March 5th 2022

The idea of the Metaverse has captured the attention of brands, retailers, media companies, marketing agencies, and technology platforms. Pioneering business leaders, investors, and entrepreneurs see new opportunities to stake their claim in an as yet-to-be-defined space that promises to revolutionize the internet and what it means to be online and completely change the way people work, play, learn, and shop. Some imagine Virtual reality goggles as the key entry point into immersive worlds that seamlessly combine elements of gaming, social media, entertainment, and retail, where users are embodied as avatars of their own design. Others believe society already exists in some version of the metaverse by virtue of the ubiquity of always-on mobile devices and the ability to tap into digital content and experiences from anywhere at any moment. These opposing points of view begin to converge with the widespread adoption and use of augmented reality and hands-free computing protocols like gesture and voice. Whichever vision of the future you ascribe to, it's clear that the lines that delineate on and offline behaviors and physical and digital worlds have nearly eroded, as people slide further into fluid, hybrid lifestyles with many ceasing to make distinctions between the two. Alongside the excitement and wild speculation associated with the metaverse itself, there has been an almost equally meteoric rise around topics like web3, NFTs (non-fungible tokens), cryptocurrency, and DAOs (decentralized autonomous organizations), which are often hard to separate from the broader conversation. These ideas will most certainly play a key role in shaping how people experience the metaverse moving forward. As always, PSFK seeks to help frame how our audience understands and thinks about an emerging space like the metaverse by looking at the experimentation taking place, listening to expert POV, and tracking consumer sentiment to identify key insights and highlight emerging trends. In part two of our three-part series ‘Exploring The Metaverse Opportunity’ we deep dive into the ways brand strategies are being reimagined to deliver immersive, interactive and value-driven experiences across the metaverse landscape. Through the lens of six strategies, we look at how marketing teams are leveraging platforms like Decentraland and The Sandbox to elevate the brand-customer relationship and beyond. You'll learn how brand personalities like influencers and even mascots are coming to life in Virtual Worlds to engage visitors and see the ways companies are rewarding and engaging their audiences with activations that connect them to social experiences and playable versions of their IP and assets. This report is the first of a three-part series. - Retail Strategies for the Metaverse - Marketing and Brand Experience Strategies for the Metaverse - Services, Tools and Best Practices For Creating Open, Safe and Vibrant Virtual Worlds

Highlights from PSFK's US Metaverse and Brands Survey, March '22

The metaverse represents an emerging but exciting channel to connect younger, digitally-savvy consumers to brands, their products and values. Consumers do appreciate how corporations are trying to get involved with virtual worlds. When PSFK asked US adult virtual world users if their perception would change if a brand they knew was operating in a virtual world, 39% said their perception of a brand would be improved while just 6% said it would worsen. While the metaverse provides a unique and imaginative space for brand building and storytelling - most consumers still gravitate towards the familiar parallels from the real world. When they experience them in a virtual world, consumers don’t want brands and retailers to be trying anything radically new. In fact, PSFK researchers found that 58% of US adult virtual world users would most enjoy a brand experience that is similar or very similar to the ones they find in the real world. Most metaverse participants are primarily focused on playing and creating. Brands have a role as long as their contributing to the overall experience in a meaningful way. Brands and retailers need to remember US adults just want to have fun when they log into virtual worlds. When asked by PSFK researchers what they like to do there, the top responses were play (57% of US adult virtual world users), visiting meta-versions of the real world (45%), hanging out with likeminds (38%) or remixing the world they discover (37%). Interaction with companies ranked lower on the list - with 33% interested in testing products and only 20% enjoying shopping. Social interaction and community building within the metaverse show promise. For the moment, there’s more value in brands acting as connectors rather than active participants. When it comes to meeting other avatars or players in virtual worlds, PSFK researchers found that US adult virtual world users overwhelming preferred people they know (Friends 57%, Family 37%, Co-Workers 17%) but there is some interest in interacting with avatars that can teach or instruct (fitness & wellness coaches 22%, advisers & mentors 20%). Only 16% would prefer to interact with known social media influencers or corporate representatives. The PSFK quantitative survey was conducted March 3-4, 2022. The total audience were US adults aged between 18 and 65 years old. The survey was a ‘basic census’ balanced in terms of age and gender. The 388 respondents had household income between $0-$200k. For a copy of complete survey findings, contact: [email protected]

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Highlights from PSFK's US Metaverse and Brands Survey, March '22

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