How Brands Can Win in a Web3 World
It’s easy to think of web3 as just another buzzword. It’s easy to write off the metaverse as Facebook’s (now “Meta”) attempt to gaslight us from their platform practices. It’s hard to dig past the hyperbole and think critically about what’s driving all the discussion in the first place.
At its core, web3 changes how we define ownership, identity, and community in digital environments, creating massive opportunities for future-focused brands to drive growth and deepen customer relationships. To understand the potential for what’s next, let’s take a look at how we got here.
Web 1.0 was the first phase of the consumer internet lasting from 1990-2005. Websites were static, decentralized, and bandwidth was limited to what our phone lines could carry as we logged onto AOL, searched Yahoo or polished our home page on Geocities. Web 2.0 gave rise to the social web dominating from 2005-2020 with centralized platforms like Facebook, Youtube and Twitter giving anyone the ability to broadcast to everyone.
Web3 is starting now and combines the decentralized nature of web 1.0 with the interactivity and mobility of web 2.0 – along with two new critical elements: verifiable ownership of digital goods (NFTs) and immersive digital environments (metaverses).
Ownership
Built on the blockchain (a shared, programmable global computer that serves as a public ledger) web3 gives users the ability to own unique (non-fungible) digital goods that can be bought, sold, and re-sold exactly like physical products. These can come in the form of virtual clothes, art, game objects, music, access passes, and real estate, all of which can be used across various platforms. Products no longer need to be tangible to hold value, opening up entirely new revenue streams not impacted by global supply chain slowdowns.
Identity
As we spend more of our time in digital environments our needs for self-expression and social status kick in. Bored Apes are the new luxury. Fortnite skins are the new fashion statement. Custom avatar creation hub Ready Player Me is growing 40% monthly adding brand partners like New Balance and luxury fashion brand RTFKT. Users can reinvent their identity by creating 3D avatars based on a photograph that they can style and wear across metaverses like Decentraland, Roblox and The Sandbox. As consumers explore these new frontiers, they’ll need places to go – exactly the reason Chipotle opened up its first metaverse location in Roblox and why Sotheby’s opened a replica of their London auction house in Decentraland. There’s plenty of raw (virtual) land available for strategic brands to set up shop and explore new ways to connect with consumers.
Community
Perhaps one of the most compelling opportunities web3 brings is the ability for brands to deepen customer relationships. Without Facebook or Instagram in the way, brands are creating superfan communities in Discord or building their own using platforms like Mighty Networks where they can reach 100% of their followers 100% of the time. These communities can build loyalty, fuel UGC and spark innovation through co-creation initiatives. The iconic streetwear brand The Hundreds for example grew their Discord community to over 28,000 members.
Founders Ben and Bobby Hundreds often host AMAs (Ask Me Anything chat sessions) and participate in conversations with members who actively create and spread UGC, from memes to videos and storytelling around the brand’s 25,000 piece Adam Bomb Squad NFT collection. NFT holders have full commercial rights to the ABS characters they purchased, providing an opportunity for them to earn passive income through the sale of apparel and merch. Imagine the boost in loyalty possible for brands that help their customers earn money, instead of just spending it.
With the largest social media brand in the world freshly rebranded for the metaverse, it’s easy to imagine a near-future where our virtual lives rival our real ones. Millions of consumers are even employed in the metaverse in the play-to-earn space or staking cryptocurrencies. While we’re still far off from the Ready Player One reality that Mark Zuckerberg recently shared, brands that start laying the groundwork now to add value in new ways will be well-positioned to drive growth in a web3 world and beyond.
Thought Leadership:
MI&C X ADVERTISING WEEK NEW YORK
MI&C had the privilege of moderating two thought-provoking discussions at the 2021 Advertising Week conference in New York hosted by MI&C CEO/Founder Quynh Mai. Click the titles below to view. Advertising Week access is required which can be granted HERE.
Digital Doppelgangers – How A New Breed of Avatar is Reinventing Self-Expression
Avatars are evolving from flat images stuck in singular platforms, to customizable 3D characters that mirror our emotions and travel across the metaverse. These innovations are ushering in an age where we can socialize in digital third places as our truest selves and make meaningful connections beyond the physical limitations of our bodies. The implications are profound and will redefine how we shop, socialize and play as discussed by our panel of game-changers: Krista Kim - Metaverse Artist/Global Ambassador of Superworld, Chris Le - Co-Founder RTFKT, and Spottie Wifi, World's First Crypto Punk Rapper.
“Own It” with Diane Von Furstenberg
From the iconic 70s wrap dress and the way it empowered women to today’s innovative community philanthropic projects like the Little Island in Manhattan, Diane Von Furstenberg has been a consistent tastemaker, always knowing what’s next. Her secret? She is radically authentic and a risk-taker. In this intimate conversation, Diane shares her wisdom and why her latest book “Own It: The Secret to Life” resonates so strongly with Gen Z.
This article originally appeared in the November 2nd, 2021 issue of Moving Image & Content’s agency newsletter. Subscribe here.