The metaverse. It’s the latest buzzword that people love to toss around. And it’s pretty easy to understand why—it piques everyone’s interest! Even the biggest brands and investors are tuning in.
What makes all of these entrepreneurs pay attention is the ever-expanding business opportunities that the metaverse holds. But the big question is: are these business opportunities even going to be profitable?
Let’s take a deeper look at the metaverse and the opportunities ripe for the taking.
What Is The Metaverse?
The metaverse refers to shared, immersive virtual worlds where individuals can live, work, play, transact, and socialize with the use of virtual reality and augmented reality.
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These spaces exist in real time, blurring the line between the digital and physical worlds. That’s why, in the metaverse age, no vendor will have complete control over everything, and devices won’t really matter.
With all of this innovation, the metaverse is shaping up to be the next evolution of the internet.
What Is the Potential of the Metaverse in the Business World?
What makes this innovation exciting for companies and entrepreneurs is that the metaverse features an entirely independent virtual economy from which many, many business opportunities may spring.
While we are currently in the early days of the metaverse, we can already see that the metaverse economy will largely be driven by the strength of NFTs, digital currencies, and blockchain. This lays the groundwork for new metaverse-based business models.
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With these transformational business models and the innovative technology that naturally comes with the metaverse, businesses can transform everything from how they offer their products and services to how they interact with customers.
It all comes down to how the metaverse may benefit your company and encourage your organization to explore new approaches to digital transformation.
What Are The Business Opportunities in the Metaverse?
If you’re looking for a metaverse business idea, you’ve come to the right place! Here are some opportunities that will be in demand over the next decade.
Digital Real Estate
Virtual real estate is in! It might sound strange, but real estate sales on platforms like Sandbox, Somnium, and Decentraland topped $500 million last year and are projected to increase this year. So if you have a few extra digital currencies lying around, maybe it’s time to buy virtual homes as a business or investment opportunity.
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Each parcel of metaverse real estate is unique and protected by a non-fungible token (NFT), which functions as a deed or proof of ownership. This virtual real estate NFT ensures your ownership, allows you to sell the property again, and automatically records all of the transactions of that property.
There is a significant chance to make a metaverse property commercial, so whatever the owner does with it ultimately determines its value.
For businesses wanting to advertise online to a youthful, tech-savvy audience, there’s a demand for venues that can be rented and used to host events. Property owners can also offer digital billboard space to generate revenue.
Virtual Events and Concerts
Virtual events have already been extremely popular, even before the metaverse. The difference now is that the virtual spaces within the metaverse provide more immersive and interactive experiences.
Metaverse virtual event planners and organizers design virtual events that give participants the impression that they are physically present at the event. Artists and event organizers are trying this avenue because of the accessibility it provides to audiences. No matter where a fan lives, they can easily buy a ticket for the virtual concert from the comfort of their home.
Big names like Ariana Grande, Marshmello, Justin Bieber, and Lil Nas have already performed on platforms like Roblox, Fortnite, and Wave.
Virtual Office Environments for Better Collaboration
If the problem you’re trying to solve is improving company culture, the metaverse might just be the answer! Today’s top talents are always on the lookout for remote working opportunities. So it’s a good thing that technology can now replicate the experience of being in the office together, even if you’re in a virtual space.
You can connect with your employees, enhance employee engagement, and work together to improve relationships and productivity through the metaverse.
We’re already seeing this with Mesh for Microsoft Teams, a platform designed for more personal and engaging online meetings. This allows organizations to create metaverses where users may enter using their avatars to socialize, work on projects together, and have productive dialogues that encourage innovation.
Facebook has Horizon Workrooms, where teams can collaborate, communicate, and connect remotely through the power of VR.
Advertising Opportunities
More and more brands are jumping on the metaverse bandwagon quickly, especially if they’re trying to appeal to millennials and Gen Zs who avoid traditional media. Chipotle, Hyundai, Nike, and Vans—they’ve made their ads more engaging and potent through the fully immersive experiences that VR can offer.
The metaverse is undoubtedly a platform worth exploring and investing in for companies willing to embrace unconventional and creative marketing and advertising strategies.
Immersive Shopping Experience
One sector that’s thriving in the metaverse is retail. The metaverse contributes to retailers’ omnichannel strategy by enabling customers to interact with immersive shopping experiences while moving seamlessly between virtual and physical environments. It’s also a great place for launching new and experimental products.
Just imagine your consumers walking into your fashion boutique in the metaverse. They can check out your shop and your merchandise, much like they do in the real world.
They can accessorize their digital avatar with your items and see how a particular outfit or pair of pants looks on them first before buying it physically.
Other Profitable Business Ideas
The business opportunities listed above are just the tip of the iceberg. As the metaverse expands, so will the innovative ideas of entrepreneurs. However, if you’re looking for a profitable idea that you can launch soon, you can try:
- Starting your own hosting services on virtual platforms
- Creating your own metaverse-based decentralized social media networks to connect people with their friends, loved ones, or coworkers
- Designing a virtual reality game
- Setting up a gallery to sell your NFTs
- Offering virtual reality environments to people where they can watch movies together
The Future Looks Bright In The Metaverse
The metaverse has a lot of unique characteristics that brands and entrepreneurs can use to transform how they work and do business. However, keep in mind that the opportunities in the metaverse will only work in your favor if you maximize its positive points.
Before beginning your metaverse business, remember to do your research first! After all, it’s a relatively new platform that will only keep evolving from here on out.
