Table of Contents for "The Metaverse for Brands (Opportunities & Benefits)":
- Metaverse: what's it all about?
- What is the vision for the metaverse?
- Brands in the Metaverse: Is That a Viable Option?
- Which brands are already in the metaverse?
- When is the metaverse useful for businesses?
- How do I register my trademark in the metaverse?
- Conclusion on the Metaverse: A Real Opportunity for Your Brand
- FAQ on the Metaverse
What is the metaverse, and what opportunities does it offer brands? At Danthree Studio, we explore how digital spaces can help people experience products and brands. This guide explains the concept, looks at examples, and shows you what to consider for your own project.
Metaverse: what is it all about?
The term describes a vision of connected virtual spaces where people interact. In practice, you encounter individual platforms and applications with their own rules. A branded Roblox experience and a VR application are therefore not automatically part of one freely connected system.
One historical milestone was Epic Games’ April 2021 funding round: the company announced $1 billion to support its long-term metaverse vision.
In October 2021, Mark Zuckerberg introduced Meta as the new company brand, alongside a vision for the metaverse. These announcements explain the attention at the time, rather than proving that a shared virtual world was already complete.
The term comes from Neal Stephenson’s 1992 science-fiction novel Snow Crash, in which people enter a virtual world as avatars. The novel is a dystopian story, not a technical blueprint.
Daniel Suarez also explored the relationship between digital systems and the real world. His thriller Daemon was first published in 2006. Such stories provide context for ideas; they do not describe what today’s platforms actually support.
What is the vision for the metaverse?
Matthew Ball describes the metaverse as a vision of connected, persistent 3D worlds with continuity of data. It is not a mandatory feature list. For your brand project, this raises practical questions:
Persistence: Should your space be available at any time or only during an event? Plan operations, maintenance, and content updates.
Real time: Do visitors need to talk to one another live, or is independent product exploration enough? This affects the interface and technical requirements.
Visitor capacity: Plan for a realistic number of simultaneous visitors and test performance. Unlimited participation is a vision, not a reliable feature of every application.
Commerce: Will the application sell virtual goods or lead people to a physical product? Define payment, usage rights, and the path to your store. A dedicated cryptocurrency is not inherently required.
Access: Check whether your audience can join using a phone, computer, or VR headset. An accessible space is often more useful than an elaborate experience with a difficult setup.
Portability: Check file formats, materials, animations, and licenses for each target platform. A digital garment or furniture model does not automatically work in every other world, even if it is offered as an NFT.
For brands, start with a specific task: explain a product, explore a collection together, or support an event. Choose technology based on that task and your audience. Being early is not a business model in itself.
Brands in the Metaverse: Is That a Viable Option?
One widely discussed historical example is Republic Realm’s land purchase in The Sandbox. On December 1, 2021, t3n reported a price of $4.3 million. That purchase price says little about whether a brand project makes sense today.
Virtual platforms can offer their own stores, events, and payment systems. What matters to a brand is whom it reaches and what visitors can actually do there. A digital space needs a reason for people to enter and return.
Imagine a virtual brand space where visitors explore a furnished scene, see furniture in different combinations, and open product information. For fashion, the focus might be styling an avatar. These are different user tasks that need different content and features.
Avatars can express personal preferences. Not every application requires a VR headset. For your concept, it matters more that visitors understand the controls on their devices and can easily find the products or information they need.
Which brands are already in the metaverse?
The following brand examples show different approaches from earlier campaigns. They are historical examples, not a directory of experiences currently available. For your own project, consider the concept and its audience rather than the brand name alone.
Examples of brands in the metaverse:
1. Nike, the sports brand:
Nike introduced Nikeland on Roblox in 2021, connecting the sports brand with a playful virtual environment.
Nike described sports games and digital avatar outfits, integrating the brand through activities and character customization.
Avatar items are not automatically NFTs. An NFT is a token on a blockchain; a digital outfit can instead be managed entirely within a platform. Learn more about digital garments in our article on CGI in fashion.
2. Fashion brand Zara:
Zara and Ader Error connected their AZ collection with Zepeto. The Zepeto project page presents virtual clothing and an avatar lookbook feature.
The example shows how a collection can become part of a social virtual environment. An avatar lookbook serves a different purpose from a reliable size or fit check for physical clothing.
3. Stella Artois beer brand:
Stella Artois partnered with Virtually Human Studio’s ZED RUN in 2021. The ZED RUN media kit documents the NFT collection and a branded racetrack.
This was a brand partnership within an existing game, rather than the beer brand founding the platform. Unlike a straightforward showroom, this example included NFT mechanics.
4. Other Brands in the Metaverse:
The 2022 Roblox report names further historical examples, including Gucci, Burberry, Tommy Hilfiger, and Forever 21. Adidas launched its NFT initiative Into the Metaverse in 2021. These examples use different technical and business models.
Balenciaga brought digital outfits to Fortnite in September 2021, connecting the partnership with physical clothing. The video below shows that campaign.
When is the metaverse useful for businesses?
Metaverse marketing can be useful when your audience uses the chosen environment and has a clear reason to engage with your brand there. For a furniture brand, that might be an interior people explore together or a guided product presentation.
The metaverse and Web3 are not synonyms. Virtual spaces describe a form of digital experience; Web3 is often associated with blockchain-based applications. You can plan an interactive brand space without using NFTs, cryptocurrencies, or virtual land.
Start with a manageable pilot. Decide beforehand what to measure, such as completed product explorations, variants viewed, or qualified inquiries. Compare the effort with a simpler alternative, such as a 3D viewer or a virtual tour.
How do I register my trademark in the metaverse?
There is no universal registration for your trademark “in the metaverse.” Protection depends on the territory and the goods and services covered. The German DPMA explains goods and services specifications. Have a qualified professional assess whether your specific project needs an additional filing.
The DPMA guide to the digital world generally places virtual goods in Class 9. Other service classes may apply depending on the offering. An accurate description of what you provide matters more than simply checking a class number.
For the visual content, 3D visualizations and product animations can be useful. An interactive environment also needs an appropriate application and interface. Augmented reality is a separate approach: it can show a furniture model in a real room without requiring a metaverse.
Conclusion on the Metaverse: A Real Opportunity for Your Brand!
A virtual brand world can make products easier to understand and enable shared experiences. Its value comes from the content and usability: visitors should be able to discover, understand, or decide something that a conventional view makes harder.
CGI provides the visual foundation. Plan the target platform, interactions, and ongoing maintenance alongside it. That turns a metaverse idea into a clearly defined project for your brand.
