The Metaverse, although still relatively new, brings with it a whole host of new opportunities for consumers and brands alike.
The only problem seems to be that most of us don’t really know what it is, who uses it, why they use it and whether it’s worth including in digital marketing strategies.
To gain some insight and clarity, we reflect on a survey that Suzy recently did with over 1000 consumers living in the U.S. Spoiler alert, only about 5% of respondents said that they ever visited the metaverse.
What consumers are currently doing in the metaverse
The survey revealed that in the metaverse, consumers are using augmented reality to engage with each other and their surroundings.
It also revealed that at least 41% are interested in connecting with other people virtually, with 26% of people saying that they felt neutral about the question and 19% saying that they weren’t interested at all.
52% have heard of the metaverse, while 42% say that they don’t know much about it. Of those who hadn’t heard of it, 76% said that were either disinterested or neutral, while approximately 25% expressed interest.
Brands advertising in the metaverse
Despite 42% of respondents not having seen any brands advertised in the metaverse, there are few.
The top 5 brands advertising on the metaverse include:
- Meta/Facebook (41%)
- Nike & Microsoft (tied at 18%)
- Disney & Coca-Cola (tied at 17%)
The survey done by Suzy also indicated that brand recognition for companies like Wendy’s, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Chipotle, Hyundai and Balenciaga are being recognised by about 10% of consumers.
Celebrity interactions
In addition, it looked at the impact that celebrity influencers had on the metaverse, and in a surprising twist, more than half of respondents (53%) indicated that they weren’t interested in interacting with celebrities in the metaverse.
Among the respondents that were interested, Lady Gaga topped the list as the most sought-after celebrity at 24% followed by Rihanna at 22%, Snoop Dogg at 20% and Paris Hilton at 12%.
NFTs within the metaverse
In decentralised metaverses, for example, Deceraland and The Sandbox, NFTs can represent ownership of virtual goods such as plots of land or clothing items for your avatar.
The survey explored respondents’ attitudes towards NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and found that:
- NFTs have a low acquisition rate
- 55% of respondents have heard of them but have not bought any
- Of those, 48% are not likely to buy one at all, while only 18% are likely or very likely to
- 36% of respondents have never heard of NFTs
- 9% of respondents have heard of and bought NFTs
- Of those that own NFTs, 46% acquired them due to an expected increase in value over time.
- While another 38% acquired them because they either liked the design, wanted to support an artist (28%) or were exclusive items (28%).
Metaverse shoppers make good consumers
According to one consumer survey, “70% of consumers who shopped online in a virtual store have made a purchase. Overall, one-quarter of respondents have shopped online in a 3D virtual store. Among that group, 70%—including 69% of Gen Zers, 77% of millennials and 67% of Gen Xers—have made a purchase in a virtual store.”
What’s next for the metaverse?
So you might be wondering what’s next for the metaverse, and in all honesty, nobody knows.
In the future, we could be spending more time in virtual worlds. At least that’s what the world’s tech giants are betting on anyway… But until then, the future is unclear and perhaps worth keeping an eye on.
