Dive Brief:
- As of March, over three-quarters of customers (74%) have heard of the metaverse; according to a news release shared with Marketing Dive by Wunderman Thompson Intelligence. That’s a significant increase from last July, when only 32% of respondents said they knew what the term meant.
- Only 15% of respondents believed they could explain what the metaverse is to others, indicating that familiarity does not imply knowledge. Still, two-thirds of consumers believe the concept has the ability to transform their lives. It was called the “next internet” by 68% of respondents, and the “future” by 74%.
- Concerns regarding children’s privacy and safety persist across the metaverse; with 72% of parents anxious about their children’s privacy; and 66% concerned about their children’s safety. Nonetheless, the study, which polled over 3,000 adults aged 16 to 65 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and China; found that the metaverse has acquired a place in public debate, which may speed up acceptance.
Dive Insight:
The newest study from Wunderman Thompson Intelligence, which adds to the conclusions reported by the group in September; explains how quickly the metaverse has become mainstream. However, simply hearing the term does not suggest that they are knowledgeable about its inner workings; as few people would be comfortable describing the metaverse in practice. Given the knowledge gap, consumers’ rising confidence that the metaverse represents “the future” should be treated with caution.
According to recent trends, companies are eager to invest in gaming in ways that could pave the way for big metaverse games in the future. Nike unveiled a Nikeland space in Roblox in November, where users can try on virtual models of its products and take part in games designed to encourage recurring visits.
Consumers appear to enjoy these kinds of activations. As of March, Nikeland has approximately 7 million users. Wendy’s recently launched a virtual restaurant under Meta’s Horizon Worlds platform, which attracted 52 million users. In its most recent earnings report, Meta stated: They want to make Horizon Worlds more accessible this year; with plans to provide a web-based version that does not require a headset. VR adoption has been hampered by high hardware costs and clumsy user experiences and could be a hurdle for the metaverse.
In a positive sign for businesses, advertising would be impacted by the metaverse; according to 89% of consumers polled by Wunderman Thompson Intelligence. Other top-ranking categories included retail (86%), fashion (85%) and finance (82%), while food and beverage landed at the bottom of the list (74%).
Other aspects of the metaverse, as well as the Web3 frontier, appear to be in trouble. Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) were formerly thought to be an useful way for brands to test the metaverse. Branded NFT drops were widespread last year with companies from McDonald’s and Pepsi to Crockpot are all geting in one action. However, NFT sales are plummeting, fallen 92% from its September high according to The Wall Street Journal.
As brands try to figure out what will survive and what will be a fad in the metaverse, agencies perceive a possibility. WPP, Wunderman Thompson’s holding company; announced a relationship with Epic Games earlier this week, Fortnite’s developer, on an initiative that seeks to train employees at the ad holding group in preparation for the metaverse.
