Metaverse marketing: How the metaverse will shape the future of consumer research and practice
Yogesh K. Dwivedi, Laurie Hughes, Yichuan Wang, Ali Abdallah Alalwan, Sun Joo Ahn, Janarthanan Balakrishnan, Sergio Barta, Russell W. Belk, Dimitrios Buhalis, Vincent Dutot, Reto Felix, Raffaele Filieri, Carlos Flavián, Anders Gustafsson, Chris Hinsch, Svend Hollensen, Varsha Jain, Jooyoung Kim, Anjala S. Krishen, Jared Offei Lartey, Neeraj Pandey, Samuel Ribeiro‐Navarrete, Ramakrishnan Raman, Philipp A. Rauschnabel, Amalesh Sharma, Μαριάννα Σιγάλα, Cleopatra Veloutsou, Jochen Wirtz
Abstract
Abstract The initial hype and fanfare from the Meta Platforms view of how the metaverse could be brought to life has evolved into an ongoing discussion of not only the metaverse's impact on users and organizations but also the societal and cultural implications of widespread usage. The potential of consumer interaction with brands within the metaverse has engendered significant debate within the marketing‐focused discourse on the key challenges and transformative opportunities for marketers. Drawing on insights from expert contributors, this study examines the marketing implications of the hypothetical widespread adoption of the metaverse. We identify new research directions and propose a new framework offering valuable contributions for academia, practice, and policy makers. Our future research agenda culminates in a checklist for researchers which clarifies how the metaverse can be beneficial to digital marketing and advertising, branding, services, value creation, and consumer wellbeing.