How to launch a Metaverse Store?

Opening your store in the Metaverse is no more a myth. It’s a reality. You normally have multiple questions running through your mind, like “Is it complicated?” “Do I need a VR headset?” “Is it costly?” well, we have answers to all your questions. To give you a bit more assurance on the potential a Metaverse Store has, here’s a quick stat: According to a survey by Obsess, a study showed that 70% of consumers who have visited a virtual store had made a purchase. One of the most popular brands in the world, Nike, launched their store in the Roblox Metaverse. Nike Claims that they got over 7 million people in 5 months. This gives you an idea of the potential the Metaverse Store has.

Without further adieu, let’s dive into making your store available in the Metaverse. 

• What is a metaverse?
• Why is there a shift toward the metaverse?
• Benefits of a virtual store in the metaverse
• How to open a store in the metaverse?
• How much does it cost to open a store in the metaverse?
• Tips to master entry into the metaverse
• What retailers are in the metaverse?

What is a metaverse?

The Metaverse is a collective virtual open space created by converging virtually enhanced physical and digital reality. It is physically persistent and provides enhanced immersive experiences. Activities in isolated environments (buying digital land, constructing virtual homes, participating in a virtual social experience, etc.) will eventually occur in the metaverse. The metaverse combines multiple technologies that allow users to live in a digital universe.

According to Gartner, Inc, by 2026, 25% of people will spend at least one hour a day in the metaverse for work, shopping, education, social, and entertainment. A metaverse will be made up of multiple virtual worlds and everything we have in real-life—just in a virtual form. This includes home designs, fitness programs, games, shopping, travel, meeting rooms, etc.

Why is there a shift toward the metaverse?

The metaverse is rapidly becoming the next digital frontier. A huge credit for that goes to Facebook’s rebranding itself as Meta and announcing that it would invest billions into metaverse-related projects.

But there is so much more to attracting tech companies and brands to build a presence in the virtual world. To begin with, activities that currently occur in isolated environments will eventually occur in a single metaverse. These include:

• Buying digital land and constructing homes
• Purchasing outfits and accessories for online avatars
• Shopping in virtual malls with the help of immersive commerce
• Participating in a virtual store experience
• Buying digital art, collectibles, and assets like NFTs

Studies predict that the metaverse will lead to decentralized, persistent, collaborative opportunities and revolutionary business models. As such, it allows businesses to expand more through the digital space.

Moreover, the metaverse will provide equal opportunity to businesses of all kinds. From small brands to global companies, everyone has a square chance at diving into a virtual world and reaping the benefits of having a presence there.

Metaverse brings opportunities for every industry—from artists, education, and entertainment to gaming, interior design, shopping, influencers, and the service industry. The current high-value projection of the metaverse projects it as a major player in growing the digital economy.

Benefits of having a virtual store in the metaverse

Today, many individual use cases and products are creating their versions of a metaverse. With almost everything shifting online, it makes sense to analyze the benefits a virtual store brings. These benefits are:

• Personalized connections with the customer
• Increased sales and average order value
• An omnichannel shopping experience
• High customer retention
• Improved store performance
• Centralized inventory
• Continuous and halt-free sales
• More retail job opportunities

Personalized connections with the customer

Virtual stores allow you to connect with customers in a way retail giants can’t. Online shopping does not offer the warmth of a human touch—a personal connection that makes customers feel valued and secure. But virtual stores in the metaverse can change that game forever.

In the metaverse, customers can start an online conversation with the salesperson, allowing them to experience the same level of service as in-store shopping. Though it may seem impersonal, it elevates the customer experience to a premium level because the brand engages with the customers in real-time at their convenience, uninterrupted by physical borders.

Increased sales and average order value

Virtual stores allow you to see the products customers browse or interest them in real-time. You can use this observation to provide a personalized virtual consultation by offering relevant recommendations and assistance. In addition, this allows you to cross-sell and upsell simultaneously.

An omnichannel shopping experience

With virtual stores, you can own the commerce experience through and through. It creates a seamless journey from your online store to a physical location.

High customer retention

With virtual stores, you can boost customer retention and turn shoppers into lifetime customers. Personalized assistance in virtual stores helps brands encourage customers to opt in for product information. Brands can then send text and email messages to share new releases, notify when a product is back in stock, etc. This kind of one-on-one personalized conversation leads to a growth in customer loyalty.

Improved store performance

With the help of virtual clienteling apps, brands can measure employee performance and provide helpful feedback wherever necessary, thus improving overall processes and boosting employee engagement. Some common KPIs to consider in this case include:

• Chats/conversations initiated by the store associate
• Number of orders initiated per store associate
• Average star rating or customer satisfaction score
• Average order value
• Gross revenue generated per store associate
• Chat-to-sale conversion rate

Centralized inventory

A virtual store also reduces the hassle of managing in-store stock at multiple locations. You can hold all the stock at a centralized location—a warehouse or an order fulfillment center—that ships all the orders in-store or online.

Continuous and halt-free sales

Virtual shopping allows retailers to continue selling irrespective of where they’re working. You can give your team the tools and resources to give customers the confidence to buy when physical stores are not operating.

Couple this with a centralized stock location and give your customers a hassle-free and convenient shopping experience.

More retail job opportunities

Contrary to popular belief that technology eats up jobs, virtual shopping keeps your associates employed. Though virtual, your store will need personalized assistance to thousands (hopefully more) customers.

Brands can develop different employee engagement strategies that encourage them to engage with customers. The associate gets credit for the sale when a customer completes the order.

How to open a store in the metaverse?

The below Steps will help you launch your store in the Metaverse within a few days.

• Creating a 3D Model of your Metaverse Store.
• Implementing the 3D Model in the Metaverse
• Adding products as NFTs
• Hyperlinking products
• Customer-Centric Metaverse Store
• Partnering with a Metaverse Store Development Company

The first step is to build a 3D model of your Metaverse Store. A few examples of the 3D model are given below.

These designs can go from a simple cartoon-ish model, as seen in the Roblox Platform, to Unreal Engine game-level graphical avatars. You can decide the level of graphics required for your store. Important note to consider – If you keep an average level of graphics and hardware requirements to enter your store, the more visitors and conversions you’ll be able to get from your potential customers.

You can also hire 3D model development experts to create a model for you. It will give you more time to analyze the marketing and promotion strategies rather than the creation process.

In this blog, we’ll take the example of Spatial Platform as it’s getting increasingly popular in hosting multiple Metaverse Stores.

After creating your 3D model, you must log in to the Spatial Platform. Then go on to create a custom environment. For video lovers, you can check this below video.

To get the gist of the Video:

If you are using Spatial on the Web:

• To set a custom environment on the web, click “New Space” and then “Upload Custom Space.”
• Drag and drop or select the file from your device.
• Use the sliders on the right to adjust the scale and position.
• Click “Done” to set your 3D model as your custom environment in Spatial.
• You can choose a new environment, replace it, edit its position, or add an entrance point from the environment settings menu.
• The spawn point is where a user’s avatar will appear when joining your space.
• Reposition it anywhere you want within your space using the sliders on the right-hand side.
• Click the lock button to set the spawn point for your space.
• Clearing the content will revert the space to its original form.

If you are using Spatial on VR:

• In VR, click “New” and “Abstract Environment.”
• Open your content menu and bring your 3D model file into the space.
• Click the “Environment” button and then “Set as Environment.”
• Use the one-to-one scaling to make your model fit, and click “Next” to complete the process.

The advantage of a spatial platform is that we can add more elements to our existing space. It lets you keep your store updated while releasing new products. Now let’s take a look at filling your Metaverse store with products.

Adding NFTs in your Metaverse Store

Spatial Platform has made adding your product as an NFT much easier than before. Let’s say, for example, that you have minted your product on the Polygon blockchain and want to add it to your store. Then all you have a do is:

• Login to your Spatial account on Google Chrome.
• Enter one of your own spaces.
• Press the blue + “Add content” button.
• Choose the “NFTS” tab and click on “Polygon.”
• Press “Connect your Metamask wallet.”
• That’s it! You can now pick your Polygon NFTs to bring into your Spatial space.

Hyperlinking Products

You can also hyperlink the products so that more details will be revealed when we click them. For more details, check out Spatial guidelines on Hyperlink – Plaques & Portals. 

The benefit of creating your Metaverse store on platforms like Spatial, Roblox, etc., is that you can market your product to the existing audience in the Platform. Spatial also allows an easier way to join spaces by simply sharing a link with anyone. The simplicity attracts more businesses to enter spatial platforms. For example, in Roblox, there are more a 40 Million users. So imagine the amount of traffic you would get by using simple promotion tactics.

Customer-Centric Metaverse Store

Accessibility is also a major area you need to focus on. Only some people have a Virtual Reality headset, but most of your potential customers will have smartphones or a desktop with the minimum capacity to enter the Metaverse. So it’s important to keep your Metaverse store accessible through most devices.

If your potential has a VR headset, they’ll have a much more immersive experience than seeing the virtual world on the web. New technologies are rising, allowing you to feel and smell the products in the Metaverse. So don’t let this early bird opportunity bring your store into the Metaverse.

Partnering with a Metaverse Store Development Company

The complications around blockchain, crypto, and the Metaverse are expected to rise soon, so if you need the proper technical expertise in the above domains. Please consult a trusted global tech leader to dive into its potential use cases. That’s where we come in!

Accubits helps you launch a future-ready metaverse by offering technical and development assistance for your project. Our blockchain, AR, and VR capabilities help us develop 3D virtual spaces, virtual world apps, NFT marketplaces, and other metaverse components.

Tips to master entry into the metaverse

Here are some bonus tips brands can employ to master their entry into the metaverse.

Strengthen your online presence

You’re missing a lot if your business does not have an online presence today. Before diving deep into the metaverse, brands must create a strong, reliable online presence. Present-day online platforms can be considered a training ground for a gigantic arena you will be entering with the metaverse.

This includes mastering basics such as a high-quality website for your company, raising traffic flow, and exploring popular online media outlets like Amazon, Shopify, eBay, Instagram, etc.

Brands may also need to consider a virtual makeover better to fit the tech and social demands of the metaverse. It would also make sense to develop collectible versions of your products, like NFTs.

Master 3-D models

The metaverse will surely bring a new dawn of commerce, but it will rely heavily on 3-D models in its infancy. Therefore, it would make sense for brands to perfect whatever 3-D models are currently in use, as they will be the springboard needed to plunge into the metaverse.

Focus on your target audience

The target audience varies from company to company. Your target audience heavily determines how your products or services are advertised or sold. A metaverse-optimized product need not necessarily be all you need to move your business into the metaverse.

Start with thorough market research and closely analyze aspects like age and gender demographics and the top experiences preferred in some metaverse-like platforms.

Get comfortable with cryptocurrencies

As has been said an infinite number of times, cryptocurrencies are the future. The metaverse does and will rely heavily on cryptocurrencies. To do business in a virtual world, you must comprehend and adapt to virtual currencies.

If your business does not have a cryptocurrency yet, it makes sense to create one and start building its influence would be the wise thing to do.

Stay adaptable

While the metaverse is in the development phase, there are no right or wrong decisions. Doing business in the metaverse is a trial-and-error process that calls your brand to remain adaptable to the changing nature of the virtual world.

Businesses can make use of metaverse communities to virtually test their products. Moreover, this will give them insights into the customers’ needs and help them predict future trends and innovations.

What retailers are in the Metaverse?

A few brands have already realized the potential of Metaverse and entered the arena. Some of them are listed below:

Nike

Nike has taken significant steps to establish its presence and succeed in the Metaverse. One of the actions taken by Nike is obtaining a trademark for its shoes to prevent others from selling its products in the Metaverse. Nike has also sued a company for attempting to do so. Nike created its own online space in the Metaverse called Nikeland on the popular Platform Roblox. Nike has also partnered with RTFKT Studios, which produces its NFTs. 

Gucci

Gucci has demonstrated that virtual goods can generate substantial revenue. The luxury brand sold a broad range of digital items in 2021, including virtual sneakers starting at $13 and a Roblox handbag resold for over $4,000. Additionally, Gucci auctioned a video NFT at Christie’s for $25,000. Robert Triefus, Gucci’s Executive Vice President for Brand and Customer Engagement, confirmed to The Business of Fashion that collaborations in the virtual world have shown that a significant new revenue stream can be created.

Samsung

Samsung 837X has launched in Decentraland, a metaverse powered by blockchain technology, marking one of the biggest brand land takeovers on this Platform. The launch offers an immersive digital experience for users, who can engage in a virtual adventure through the Connectivity Theater and Sustainability Forest. Along the way, they can complete quests to earn 837X Non-Fungible Token (NFT) badges, and the experience culminates in a celebration at the Customization Stage.

Jordan

Jordan has teamed up with Fortnite to launch a new initiative in the Metaverse, featuring virtual clothes and an interactive event called Jumpman Zone. In this event, gamers can use a scavenger hunt to find Air Jordan 11 ‘Cool Grey’ artifacts while participating in trick shot challenges and accessing the Jumpman MVP regions. The objective is to encourage gamers to explore the Metaverse and engage in various activities, which will help promote Jordan’s brand and increase its visibility in the virtual world.

Hyundai

Hyundai Motor Company has recently introduced “Mobility Adventure,” a new metaverse space on the Roblox platform. This initiative is Hyundai’s first foray into Roblox and features the company’s products while presenting innovative mobility solutions for the future. By launching this metaverse space, Hyundai aims to appeal to young, tech-savvy individuals who can explore its product offerings and potentially develop long-term relationships with the brand.

Benetton

The Italian brand’s metaverse retail store allows digital shoppers to engage in gaming experiences with the opportunity to collect QR codes, which you can use to make purchases in Benetton’s physical stores.

The bottom line

As we move into the digital world, brands must focus on creating emotionally appealing retail experiences. In the metaverse, this means using sight and sound to create a space that feels as real as possible.

It also means considering clever tactics to allow for taste, touch, and feel to be a part of the metaverse shopping experience. While this may seem quite a task initially, nothing hasn’t been done in the real world.

With Nike and Walmart taking some of the first steps into metaverse retail, it’s worth looking into rather than being left behind. Attention to minute details and a better focus on providing an immersive experience will be the key for brands to create an immersive retail experience that is second to none – even in a virtual world.