The Metaverse is now one of the most touted topics in the digital domain. It is reportedly an extension of the augmented reality, virtual reality, and mixed reality technologies used today. Brands have already started taking a new venture into the sphere of the Metaverse. Until now, Vans, Nike, Gucci, and several other brands have opened up their stores in Roblox. NFL and Balenciaga are making skins for players in Fortnite.
The most disruptive aspect is that Metaverse is not truly open. Therefore, everything taking place through Meta could monopolize power over the services, apps, and products that will perceive the Metaverse.
It is true that Metaverse offers lots of opportunities to brands to engage consumers in innovative ways. However, several marketers claim that it is a hurdle to have enough understanding of the Metaverse. Vaynerchuk stated that it is essential for marketers to research and understand the Metaverse to optimize its use.
Nextech’s product to help smaller brands
Smaller brands can encounter a number of problems to use the Metaverse due to a lack of in-house technical abilities. These brands do not have capacity to develop complex digital assets. That makes shifting from the physical sphere to the virtual domain highly daunting. Understanding this situation, Nextech AR has recently released a software-as-a-service platform. The newly launched platform will help with the 3D model creation to help display their products in the virtual world.
Nextech has analyzed the data collected by Shopify, and it shows that AR (augmented reality) will increase conversion rates by more than 92%. In an interview, Poplar Studio’s CEO, David Ripert, talked about the major obstacles to small brands using Augmented Reality technology and accessing the world of the Metaverse. He said these brands displayed their products on 2D digital pages for many years.
Ripert added that consumers mostly see the videos and flat 2D images while buying products online. There have been no 3D models of the products. With the 3D representation, customers can apply the products with their avatars in a virtual environment. Brands must focus on this aspect while selling products to customers online.
Nextech AR’s CEO, Evan Gappelberg, has stated that he anticipates standard 3D models in the coming years in the field of eCommerce. He hopes that his newly introduced AI-enabled 3D content development capabilities will be the best solution. This new SaaS platform will be available at a very affordable monthly cost.
Gappelberg’s team has addressed the potential needs in the growing market by removing some of the challenges in developing 3D content.
Nextech and metaverse development
Nextech has gone beyond the basic 3D model creation for merchandise. It has thought of creating a special Metaverse Studio SaaS product. It will help brands and retailers develop for the Metaverse on their own. They will find it easy to refine the social experience, and customers will have an experience more like in-person shopping. Nextech thinks that this SaaS product is the first of its kind.
Presently, the Metaverse Studio is accessible to brands as a type of managed service. However, within a short time, it will be launched as a highly accessible SaaS solution. In 2022, Nextech customers will be able to develop spatial maps with the use of a downloadable app. They can download the SDK from the company into their application. Creators will have access to their 3D resources giving rise to AR solutions in the Metaverse.
According to Gappelberg, his team is glad to see the rapid development and release of the SaaS platform, following the multi-decade megatrend related to AR and Metaverse. Gappelberg’s company will take a lead over other AR organizations engaged in developing scalable and disruptive technology.
Many brands have started dealing with the process of developing digital stores on websites by using 3D representations. But the absence of social communications is one of the drawbacks of current tecnology, although these interactions are important for the Metaverse. At Obsess, the CEO, Neha Singh, said that virtual reality and augmented reality are important for making eCommerce shopping highly engaging.
Levi’s, Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, and several other brands have used Obsess to develop a virtual store. The software also replicates a real-world location and creates something new.
Neha Singh has added that more and more consumers will take advantage of this new technology for a more immersive shopping experience. Some brands have also incorporated videos, quizzes, and other interactive types of content into their digital stores. Retail stores will continue to grow their customer bases with these innovative technologies.
