Lucrative Business Opportunities in the Metaverse

Submitted by Betty White on Fri, 02/25/2022 - 13:00

The craze about the Metaverse is all gas and no breaks at the moment. What once was a niche concept revered by technophiles has now entered the mainstream landscape. Metaverse is piquing everybody’s interest, from big tech names, luxury brands, and investors to the regular folk, and hyping them delve more deeply into this narrative and scout the infinite potentials it offers. Thus, it’s clear that, although the project is likely years and even decades away from full fruition, it will develop into a huge trend, with money-spinning business opportunities popping up high and low. The starting gun has been fired to start the sprint for virtual gold, and nobody wants to be left behind! Interested in dipping your toes in some potentially lucrative business opportunities in the Metaverse? Read on!

Meta-what?

So, what exactly is ‘the metaverse’?

Popularized by Neal Stephenson’s 1992 cyberpunk novel, titled Snow Crash, the term denotes a computer-generated singular 3D world that allows you to “live” within it – instead of just looking at it. In layman’s terms, the idea is to make it possible for people to shed the good-old, boring corporeal form and walk around in their avatar forms, doing whatever they would normally do in their regular lives, only virtually: hang out with their friends, create and buy digital goods, work, explore places, attend different events, and more. There’s a lot more to it, of course, but we’ll keep it short and sweet. To some, this may sound fun. Others may get a kind of dystopian vibe that throws them into an existential loop. Then there’s the final group that sees the metaverse as a rather lucrative field to be in and hopes to ride the wave to make revenue.

What is a metaverse business?

Although still a work in progress, the early adopters out there are almost certain that the metaverse will be a complete game-changer for some industries, including retail, marketing and sales, real estate, entertainment, education, health, and more. After all, everything you do in the real world will be possible in this extended reality. What’s more, it will open doors to many additional markets.

Yes, many will have the opportunity to capitalize from the meta-economy. The special traits it relies on regarding business opportunities - decentralization, interoperability, collaboration, and an open, shared, and persistent virtual environment – could help them devise solid strategies to expand their digital business capacity. That’s why the metaverse has already attracted the close attention of both big (Meta) and smaller players.

There’s still a lot of speculation, but the business models and ideas are slowly becoming more apparent. So, if you decide to take metaverse-related claims with more than just a grain of salt, scroll down for some potentially lucrative opportunities in the metaverse.

Gaming

Gaming is fun, but it has never been just fun and games. It’s a massive industry, and it will undoubtedly continue to lead the way in the metaverse. We can trace back the evidence through the industry’s linear progression and transition into virtual reality. Take, for instance, the early immersive clients of online, multi-player, role-playing spaces, such as Second Life and Sims, that date back nearly twenty years, as well as its more recent equivalents like World of Warcraft, Minecraft, and Fortnite. The experience that the gaming industry offers to its users keeps getting more and more immersive. And we can expect the metaverse to take it to incredible new heights. Investments from gaming companies and tech giants are already shaping the future of gaming in the extended reality. Jump on the trend by playing blockchain-based games, developing games for players to enjoy, or investing in metaverse activities.

Creating NFTS

It appears that NFTs (non-fungible tokens) are the Internet’s latest obsession. From artwork, videos, and music to Tweets, tacos, and toilet rolls, this digital asset trend seems like the 17th-Century ‘Tulip Mania’ all over again. They’re selling like crazy, and millions are changing hands. So, what are NFTs? In the simplest terms, these are one-of-a-kind, verifiable digital items that belong to you and you alone. Basically, anything you create, you can turn into an NFT and then trade it on the blockchain and earn profit. The co-founder and CEO of Twitter, Jack Dorsey, sold his first-ever Tweet as NFT for the equivalent of $2.9m. Crazy, right?

You can also create and sell virtual goods for the games, virtual furniture, and décor for people’s virtual houses, etc. Find your niche and try it out. However, this newly-minted NFT world isn’t solely for those interested in creating digital assets. You can also open an NFT art gallery and sell someone else’s work, become an art broker, etc.

Real estate and architecture

The idea of spending real money on purchasing fictitious plots of land that do not physically exist may seem utterly bizarre to some of you. But, make no mistake, millions of dollars have been pouring into virtual real estate on emerging digital platforms. So, we might as well include virtual real estate on our list of profitable business opportunities in the metaverse. Namely, you can try real estate flipping, brokering, renting, designing, and real estate management.

Running a business

But, VR and the metaverse aren’t all about big tech. The metaverse may, in fact, just be your business opportunity of a lifetime, no matter the sphere you’re in. Be that fashion, sports, education, architecture and real estate, or entertainment, the coming of age of the metaverse generates massive prospects for businesses of all shapes and sizes. Think of the metaverse as a new arena, perfect for startups and entrepreneurs to play and leave their mark.

Advertising

Another major change experts anticipate is in the marketing industry. The immersive sensation virtual reality offers got numerous companies to make a beeline for the metaverse to both establish their virtual presence and take advantage of this novel advertising platform. Indeed, the metaverse is going to revolutionize the advertising sector. Basically, whatever you’re doing today in marketing and advertising, you’ll be able to do it in these virtual spaces. This is because brands will be able to open their virtual stores in metaverse malls, and their goods and services will need proper advertising.

You can also take advantage of this platform to advertise your own goods and services. For instance, among the lucrative market niches is manufacturing gadgets needed for experiencing the metaverse. And, just like in any other situation, marketing is crucial when it comes to selling high-tech products.

Also, if you own a blog, you’ve probably tried marketing via guest posting, social media, partnering up with influencers, etc. The metaverse will add another effective way to spread your message and make your blog popular.

Fashion

The fashion industry has joined the NFT trend. Luxury fashion houses like Louis Vuitton and Gucci are already making it big in the metaverse. They’re experimenting with NFT-linked clothing lines and accessories, and making their own virtual footprint. Besides NFT clothing collections, high-end brands like Burberry announced its partnership with Mythical Games to launch an NFT collection called Blankos Block Party, thus setting the stage for the bright future of their digital ownership in gaming. But the thing is, you don’t have to be a fashion designer to design digital clothing lines and earn profit. Just about anyone can do it.

Travel and tourism

Lockdowns and travel restrictions have taken a toll on the travel and hospitality industry this last couple of years, causing many to turn to virtual reality tours. So, try to think of the metaverse as the sequence of that trend. The idea of metaverse may be just what tourism needs. It will open new channels of profit and investment for those in the industry and, at the same time, satisfy the travelers’ demand for a much-needed escape and an optimized guest experience.

Promoting and hosting events

The Sandbox’s Metaverse and other initiatives alike are already offering a chance for users to become landowners, construct properties, and host different events and activities. The chart-topping hip-hop icon, Snoop Dogg, has already dived deep into the Sandbox metaverse. He reconstructed his mansion and launched his limited ‘Snoop Dogg Private Party Pass’ that offers participants VIP access to his live shows, events, Q&As, etc. And he’s not the only artist performing to millions of fans in a completely virtual world.

The entertainment industry is one of the most lucrative business opportunities in the metaverse and the real world alike. Virtual events are more accessible, thus significantly improving audience participation. This, in turn, enables lots of business opportunities – including event planning and organization, promoting the event, hosting the event, etc.