Although awareness of the metaverse has more than doubled in less than a year, understanding how it works remains low among surveyed consumers and businesses.
This is according to a report by trend intelligence firm Wunderman Thompson Intelligence, titled New realities: Into the metaverse and beyond. It is based on interviews with over 3 000 consumers and business representatives aged between 16 to 65 years in the US, UK and China.
The research provides an analysis and roadmap for the metaverse and shows brands and agencies possible directions in a tech field where 74% of surveyed people feel it will be the future.
A “metaverse” is a virtual reality space where users in different parts of the globe can interact with each other and with virtual beings in a computer-generated environment.
According to the research, there is a lack of fundamental understanding of what the term means, with only 15% of surveyed individuals being able to define what it is and stating they can explain it to someone else.
While less than a third (32%) had heard of the term in July 2021, by March 2022 almost three-quarters (74%) had heard of it – this reflects a growing awareness of the term.
Despite being unable to explain the metaverse, consumers believe it promises to impact our lives significantly, and among those who know what the metaverse is, two-thirds believe it will be life-changing, with 74% stating it is the future.
Over the past year, companies have been increasingly experimenting with the metaverse, with tech companies such as Facebook, Nvidia, Samsung and Microsoft introducing their services in the virtual world.
“Although the metaverse is still in its earliest stages, there has been an increasing awareness of the metaverse recently − we are watching it take shape in real-time,” says Emma Chiu, Wunderman Thompson Intelligence global director and author of the report.
“As ever-greater portions of our lives move into the virtual realm, it’s becoming increasingly clear that the metaverse will be instrumental in our collective future – those who know what the metaverse is say it will be a place to socialise (82%), a place to shop (70%) and part of their daily life (50%).”
Meta bucks to be made
According to the report, the impact of the metaverse is predicted to be significant across industries, from financial services, to food and retail, to health.
With the metaverse set to reach $800 billion in global market revenue in 2024, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analysis, companies are increasingly pouring investment into this emerging technology.
In February 2022, JPMorgan, the world’s fifth-largest bank, won the race to become the first bank in the metaverse, notes Wunderman Thompson.
The bank opened its virtual Onyx lounge in Decentraland to prepare for the emerging ‘metaconomy’.
“We believe the existing virtual gaming landscape (each virtual world with its own population, GDP, in-game currency and digital assets) has elements that parallel the existing global economy,” JPMorgan said in its “Opportunities in the metaverse” report.
In March 2022, HSBC, the world’s seventh-largest bank, announced it will enter the metaverse in partnership with The Sandbox. The bank plans to buy a piece of land in The Sandbox, which will be developed to engage and connect with sports, eSports and gaming enthusiasts.
“The metaverse is how people will experience Web3 − the next generation of the internet − using immersive technologies like augmented reality, virtual reality and extended reality. We see great potential to create new experiences through emerging platforms,” says Suresh Balaji, HSBC CMO for Asia-Pacific.
In the retail space, 86% of surveyed people believe the retail industry will be impacted by the metaverse. Among those who are familiar with the metaverse, 70% believe it will be a place to shop, and 68% say it will be the future of e-commerce and online shopping.
Retailers that have introduced products and services in the metaverse include global active wear Skechers, foot wear brand Nike, clothing and accessories retailer Fred Segal, and US fashion retailer Forever 21.