When talking about metaverse digital marketing, you may encounter the term “metaverse stack.” This is a term that references a set of tools and systems used for turning virtual experiences into paying customers.
In other words, it refers to platforms, content, processes, as well as data itself - things that can be used to move people from just browsing to buying and becoming a return customer. As such, anything that is connected to revenue can be considered a stack.
In this context, you can also encounter the term ‘real sales,’ which references business outcomes that can be measured and included in a financial report, such as the number of sign-ups, purchases, and subscriptions, to name a few. Metrics like visits, created avatars, trends, or even time spent in virtual worlds may seem important, and for some things, they are. But, for real revenue, or “real sales,” businesses should focus on instances where users actually spent the money.
In the funnel, the metaverse sits at the top and middle. It is what captures the attention and builds interest, and ultimately, it results in engagement.
Virtual Engagement That Moves Users Forward
Source: Pixabay
The role of the metaverse is to create intent, and through it - value. But, this doesn’t happen on its own. Rather, certain experience formats have been found to be more successful than others in creating intent with a dose of reliability.
Engagement Formats
Some formats that work fairly consistently as part of the metaverse marketing strategy are based on action, rather than spectacle. Take virtual venues as an example. These are brand spaces that exist on platforms and can create low-friction discovery. Then, there are immersive events like concerts, live demos, product launches, and the like, which can create urgency by giving limited offers.
Advergames are also commonly used for introducing products through interaction with the game, rather than ads that people tend to ignore and skip. Some businesses may also appeal to collectors by offering digital collectibles or some other rewards system that creates ownership and allows the user to get more attached to a brand.
These and similar formats are typically successful because they make users interact with the brand or its product. The relationship between the user and a product or brand starts with interaction, becomes interest, and eventually evolves into intent.
“Platform-Native” vs “Brand-Owned World” Decision
One of many important decisions that companies need to make is whether to seek to provide a platform-native experience or a brand-owned world. Platform-native experiences can offer scale and built-in traffic, but the trade-off is that they limit data ownership.
On the other hand, brand-owned worlds provide more control and first-party data, not to mention deeper customer insight. However, they also come with a higher cost due to the acquisition, and the business has to generate traffic. Ultimately, it is a strategic decision that puts reach and speed on one side, and control and long-term data value on the other.
What is the metaverse in the context of digital marketing?
In digital marketing, the metaverse represents a network of virtual spaces. This is where brands can interact with their users and deepen their interest in the brand or its product by providing experiences, rather than ads. In other words, metaverses are used to build attention and drive engagement, for the ultimate purpose of establishing trust and pushing users toward action, such as signing up, purchasing products, or subscribing to the businesses’ services or offerings.
Creation, Governance, and Reuse of 3D/Digital Goods
Digital assets can play a large role in the context of the metaverse and digital goods, in general, as they drive engagement and keep the conversation going. More than that, they give users meaningful interactions and a reason to come back. If they are well-designed and reusable, they can turn a single visit into regular interactions with the brand and eventually lead the user to subscriptions.
Asset Types
When it comes to asset types, one of the main ones in terms of metaverse marketing is 3D environments. That includes thingsl ike virtual places for events or stores. Other than that, wearables for metaverse users’ avatars are also popular as they allow opportunities for customization and personalization.
This opens up an opportunity for brands to include branded items, allowing metaverse users to highlight their affiliation or support for the brand. In addition to that, they can also gain access to certain perks that are otherwise not available to unaffiliated users.
Production Workflow
A typical production workflow follows a fairly straightforward path. It starts with a brief that defines the business’s goals and user intent. From there, prototypes are created to provide visuals for the concept.
The next step is to conduct testing in order to ensure assets function the way they are supposed to, and to check if they are actually appealing ot users. If they get approved, they are then published and iterated based on engagement and overall performance. That way, the content stays fresh and relevant.
Rights/Brand Safety Basics
Finally, it is important to dedicate some time and effort to establishing rights and brand safety. Typically, the first step is to turn to creator contracts, as they can clearly define ownership and usage rights.
Apart from that, moderation is necessary to ensure that any content generated by the users is in compliance with the brand’s own standards and policies.
Lastly, there is licensing that is used to protect the brand, its IPs, and even its collaborators, as it can help prevent disputes.
Building The “Return Loop”
Source: Pixabay
When building and handling a metaverse, there are common mistakes and pitfalls that are best avoided. One of the most common examples is launching a single cool activation that nobody ends up returning to. This must be avoided or the entire project will be endangered. Instead, businesses should focus on creating a return loop that will keep users engaged over a longer period.
Community Flywheel
One example of a return loop is known as the community flywheel. It starts with an event that will develop an interest in users and draw them in. Once you grab their attention, you can develop it further through User-Generated Content, or UGC.
This will serve as social proof for new participants, which is when you showcase offers, rewards, and limited-time experiences that will encourage them to come back and keep coming back. If done right, this evolves into a cycle where engagement directly fuels more engagement, strengthening the ties between the user and the brand over time.
Creator & Influencer Collaboration Patterns
Another solid option is the creator and influencer collaboration pattern, which works because collaborations boost reach and make the brand and its product seem more authentic and legitimate.
If a brand co-creates content with influencers or creators, this gives users something unique from both the creator they already know and respect and the brand they are just learning about. Meanwhile, sponsored content can also be used to attract the influencer’s audience without them giving up their own creative control.
Data & Measurement Layer: ROI You Can Defend
Source: Pixabay
Ultimately, your goal is to use the metaverse to drive sales and produce return on investment (ROI), and the only reliable way to be sure whether your approach is working is through tracking outcomes and monitoring data.
Core KPIs
The first thing to note is what your key performance indicators (KPIs) are. Core KPIs include conversion rates, purchase or sign-up figures, and how often your returning customers/users visit. In addition, you can also add engagement depth and monitor how much time users spent on the platform, how much they interacted with it, what assets they used, and the like. By measuring these core metrics, you can determine both short-term results and make long-term predictions.
Funnel Instrumentation
Next, consider tracking events such as clicks, asset claims, and general interactions, as this also helps reveal engagement. You can also organize users into different cohorts based on their behavior, and identify what are the drop-off points, meaning what causes users to lose interest and leave, and then change or eliminate them.
Attribution Approach
To understand what actually leads to sales, you need ways to track where actions come from. This can be done by using special links or promo codes that can highlight which campaign brought users in.
On top of that, promo codes also link actions to purchases, encouraging users to engage. This also offers an opportunity to collect data directly, rather than relying on third parties to do it and sell it to you.
By doing it yourself, you will keep this information accurate and cut the costs of having to acquire it from others.
Ultimately, through this process, you can see what truly works and what doesn’t, and how online interactions get transformed into real results.
Tool Stack Recommendations
In order for your metaverse marketing strategy to work, it needs to be supported by a tool stack that will support learning, testing, and further optimization, which will allow you to address the findings. For example:
Platform Analytics
Popular platforms such as Roblox and Meta Worlds offer native analytics tools that can be used to gain basic insights into things like user visits, and learn how long they tend to stick around, what they interact with, and what platform assets they use while there. Furthermore, these tools are useful if you need to understand the users' behavior in the metaverse.
Community Insights + CRM Bridge
Community data should travel directly into a CRM system, which lets you link virtual identities with real users, emails, and customer profiles. That way, you can combine valuable information between the users’ virtual behavior and engagement with the real-world sales activity for greater insights.
Experimentation
When it comes to experimentation, an A/B testing mindset and iterative releases are an essential combination. This allows you to test small changes and measure the results, then refine things over time. That is how the experimentation works in LLM development, with quick new iterations, controlled testing, and then improvement conducted based on the information that you receive from the tests. As a consequence, systems are constantly changing and evolving, but this is a never-ending process based on feedback and actions to improve things further.
Case Studies & “Build Your Stack” Checklist
Source: Pixabay
There are many examples of platforms that have used similar approaches to reach success. One of them is Chipotle (Roblox) which used its own platform’s experience regarding rewards systems and promotions to successfully boost engagement.
Not only that, but it also increased actions, and was able to measure the results, and find out exactly what aspects of its offers worked best with customers. People who took part in its promotions were more likely to go to physical locations and use the rewards, which highlighted a connection between what users did online and what they did in the real world.
Another example is Nike NIKELAND, which focused on scale and reach as its strategy, producing massive visits and regular engagement from users. This was then used as a signal that there is interest in the brand and what it has to offer, and by pushing on, it managed to grow its audience, while building familiarity and awareness along the way. All of this signaled behavioral intent, which can then be activated using more traditional marketing channels. Once the brand captures interest, the rest follows smoothly.
With that said, here is what your 30/60/90-day checklist should look like:
30 days: Use this time to come up with goals and funnel position, platforms, and data capture.
60 days: Build partnerships and assets, as well as tracking systems, and try to develop an engagement loop.
90 days: By this point, you should launch the experience, carefully monitor how people use it, make improvements based on what you see, and use that knowledge to modify your sales and customer-oriented systems.
Conclusion
Metaverse marketing is still new, but many have used it successfully to analyse information and improve their business approach. To achieve this, it is important to treat it as a business tool, rather than a branding experiment. Simply put, success is far more likely to come if you can provide pleasant experiences for the users, which will make them want to return. Along the way, collect and analyse information to understand what works and what doesn’t, and what actions lead to sales.
