How the Metaverse is Changing Business

The ‘metaverse’ is here and it doesn’t look likes it’s going away anytime soon. When it comes up, a lot of people still think about somebody looking like an idiot, waving their arms around while they interact with whatever’s going on inside their high-tech goggles. In reality, the metaverse is a growing buzzword in the business community, but what does it actually mean for businesses? What does it mean for IT services handling Cybersecurity?

Take a closer look and you will see that it is not merely a tool for social media companies but has positive uses for almost any business.

Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, stated that “Life without AR will soon be unthinkable.” Whether that’s a prediction for the short or the long term, companies that don’t embrace cutting edge of technology will be left behind. For example, with the vast numbers in the new remote workforce, how many companies do NOT have some form of available videoconferencing these days to include the ‘work from home’ crowd? A heck of a lot less than in 2019.

Think of a steamroller versus a road: Using technology to its utmost capability puts you in line with the steamroller – rather than the road that’s getting rolled over.

What is the metaverse and its purpose?

Let’s start by establishing just what this thing is. Metaverse is a general term, not a specific product – which is why it is not capitalized like a proper name. The metaverse refers to a collective upgrade of the internet to a 3D virtual environment. This would be a world interconnected between various sites. These sites would reflect the immersive games that you see today.

Spiceworks defines it thus: “The Metaverse is a spatial computing platform that provides digital experiences as an alternative to or a replica of the real world, along with its key civilizational aspects like social interactions, currency, trade, economy, and property ownership – founded on a bedrock of blockchain technology.” Granted, that is a bit much to digest, so let’s see what it does and how we can use it.

Some people erroneously think that Facebook, now Meta, invented the metaverse, but Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg simply made use of an existing tool for connecting 3D immersive ‘worlds’ that has been developing over decades. Online gaming companies have made forays into the metaverse, but their applications, while immersive, are less interconnected.

Possibly the best representation of the early metaverse was a short-lived software called Adobe Atmosphere which was only on the market between 2001 and 2004. This 3D immersive experience included interconnected online worlds, and also gave people the ability to chat with others. It was certainly ahead of its time, and it shows how the concept of the metaverse has been around for a while.

Faster internet connections and quantum leaps in processing power are the key advancements in technology that is making the metaverse viable now. It has begun to catch up to the needs of such a world and boasts a delivery method for 3D that works on most PCs.

The metaverse is picking up steam, although we are not fully there yet. Microsoft announced a partnership with Meta which brings Microsoft 365 apps into Facebook’s version of the metaverse, enabling collaboration in an entirely new way. Microsoft notes that 50% of Gen Z and millennials expect to do some of their work in the metaverse in the next two years.

How will the metaverse change businesses?

When you have companies like Microsoft looking at the future of AR/VR, it’s a solid indication that it could be a reality soon. You can expect the metaverse to touch your own company in some way in the next few years -especially if you maintain a large remote workforce. Here’s a preview of what it may impact and how things may change.

What is the future of advertising in metaverse?

Advertising is in everything. When the internet was first introduced, companies didn't immediately realize its advertising potential. Now, most companies wouldn’t consider operating without a website. It’s a necessity for driving leads and converting sales. Would you think twice about doing business with a company that did NOT have a website?

If the metaverse takes off as a new 3D iteration of the internet, it could be just as important. This means exploring metaverse-type advertising in virtual worlds – and it is expected to go beyond digitally placing billboards or advertising on the sides of digital buildings. Also, potentially creating your own VR site or showroom.

What is the metaverse in customer service?

When it began to take off, companies were quick to realize that customers used social media to reach out. Hubspot did a survey which showed that 79% of consumers expect companies to respond to social media messages - and they expect that response within a day.

It is just this type of consumer expectation that has moved businesses to have a social media presence. They use it for marketing and to answer questions and inquiries from customers.

The metaverse is looking like a logical next step in tracking this type of customer service trajectory. If people begin hanging out there, they will expect to interact with businesses in that space, just like they do now with social networks.

Smart companies will need to stay aware of how customers may be using the metaverse as it grows. Adding a question about metaverse use to a year-end customer survey could be a way to be proactive on this topic.

Can metaverse be used for training?

To companies, using the metaverse for training is pretty much a no-brainer. Among the touted benefits of the metaverse is its ability to enable more immersive training. This could greatly increase training capabilities for everyone from doctors to forklift operators. You are not just watching somebody do something – you are in that business world virtually doing it.

Consider the advantage of being able to replicate a task more closely in a virtual world. A person could safely make mistakes there, growing more proficient before performing those tasks in real life.

Take stock of the types of training that your employees need and look at ways that a VR world may make the training safer or more efficient. The metaverse may not have what you’re looking for right at this moment but give it time. With the pace of technological advancement, it could in a year or two.

How might the metaverse enable new forms of collaboration and creativity?

With the vast increase in the remote workforce, virtual meetings skyrocketed out of necessity during the pandemic. Now, meeting using Teams or Zoom is commonplace – mixing together employees who work from home with in-office staff. The next generation of online team meetings may end up being in a virtual world, which may give those that work from home the feeling that they’re stretching their legs.

As noted earlier, Microsoft is already working on bringing its apps into a virtual space. Add a few avatars and an immersive setting. Suddenly, you have a completely different meeting experience.

One more way to enhance remote team collaboration in the metaverse has to do with building design and maintenance. Imagine being able to walk through a 3D recreation of a space before it’s built, and then fine-tuning the construction while inside that space.