By Rory Kenny, CEO, Loudly.

What is a Metaverse?

It’s a relatively new term but one that is gaining momentum and one that the marketing world should start paying attention to. Meaning ‘beyond universe’ the possibilities of the Metaverse are truly limitless.

Essentially the Metaverse is a virtually shared space where you can work, play and connect with others. Think of it a bit like Second Life, but now you’re able to take it one step further and integrate physical aspects like augmented and virtual reality.

How will people use the Metaverse?

It’s been suggested that the Metaverse will become as crucial as our physical lives. Everything will be mirrored in the Metaverse; you, your home, work, fitness and so on. Currently we access the online world when we want, a push system if you will, but the future is far more connected and seamless.

So you wake up in the morning, put your smart glasses on and you’re given the days plans, updates, weather etc. You drive to work and your glasses let you know that your current route has heavy traffic so sends you off on a faster one. At work you can have immersive ‘team meetings’ with colleagues from around the globe where you feel like you’re sitting next to one another. And so your day goes on with the Metaverse by your side.

The pandemic has certainly made this way of life seem much more feasible than it was even just a year ago. Society has migrated to an online life far faster than anticipated, because the pandemic forced it too.

Who will be the driver for the Metaverse?

We are already starting to see iterations of the Metaverse gain huge traction with the likes of Roblox and Animal Crossing - but these are limited to gaming. What we will see is companies start to launch platforms that have a broader consumer offering such as creating an online bar to meet your friends or virtual exercise class where you can stand right in front of the instructor.

Big tech players are already investing and planning for the Metaverse. Take Facebook for example. It bought Oculus VR for $2 billion in 2014, a signal that it will be creating its own platform for the Metaverse in the near future.

Why do marketers need to take note?

The Metaverse will revolutionise the consumer world in the same way social media did. It will create new channels and means for marketers to take advantage of. It’s a hugely exciting opportunity for the marketing world to become more creative and find new and exciting ways to engage.

For us at Loudly we are starting to integrate the Metaverse into our thinking when it comes to product development and the future of the company. For us we see music playing a pivotal role in the Metaverse and being able to provide millions of soundtracks easily to consumers will help enhance and enrich their online experience.