4) How the Metaverse is Simply an Upgrade of Social Media & Online Interaction
The Metaverse is here to transform the Internet, change online interactions, and upgrade social media. It will soon have the entire world in its grip. AR, VR, AI, and other driving technologies will allow the Metaverse to transform people’s lives beyond recognition.
Introduction: The Concept of Metaverse Has Been Around For a While
The concept of the Metaverse has been around for a while. The term was coined by Neal Stephenson, an author who used the phrase “Metaverse” in his 1992 novel, “Snow Crash,” to describe people using virtual avatars to meet in 3-D models and environments. Facebook has announced its transformation into a Metaverse, followed by Microsoft, Amazon, and Disney. Since then, investors, entrepreneurs, and tech giants have been eager to participate in the Metaverse. It is the next big thing and is already being termed the Internet’s successor.
What Exactly Is The Metaverse?
Metaverse is still a broad term but with a simple idea behind it. The Metaverse concept represents a digital online world where people can do a range of activities such as meetings, education, gaming, streaming, and pretty much anything one can imagine from the comfort of their homes. The concept uses Virtual Reality, Augmented Reality, Artificial Intelligence, and more. The Metaverse is like Steven Spielberg’s movie, “Ready Player One,” where the whole game is online but with a broader approach that is not limited to just gaming. Instead, it includes all digital tasks you perform today. Also, another example would be Bluemoon, which is fast catching up the early investor’s attention and is also the world’s first collaborative NFT marketplace with it’s own integrated Metaverse.
Current Social Media Products and Services Have Almost Reached Their Peak: How Metaverse Will Serve as an Upgrade to Social Media
The present social media might have peaked and the Metaverse is here to upgrade it. Social media and online applications came to offer comfort and ease of access and communication. Be it Whatsapp, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, or any other platform; it shares the familiar concept of online interconnectivity with other people globally. The Metaverse will improve that interconnectivity by offering you a virtual space for critical interactions.
Imagine sitting in your room, but instead of a phone or a tablet, you have a VR headset on. You will be able to see your friends and their posts in front of you and interact or converse with them as if they are with you in the room. And not just social media but gaming and e-commerce because the Metaverse technologies will make it possible for you to watch, try on, and use the products and things in a virtual space. Metaverse will launch social media into a whole new dimension.
Technologies and Key Elements That Would Be the Driving Force Behind This Amalgamation Of Social Media and Metaverse
The following technologies and concepts will serve as the backbone of the Metavers:
Virtual Reality (VR): A simulated experience and a fascinating way of leveraging technology to travel, play and experience a virtual digital world using headsets, video, sound, and motion tracking. The digitally-generated environments of Virtual Reality will play an essential role in achieving the Metaverse as it is based on the idea of a virtual space parallel to the natural world.
Augmented Reality (AR): An interactive experience and an enhanced version of a real-world environment through the use of a set of technologies that superimposes digital data and images, digital visual elements, sound, etc., onto the actual physical world. Augmented Reality will further enhance the Metaverse. AR will allow interactions with the natural objects as perceived through the online Metaverse. AR in the Metaverse will change social media, just like the 2016 game Pokemon Go.
Blockchain: A necessity of the Metaverse. They serve information storage in chains of information blocks that work with a consensus algorithm, such as Proof of Work (PoW) or Proof of Stake (PoS). The algorithm allows the addition of blocks to the chains without putting the data integrity of the decentralised system at risk. A similar consensus would benefit the Metaverse. It can then manage the unfathomable amount of data used in constructing the 3D world. Blockchains also can provide power to users by making decentralised applications. The Metaverse will keep evolving to allow users to create, interact, and manage applications with the Blockchain network.
Cryptocurrencies: Metaverse will also require a digital currency to manage transactions. Cryptocurrencies will serve as the de facto mode of payments on this virtual Metaverse.
Non-Fungible Token (NFT): The unique and non-interchangeable unit of data stored on the blockchain, that leverages smart contracts to represent ownership of individual items. NFTs can tokenize art, music, videos, collectibles, or even real estate. The best thing about NFTs is, there can be only one owner of an asset at a time. NFTs are already making headlines. Metaverse, together with NFTs, will give rise to virtual ownerships and ensure security for your digital assets, artwork, tools, and tokens.
Artificial Intelligence (AI): AI has a huge potential in the Metaverse. AI technologies such as retinal identification for online biometric security, Neuralinks to understand the way humans think, and other concepts will allow the training of AI Agents, taking them to another level. The Metaverse will provide context-aware solutions that enable proper valuable insights to Metaverse users once AI systems and agents are in place. Furthermore, these AI agents will evolve with the Metaverse over time. These AI agents will be closely integrated with the Metaverse for interaction, security, developing newer technologies, chip designing, optimizing virtual spaces, AI guides, and much more.
Internet of Everything: Extends the current Internet of Things (IoT) concept. Humans, things, information, and activities will be linked in a single Metaverse through the Internet of Everything. Internet of Everything will assist in providing data and interactions that are consumer-focused to AR systems and the Metaverse. By giving people power and allowing them to use all of their senses for instructions and activities, the Internet of Everything will make extraordinary human-machine interactions a reality with the Metaverse. For instance, a user looking at a TV set and performing a gesture can turn it on.
How Metaverse Can Redefine Social Media Marketing
The Metaverse is a collective virtual shared space created by the convergence of all virtual worlds, augmented reality, and the Internet. And the Metaverse will be joined by everyone’s avatar. Such a situation will completely transform the current social media marketing scenarios. Brands will target customers with advertisements by assessing their online presence and virtual surroundings. Marketing of products will be revolutionized with new interactive 3-D models and strategies. An excellent example is Bluemoon, the worlds first collaborative NFT marketplace that encompasses all the aspects of VR and AR with its own integrated Metaverse, and leverages social media to give power to the users and creators. Bluemoon is allowing people to create customisable VR spaces where they can showcase their brand or product in a whole new way.
The strategies will include providing information on applying products correctly, trying things on before purchasing, and giving exclusive avatars, virtual living spaces, and more. Virtual Search will be a crucial concept allowing users to search for a product by focusing on an item in a virtual space. The Metaverse will open new avenues for social media marketers to provide better products targeted at individuals who want them.
Like Snapchat’s 3D avatar system, where users can create a digital avatar and customize it with exclusive outfits and accessories, brands will profit by providing exclusive items intended for the same purpose. Virtual Magazines will feature celebrity avatars with custom outfits, unique products in the form of NFTs, and much more.
Social media marketers will begin making content with augmented reality, may host or attend exclusive virtual reality events, partner up with celebrities, producers, and influencers for the sale of products, and connect with reporters, analysts, and journalists for advanced analytics on how to master the AR/VR targeting in the Metaverse.
The Future Of Metaverse: Some More Potential Use-cases
The Metaverse will impact every area of human life, including lifestyle, entertainment, and culture:
Lifestyle & Shopping: The Metaverse will offer more than just outfits. Digital search will completely change the way people look for products. Lifestyle and fashion would also change as people dress up their unique avatars in exclusive clothes, furnish virtual real estate with luxury items and cars, and implement style differently.
Entertainment & Gaming: With AI agents, humans, and processes more digitally synchronized, the entertainment industry would also transform. Imagine virtual concerts with your friends, watching movies in virtual theatres, gaming in virtual environments, and more perspectives. With the Metaverse, all of that would be possible. Brands and organizations would be approachable and not hide behind a curtain of pre-recorded activities and commercials, making the digital entertainment industry more transparent.
Culture & Economy: The existing culture will change as humans in the Metaverse interact with individuals, holograms, AI agents, and more, building new relationships and culture. The economy will also transform in the Metaverse with the evolution of marketing by introducing robotic assistants. They will target individuals based on preferences, virtual searches, behaviours, visited virtual environments, and more.
Final Words
The Metaverse’s promoters foresee everyone working, playing, and remaining engaged with pals through social media, concerts, and conventions, to online excursions worldwide. The Metaverse will have a far-reaching societal impact. It will unleash incredible creativity and provide brands and enterprises with new challenges and possibilities.
As of now, it might be an upgrade to the existing social media, but the Metaverse will transform the world in some years with new entrants like Legion Network, who are gearing up to develop a creator, entrepreneur, and user-driven economy through their decentralised super app. Within the super app are a range of features such as:
- Bluemoon: The world’s first NFT marketplace with an integrated Metaverse.
- Rewards: An innovative feature where users can earn free crypto for completing tasks
- Arcadia: Play to earn (P2E) games
- Empower: Learn to earn courses
- SaaS: Software for businesses provided simply by staking the token, thus introducing a new concept.
- Legion’s own integrated wallet with the option to purchase crypto directly.
Organizations will function significantly differently than they do presently. Music lovers can get a chance to be delighted by an entertainment Metaverse. The Metaverse will perform marketing to supply better items and viewpoints. The world will see technologies and inventions emerge that take advantage of the Metaverse’s fundamental behavioral changes. Social media will be transformed from 2-D to 3-D, and interacting online will be completely enhanced allowing us to connect with friends and family around the world in a completely immersive experience.
What are your thoughts on this topic? Will Metaverse enhance social media and marketing?
Follow one of the most innovative and ahead-of-trend companies in this space — Bluemoon 🔵
References
Ball, M. (2020, January 13). The Metaverse: What it is, where to find it, and who will build it. MatthewBall.vc.
https://www.matthewball.vc/all/themetaverse
Buyer, L. (2021, August 25). Marketing in the Metaverse: The future of Search & Social. Searchenginejournal.Com.
https://www.searchenginejournal.com/marketing-in-the-metaverse/416813/
Hackl, C. (2020, July 5). The Metaverse is coming and it’s A very big deal. Forbes Magazine.
https://www.forbes.com/sites/cathyhackl/2020/07/05/the-metaverse-is-coming--its-a-very-big-deal/
Rawat, S. (2021, August 26). Everything About Metaverse Technology. Analyticssteps.Com.
https://www.analyticssteps.com/blogs/everything-about-metaverse-technology
Wagner, J. The Metaverse is coming to social media. Ignitesocialmedia.Com.
https://www.ignitesocialmedia.com/social-media-marketing/the-metaverse-is-coming-to-social-media/
