Metaverse for Marketing – Implications & Challenges

Written by Markivis | Jan 19, 2026 10:43:38 AM

One of the worst fears for a marketer is missing the bandwagon to showcase their products or services. Metaverse is no exception: surprisingly, the term metaverse still doesn’t exist in the dictionary, but is a highly searched-for topic on Google search platforms.

In simple terms, the metaverse is an amalgamation of the virtual and physical worlds, but this explanation raises more questions than it answers. The metaverse is evolving every day, and brands and companies struggle to keep up.

Business strategists are still grappling with the minimal information available and struggling to decide on investments in the metaverse.

Most trends and reports available online mention a significant increase in the user base and time spent in the metaverse, but they fail to provide a definitive answer to the business potential of the metaverse for larger B2B companies. Few organizations, specifically in the retail and consumer goods industry, have seen initial traction in the metaverse, but how long they will sustain and generate revenue from the platform remains to be seen.

In addition, transactions in metaverse worlds occur only in cryptocurrency. With regulations being arbitrary and strict compliance required, investing in cryptocurrency is also a challenge for businesses at this time.

 

 

How the metaverse can help change the game for marketers

The adoption of the metaverse is still in its nascent stage; two significant factors are the need for VR/AR tools and wearables, and the limited opportunities available. While the metaverse is here, and we will see some early adoption in a few areas, as the experts point out, the reality is that we are still looking a decade away from it being adopted at a mass level.

There are use-case scenarios of how companies have used the metaverse to train employees, significantly reduce training time, create digital twins of production lines, and optimize them before making them physical. These instances are more internal.

The other examples are more from a B2C perspective or the entertainment industry, where people have bought digital clothing for their avatars or attended events virtually.

Here are some examples of how B2B Product and Services companies can use the metaverse for marketing.

  1. Product Launches: The Metaverse allows companies to showcase products before they hit the production floor and provides insight into user feedback before investing in production. It also provides opportunities to take user opinions on designs and styles.
  2. Gamification of Services: A critical role for marketers today is to transform the buyer experience throughout the decision-making journey. Using a combination of gamification and virtual reality, companies can create multiple what-if scenarios and role-plays for potential customers, allowing them to experience these services in the real world.
  3. Virtual Tour: Post-COVID businesses are more sensitive to senior executive travel and are striving to create options through detailed virtual discussions and negotiations. For B2B companies, showcasing the physical infrastructure and their investments in the research lab is an important aspect. You can use VR and 3D technologies to allow potential clients a walk-through of the entire lab and physical infrastructure.
  4. Immersive Marketing Campaigns: An essential aspect of marketing is telling the brand story. As video content plays a significant role in brand recall, the metaverse offers a unique opportunity for brands to create an immersive story, where users can even participate.
  5. Virtual Events: With COVID still creating challenges for business travel and event hosting, virtual events are the way forward. Virtual events give people the option to attend and engage with other participants, just as at a physical event.
  6. Create a dedicated fan following: Given that the platform is new, it gives the brand an opportunity to build a dedicated fan base and create a strong bond with users, as they are also exploring new things in the metaverse.

While the above examples are just a few options for how B2B marketers can jump on the metaverse bandwagon, the metaverse is still in its early stages. The execution cost is comparatively higher due to high technical challenges.

The decision to invest in marketing in the metaverse cannot be ROI-driven; it's more about being an early adopter of new technology and building your brand presence there.

While new-age consumer brands are more than willing to move into this space, the traditional giants are still confused about how to reach their target audience through these new channels. And their reluctance or slow pace in adopting this is not wrong. The entire metaverse is still fluid, and things are unique and evolving, particularly given the lack of a governance structure. This has the potential to create unforeseen challenges for a brand.

 Here are some challenges that the metaverse presents in its current format

  1. Interoperability: Today, the metaverse exists in parallel to multiple virtual worlds, such as Roblox, Hyperverse, and Decentraland, among others. These platforms are not connected and have different currencies and operating platforms. At this time, there is no clear winner, and more new virtual worlds are being created. It is difficult for a marketer to allocate a significant budget to a single platform without a clear winner.
  2. Audience: The metaverse continues to attract more young people today and is primarily seen as a gaming platform. Most metaverse platforms have an audience in the 14–30 age range. For B2B companies, this is generally not the decision-maker.
  3. Brand Image: Currently, the metaverse is free for all platforms. There are no guidelines, restrictions, or regulatory bodies that define the code of conduct for metaverse platforms. This means it is always riskier for a brand to be in a place with limited control, and questionable content can be positioned next to your content. These are PR nightmares for a large brand.
  4. Data Privacy and Security: The amount of data being captured by the metaverse, specifically with wearables, the collection of physical data, and personal data, poses a significant security risk.
  5. High cost of creating content: The skill sets of the metaverse are far more unique and rarer to find. Creating an immersive environment that engages the audience on an ongoing basis and aligns messaging with the physical world is a much more complex task than creating a 30-second brand story on a YouTube platform.

 

So, should I invest in the metaverse?

Well, there is no direct answer to that. While the metaverse presents challenges, it also offers unique opportunities for Social Media Campaigns. The current limitations prevent it from being used for mass marketing and limit its potential.

Still, the metaverse offers considerable potential in the next few years, and marketers need to watch this space carefully. The platforms will provide room for innovation and offer an immersive experience to their users; how marketers capitalize is food for thought.

 
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