Welcome to the future. Only the second month of the year and we’re looking to the future? But what if the future is now? After all, marketing in the metaverse isn’t science fiction.

Marketers move campaigns into the metaverse

Brands are embracing the next iteration of the internet. Oreo partnered with Martha Stewart to release a metaverse activation for the launch of its “The Most Oreo Oreo.” Meanwhile, Starbucks has already opened up a web3 loyalty program for beta testing, and Coca-Cola auctioned off collectible non-fungible tokens (NFTs) for charity last year.

And if you think the metaverse doesn’t apply to your industry—think again. In a study conducted by Deloitte Insights, "only 10% of [CMO] respondents said the metaverse is 'not relevant for my industry.'" But CMOs at the most recent CES didn’t seem to think it would be relevant in the near future.

And although a post-pandemic ecommerce slowdown was widely predicted last year, marketing agency Barbarian has launched a commerce-specific team that CEO Steven Moy says will aim “to connect sales and marketing across online, offline and metaverse platforms.” Could the novelty of the metaverse makeup and integration of NFT gifts reinvigorate ecommerce?

Like it or not, web3 is coming. Maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon. It’s worthwhile to start learning the ins-and-outs now and begin formulating a strategy, even if it’s as small as experimenting with NFTs. Meta released a guide last year, if you’re still confused as to what, exactly, NFTs are.

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Around the Web

• Netflix nixes password sharing in hope of more subscription money.

• And Fangoria’s editor-in-chief identifies why Netflix’s must-log-in-every-week rule alienates genre fans.

• YouTube’s ad revenue is up 83% from a year ago.

• Journalist Louis Theroux is launching a Spotify-exclusive podcast.

• Tech layoffs have sparked ‘The Great Betrayal’—62% of knowledge workers feel less secure committing to one employer.

Just Can’t Get Enough

Weather divination—a.k.a., asking an animal guide if winter will last longer.

• Groundhog Day is really a Christian adaptation of the spring pagan holiday Imbolc.

• Our famous magick practitioner, Punxsutawney Phil, predicts winter is continuing.

• But Alabama’s weather possum thinks the opposite: spring is coming soon.

Do you plan on spending spring in the metaverse? Do you trust a possum or a groundhog more when it comes to weather? Reply and fill us in.

Thanks for joining us, and we’ll see you Wednesday!