When Facebook changed its name to Meta in 2021, the world took it as a signal of transitioning to a new digital frontier. The metaverse—a different world that exists entirely online—is the central theme of the social giant's rebranding.
Meanwhile, companies around the globe have started to invest in the metaverse. H&M and Gucci have initiated the use of virtual reality to sell custom-fit goods to customers. France's Musée D'Orsay has been installing virtual reality spaces for viewers to look into while in the comfort of their bedrooms. Walt Disney Studios has filed a patent for its ongoing metaverse theme park.
For companies that directly sell products to consumers, metaverse-related investments are seen as vital, because everyday consumers are more and more likely to patronize technologically adapting businesses. But does the phenomenon also apply to businesses that cater to other businesses?
In other words, is the B2B market compelled to dip their toes into the metaverse just because of the hype? Or is it still more lucrative to stay with traditional modes of marketing even when looking 10 years down the line?
Metaverse and Virtual Reality
As with most previous budding technologies, the metaverse and virtual reality have shown that B2B marketers have a lot to gain from investing in them. The metaverse has been touted as the new big break in tech: Think the mobile revolution or the dot-com boom. With it comes a new, unadulterated way of marketing and advertising to consumers and businesses.
VR technologies such as hardware and software design are potential B2B product spaces. The pandemic has ushered in the modern version of a physical meeting: videoconferencing. The relatively young industry is likely to mature as companies see it as an efficient tool. Big and small businesses are accoutering their meeting spaces with virtual products such as VR headsets, glasses, flat screens, software, TVs, collaboration tools, and much more.
If the metaverse were to become a full-fledged reality, then B2B vendors would be required to provide remote assistance, immersive training, and augmented participation in manufacturing, selling, marketing, acquiring of B2B products and services across stakeholders. Customer support and customer experience services are more palatable to clients if the sellers are adept in the rigor of metaverse operations.
Because B2B marketing thrives on product research and development, the metaverse opens up new avenues of luring businesses to buy their offerings. Clients don't have to be physically present to experience holistically and first-handedly the impact of B2B materials. Once virtual venues become mainstream, clients can see 360-degree angles of the items for sale.
Furthermore, product tests are rampant in B2B marketing. In the metaverse, creators can manufacture a product experience tailored to a client's unique needs, challenges, and concerns. Logo maker tools, for example, can present a virtual version of a logo creation process. Ultimately, that approach will lead to improved bottom lines without wasting unnecessary costs on tests and trials.
In the metaverse, the "show, don't tell" technique will be the real differentiator vs. traditional forms of advertising and marketing. Too much telling leads to low conversions, but the metaverse and its fleet of virtual reality possibilities can arm a B2B business to show—and showcase—a stunning experience or a customized reality.
Blockchain and Web 3.0
The entrance of blockchain is nothing new to cryptocurrency, but now it's being deliberated as a viable tool for things larger than currency, such as document storage, finance, museum and government records, intelligence, army information, and more. Is there an urgency for B2B spaces to accommodate a largely speculative industry like blockchain technology and the larger Web 3.0?
The truth is that blockchain is running the future of the Internet. Although blockchain is in its infancy, we cannot forsake its role in the emergence of cryptocurrency, which is being adopted by major brands and other financial institutions and government agencies. How can business owners take advantage of those services. Is there even a slight utility to the technology for B2B brands?
Because blockchain is a secure technology for storing data across multiple owners, it is a viable technology for shared supply chain management and storage. The immense security and difficulty in accessing it positioned it as a perfect tool to improve cross-collaboration from multiple parties, and to help management teams efficiently maneuver disputes and resolutions despite varying lengths in distance and differences in services.
Blockchain's bestselling asset—security—enables most data companies and other service providers to use it for great lengths of time. It provides longevity and security for data, clients, and other stakeholders. That explains why lots and lots of companies are forming fully customized service suits using blockchain as the main driver of storage and sharing. Big companies that rely on data are usually first in line: data centers, software tech companies, artificial intelligence centers, e-commerce stores, and more.
Now that early adapters are on the rise, blockchain is poised to become a $2 billion industry in the next three years. A full 82% of Fortune 100 companies are researching the possible implications and utility of the emerging technology. That includes Top 50 companies, leading accounting firms, and at least one leading tech giant: IBM, is using blockchain to power its television commercials for business Cloud services.
A Complicated But Promising Future
It will take years before simple consumers can feel and experience the effects of metaverse and blockchain technology in everyday life. Today's phones and laptops were foreign 10 years ago, and now they're ubiquitous tools. And, as always, B2B businesses will have to take the first necessary steps for acquiring and improving the technology before B2C can market and implement it for everyday consumers.
