Web3 continues to take shape around us, and brands are increasingly getting on board to find new ways to engage customers, whether through NFT loyalty programs or immersive metaverse experiences. However, new research from PicoNFT, an NFT platform for experience brands, reveals that there is a disconnect between what consumers are looking for from branded Web3 experiences and what brands are delivering.
This isn’t too surprising, as Web3 is still being built out, and there will be an ongoing learning curve as both brands and consumers figure out how to make the most of it. But the interest is there: just over half (51 percent) of the participants in PicoNFT’s research — which included a survey of 737 U.S. online consumers and was conducted in mid-September — indicated that they are interested in interacting with brands through Web3 technologies such as NFTs and the metaverse.
However, despite the solid interest, 48 percent of consumers indicated that Web3 experiences that have been launched by brands have been largely unsuccessful. A smaller percentage (31 percent) believe that brand experiences are successful, while another 21 percent think they are neither successful nor unsuccessful.
“Increasingly, younger consumers are engaging with companies in their own way, and on their own terms,” said Dave Dickson, Founder of PicoNFT. “Today’s successful brands have a great opportunity to meet Gen Z and Millennials in new ways using the metaverse, DAOs, and NFTs. But how brands engage these customers with Web3 is just as important, and our survey research reveals Web3 strategies brands can use to attract these new customer segments.”
When it comes to why consumers find Web3 applications appealing, the most popular response was bring able to control their own data/privacy (44 percent), followed by having an experience that’s easy-to-use (36 percent) and having access to exclusive benefits or offers (33 percent).
In addition, utility NFTs were found to drive higher purchase intent than collectible NFTs, which makes sense as they are becoming more and more popular with consumers and redefining what an NFT can be used for. Brands looking to engage consumers through Web3 shouldn’t put it off, as according to PicoNFT, 41 percent of consumers would like to have access to a utility NFT from a brand within the next year, and another 24 percent expect to have access to one within the next 1-2 years.