EXTRA, EXTRA! Our CEO, Dani Casanovas, has published an opinion column in InnovaSpain, the reference medium for following current Spanish innovation. You can read it on their website and also in this entry.
Reference medium to follow Spanish innovative news; from large corporations to the entrepreneurial ecosystem or the work of public administrations. A transversal look at R&D&i that more recently pays additional attention to the role of women in the STEAM field and innovation in Latin America.
Much and little is being said these days about the meta universe that Mark Zuckerberg wants to build. A lot because it is the new name under which the company will encompass all its services, which include three of the most used platforms and applications in the world: Facebook, Instagram and Whatsapp. Little, however, of the implications that this proposal may have.
For now, these implications have been summarized in three points: socialization, entertainment and work. An internet within the internet. However, a very important aspect remains up in the air: advertising, which is today the main pillar of the company now called Meta, formerly known as Facebook.
The new universe may have more dimensions, but it will still be based on the same business model. What awaits companies and brands, therefore, in the metauniverse proposed by Facebook? Advertising in a meta universe can be revolutionary because it will be based on product and interaction. I don’t think it is based on advertising as we know it today, where an impact can be converted into a sale. Advertising will be based on the purchasing process itself. Zuckerberg wants you to see and feel how 20 pairs of sneakers fit in 5 minutes with augmented reality glasses.
Therefore, you can buy a car/furniture/clothing through an immersive experience through virtual reality and augmented reality devices, which even allows you to see how a piece of furniture looks in a certain space before buying it.
How is this going to affect brands? How should they prepare? The fundamental thing is that advertising will no longer be just visual. It will be 360º advertising, which will surround us. In that sense, content, and also digital channels, gain space and power. It is also probable that, as is already happening with phenomena such as shoppertainment –little known in Europe but very widespread in Asia– virtual reality greatly increases online consumption and consumption in general, favoring certain impulsive purchases.
If it is established as a paradigm, virtual reality will push the rest of the digital players. Especially, Social Networks, which will also be immersive to compete with Meta. What the immersive experience will offer to the user will be that each person, with their own avatar, can physically be in other places and interact there with other people, in a realistic way.
Success will depend on the ability of Meta and other actors to generate enjoyable content for users. But if this happens, for brands and consumption it can be a great boost, since it is not the same, for example, to make a purchase online seeing the products in a list than to virtually “travel” to the supermarket, fill your cart and have those foods at the door of your house within a few minutes.
