70.8 million Americans have used VR or virtual reality. That equals 21% of the population and, more importantly for businesses, 48% of consumers.
Half of all companies are already attempting to work virtual worlds into their business strategy. It’s expected to make up 60% of total enterprise revenue by 2030.
Meta holds 90% of the VR headset market. Their digital space, the Metaverse, is one of the largest and most successful of all time. Joining it is one of the best places to start without having to make your own.
Read on to learn the benefits of using the Metaverse and other virtual worlds in your business.
Training
39% of job seekers who left their job within six months say that a more effective onboarding and training process was the reason they didn’t stay on.
The key to virtual reality is that it tricks the brain into believing what the user sees is real. That allows them to monitor and learn from their interactions.
The effect makes VR training up to 76% more effective than traditional methods. It’s already being used in a variety of fields, such as:
- Military
- Teaching
- Manufacturing
- Flight
- Law enforcement
- Healthcare
The training is also more collaborative. The avatar of anyone engaged in a training exercise can speak to and work with each other. This helps them learn better and gain valuable insight from each other.
The most important thing is that virtual training is safer. There’s no risk that anything or anyone will get harmed during the process. Simply hit the reset switch if anything goes wrong. That’s necessary for teaching employees to make life-or-death choices in situations such as surgeries or transporting toxic chemicals.
Prototyping and Design
A virtual world is one of the safest and most effective places to begin the manufacturing and design process for a new product. Every part can be tested and examined under any conditions with a few simple changes.
This eliminates the cost and time required to create full-scale working prototypes and environments to test them in. It also removes the danger presented if anything should go wrong. Any product from a screw to an aircraft can be safely and effectively tested in virtual worlds.
Collaboration and Telepresence
Telepresence is the ability to be virtually present. You can participate as an avatar even when you’re at home or in another location.
This makes it easier to move from one location to another because the avatar can travel in your place. It also makes communication and collaboration more convenient and engaging.
Workers can solve problems together digitally no matter where they are. They’ll be able to use digital tools to cater the environment to their strengths. It will also help them think outside of the box, representing their problems with metaphors they couldn’t express in the physical world.
All of these changes help workers be more productive than in a traditional office. They’ll want to enter the digital space together and get more done because of it.
Virtual Events
Company and customer avatars can travel through virtual event locations as they wish. Anything that they could do at physical events is available, such as visiting keynote presentations and question-and-answer sessions.
The difference is that the digital world can be catered to the event. What would be a stuffy auditorium can become a relaxing beach. Gamification features make it more fun and increase engagement.
There are also additional revenue generation and advertising opportunities available. Businesses have no limits to how much space they can use to show off their products. They could reduce spending by using videos or portals to educate attendees instead of hiring booths.
The most exciting difference is that a virtual conference, trade show, or other event never has to end. It can be always on 24/7 for global attendees to engage with whenever they want.
Marketing
Once you enter the Metaverse or a similar virtual world, you should use it as part of your marketing strategy. It’s inexpensive and you have a variety of options, including all of the traditional methods such as posters or banners. Try offering cosmetics for avatars such as clothes or souvenirs.
Virtual worlds can help you show off your products or services, but they can also become a valuable money-making opportunity on their own. You can put in almost anything that fits your brand, including:
- Dating services
- Concerts
- Sports events
- Therapy
- Film festivals
There’s also the option of creating metaverse NFTs. Set up an NFT marketplace to offer unique items available only from your business.
Customer Experience
Becoming a Metaverse business offers you more opportunities to interact with customers. It improves their experience and helps convince them to buy.
Create a virtual showroom to give them the experience of trying a product before buying it. Let them interact with the avatars of your sales assistants who can answer their questions.
As virtual worlds develop, they’ll become a valuable source of data. You’ll learn what your customers engage with and find out where to focus your marketing efforts.
Sustainability
Modern customers want companies committed to sustainability. 66% of them say they consider it when making a purchase and prefer to align with brands committed to their values.
A virtual world means no commuting or physical office space. This reduces emissions from cars and the office itself.
Accessibility
A virtual world lets everyone access it however they want with whatever device they have on hand. Visitors can enter by video or mobile or even use nonverbal gestures.
It’s also simple to add accessibility features to virtual worlds such as closed captioning. This ensures that those with disabilities or hearing difficulties won’t be locked out.
Create Virtual Worlds for Your Business
Virtual worlds like the Metaverse are a valuable opportunity for any business. They’re more accessible and sustainable than traditional offices. They make it easier to train employees, hold events, market and design products, work together, and more.
Sandstorm has a team of digital builders who can give you access to over 15 top virtual worlds. Sign up today to get VR, AR, and 3D spaces for your business.
