurisdictions, registering trademarks against NFT names/avatars may not prevent reselling because the brand cannot control the rights to transfer. Similarly, attempting to use licensing agreements with these digital assets to prevent the secondary market may cause consumer confusion that will lead to complaints.

As NFTs are often dynamic objects with unique identities in the digital environment, once they have been sold consumers can do what they like with them. This should be considered when designing purchase processes and communicating rights to buyers. Ideally, brands should also consider whether there are opportunities for them to obtain quality product certifications (e.g., durability, security) that they can use to reinforce the quality and value of their NFTs on sale.

Conclusion

It has only been becoming more and more clear that NFTs are here to stay. As the use of these technologies becomes widespread, marketers need to start understanding how they work in order to be competitive in this new market.

There is a significant opportunity for brands around authenticity because it can create an emotional connection between consumers and their products or services.

Brands should consider all aspects of virtual experiences including not just the physical environment but also communication with other users as well as navigation within apps. If you want your business to thrive now, check out the amazing content we have created for you!