Web3 is here! But before Web3, there was Web2, and before even that, there was Web1, which was the early iteration of the internet we all know. Web2, on the other hand, is called the era of social media. After all, social media platforms dominated the Web2 landscape, reaching never-before-seen market valuations and user numbers. Now, the web has further evolved into what people call Web3. But what is it, exactly, and how is a Web3 marketing strategy developed?
What is Web3?
The first wave of the internet started in 1994 as Web 1.0, which was characterized by static websites. In the second phase with more interactive Web2 came the integration of user-generated content with a focus on UX. Here, a shift was made in how users communicate and consume information online. Social media sites like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and Instagram rose to exponential success.
However, in Web2, the internet is dominated by companies that provide services in exchange for their customers’ personal data. Censoring and lack of privacy are big issues with Web2.
Web3 is the upgraded version of Web2 that is now gradually making its way. It involves semantic web technology and artificial intelligence. Blockchain technology, smart contracts, cryptocurrencies, NFTs, DeFi, and metaverse are seen as integral parts of this next phase of growth. Web3 is further characterized by creating a virtual world where users interact with each other and buy products and services.
With Web3, the idea is to improve the Internet, which is currently controlled by a handful of people and companies. Building upon the concepts of open-source, decentralization, transparency, and ubiquity will disrupt the current centralized environment of the Internet.
According to Web3 proponents, this paradigm shift will give users control back, which is currently held by internet giants like Facebook and Google, who control user data in their massive databases.
In Web 3.0, there is no need for a trusted third party or intermediary, as everyone can participate in a trustless environment, instead.
What is Web3 Marketing?
Technology has had a massive effect on every aspect of our lives, especially the way people do business. When it comes to marketing, the problem that every company faces is — starting from nothing. Then, how can a business acquire more customers and create network effects?
To put it succinctly, how to grab people’s attention and convince them to spend their time and money on the company’s product and service.
In Web2, organizations invest in sales and marketing, and the vast majority of the value generated accrues only to the platform. But not anymore. The new model in Web3 brings users into the fold and allows them to share the value along with the company through digital tokens.
Instead of following the Web2 customer acquisition funnel, where awareness and lead generation are at the top and converting and retaining customers are at the bottom of the funnel, Web3 is bootstrapping new networks that use tokens to bring in early users and reward them for their contributions when network effects aren’t yet started.
Web3 marketing is revolutionizing the way people think about the internet. It is more than just websites and search engine optimization (SEO). It enhances the user experience by providing interactive advertising opportunities. For marketers, it is a golden opportunity to have a more efficient Web 3 marketing strategy and deliver more targeted ads to consumers.
Related Content: Best Web3 Marketing Agencies
The key components of Web3 marketing strategy cover the following:
The Semantic Web aims to make Internet data machine-readable as such enabling computers and humans to communicate more efficiently. This extension of the existing World Wide Web (WWW) provides software programs with machine-interpretable metadata of the published information and data.
Ubiquity is an essential element of Web3, which means all the applications built on this iteration of the web will be accessible by everyone and from every device. Already, the number of devices connected to the Internet is increasing every day, thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT), which is enabling the ubiquitous web.
Decentralization is the core of Web3, which means there would be no central authority controlling the data, as the information would be held in various locations simultaneously.
Furthermore, there will be no intermediaries, which gives individuals a unique opportunity to take control over their data and exchange value directly with each other. All of this lowers the risk of server failure and data theft as well as opens the doors for fundamental privacy rights.
In Web 3, Artificial Intelligence (AI) is opening up an entirely new dimension for the internet by providing the cognitive layer that brings “smartness” to the web. It means computers will be able to understand information similarly to humans through technologies based upon natural language processing (NLP) technology that provides more accurate and quick solutions and responses.
Virtual reality is a computer-generated environment in which users formulate, publish, and monetize digital content. Metaverse is a projection of reality, and already tons of companies are working on allowing users to interact with others in a 3-D setting. From official meetings, entertainment, and games to trade shows, everything is happening here.
Customization is another important factor in enabling visitors to create a more personalized experience. Web3’s payment infrastructure gives its users more autonomy and freedom to transact freely within a secure and transparent environment.
In the gaming industry, blockchains are offering players new character customization options. As the web becomes increasingly intelligent, personalization will become the standard.
Network build-up here is a collaborative effort. On-demand collaboration allows users to interact in real time, and it is made possible by decentralized networks that no single entity controls. Instead of trusting a business to manage funds and execute services, in open-source projects, users trust the technology to perform these tasks.
Web3 Marketing Tactics
In Web3, content and users are interconnected through seamless interfaces and communication channels, allowing companies to offer a more personalized experience.
With this new iteration of the Internet, businesses need to adapt to Web3 to ensure open access and transparency. Besides hiring a qualified blockchain marketing agency with special expertise in the space, let’s check out some of the Web3 trends and tactics that can be used to ride the Web3 wave.
Blockchain Technology
This rapidly growing technology is transforming the way we live and work by getting rid of centralized systems and creating an open ecosystem. It is a shared, immutable ledger that records and verifies transactions and can be used for anything requiring trust. Removing intermediaries further allows businesses to connect directly with their users. Blockchain is the one enabling data security and data decentralization for Web 3.0, allowing users to take control of their data privacy.
Marketers can leverage blockchain to gain maximum transparency in their operations. Transactions can be processed through cryptocurrencies automatically, allowing consumers to have complete control over their information. With data on blockchain available for everyone to verify, businesses can be held responsible and accountable for their activities.
Furthermore, businesses can use self-executing smart contracts to simplify business and trade between two parties without requiring a middleman. This helps reduce costs associated with traditional methods without compromising authenticity and credibility.
NFTs
Non-fungible tokens (NFT) exploded into popularity in 2021 and are everywhere. From celebrities to brands, everyone is jumping on the NFT bandwagon. NFTs are digital assets that represent ownership of items like art, games, and music. These assets contain identifying information recorded in smart contracts, which makes them unique. For the first time, NFTs have made digital ownership provable.
Because NFTs are unique, they can replace web forms and prevent buyers from the risk of fakes. Businesses can offer their NFT owners instant access to content and allow NFTs to open additional benefits based on their value. Creating limited-edition NFTs is a great way to connect with customers and communities. People can collect these NFTs and trade or sell them. NFTs can also be used as VIP access tokens to an event, early product releases, or online content.
NFTs can also be used to raise money for a good cause. Thanks to their immense popularity, they can generate a lot of buzz and demand, which makes them a great strategy for attracting attention.
Read Also: NFT Marketing Guide
3D Virtual Space
Virtual reality is the talk of the town with Facebook (rebranded as Meta), Apple, Microsoft, Google, Shopify, Nike, Tinder, NVIDIA, Epic Games, Roblox Corporation, and many others joining the metaverse.
Metaverse is expected to replicate the value proposition of the internet, where billions of users access information, communicate with others, and sell goods and services. However, it will offer a more immersive experience via seamless integration of offline and online. Businesses can further use this virtual reality to hold events, exhibitions, and conferences for a much-needed boost.
As lines blur between virtual and reality thanks to AR and VR devices, there has been a rise in virtual influencers. These CGI-rendered characters may be either completely fictional or an avatars controlled by a real person in real time. These influencers can be solicited by brands for marketing campaigns.
3D illustrations can also be seen everywhere on websites, apps, and adverts. They make it easy for consumers to find them, making company brands recognizable. Today, several providers provide 3D models, plenty of which are readymade and fully customizable. A retail eCommerce business can particularly utilize this tool to create 3D models or virtual reality stores.
Social Media
Some of the biggest corporations today are social media companies such as Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. While these popular platforms have revolutionized how people communicate online and introduced new features to improve user experience, they have been facing distrust and allegations of privacy violations.
Facebook, TikTok, and many other apps have flourished by collecting data about people and sharing it with data brokers for more specific ad targeting. But after it became public knowledge that companies have been improperly harvesting their consumers’ data without their consent, media publishers, app makers, and e-commerce shops are now forced to find different paths to survive.
In Web3, decentralized apps (dApps) are overturning this model by removing the centralized authority, building meaningful relationships with customers, and creating mutually beneficial partnerships.
If you need some help, a Web3 marketing agency could help.
Moreover, on social media today, memes are the ones that are ruling. A meme is an idea carrying symbolic meaning representing a particular theme. It is a short and effective way to spread the complexity of Web3 across the Internet.
Watch this: Top 3 social media channels for Web3 marketing
Tokens and Airdrops
Cryptocurrency is the core of Web3, which has grown to become a more than $3 trillion market. Digital currencies are revolutionizing finance and incentivizing the users, allowing them to have a part of the network through tokens. Businesses can use creator coins to reward their early and more loyal customers, helping them attract more users.
“In Web3, ownership and control is decentralized. Users and builders can own pieces of internet services by owning tokens, both non-fungible (NFTs) and fungible,” said Web3 investor Chris Dixon.
Rewarding users can be done via airdrop, which is sending free tokens en masse to the community to encourage adoption. In crypto, there have been many successful cases of airdrops such as Uniswap (UNI), Bored Ape Yacht Club (APECoin), Looks Rare, and Ethereum Name Services (ENS).
Rewarding early users of a platform with a percentage of network tokens makes them participants in its growth and grants them the right to vote on its future development.
Developer Grants
Companies can reward individuals or teams for contributing to improving the platform in some way. These grants are made from a protocol’s treasury and can be given for protocol development, bug bounties, code audits, business development, integrations, and other activities.
For instance, Gitcoin Grants is a community-based platform for funders to post their grant requirements for grant seekers. In crypto, a ton of projects and organizations such as Ethereum, Chainlink, Compound, Coinbase, and Uniswap have active developer grants.
Attend Conferences
Crypto conferences and events are a great way of building relationships with people. This will help businesses understand how Web3 works by engaging with some of the best minds in the space as well as to know what competitors are up to. Currently, in its infancy, the Web3 space is looking for scalable and effective projects with very high privacy and low cost.
These events are rich with Web3 developments and businesses sharing their new products. They also host side events and parties. In Web3, a new conference is always happening every other month, all over the world.
Conclusion
As mentioned above, Web3 has tons of benefits, not to mention it is just getting started, unlike the Web2 market, which is saturated.
But it doesn’t mean that there are no drawbacks in Web3. The biggest limitation of Web3, for now, is scalability. Due to decentralization, where instead of an authority deciding for the network, all the participants agree on the true state, transactions on Web3 are slower. Scalability issue also makes Web3 expensive. UX is another big issue with Web3 as applications require education, software, and extra steps.
Given that Web3 is still early in its development stage, the kinks will be sorted out along the way. Besides all the challenges, one thing is clear: this new iteration of the internet is here, and everyone needs to be prepared with the right Infrastructure and strategies so that the opportunities presented by Web3 can be leveraged when it fully arrives.
