How Your Business Can Prepare for the Metaverse

The online world is moving from mobile to metaverse – combining physically immersive virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and the internet. 

In this blog, we’ll explore what the metaverse is, how it will change the way we work and how companies can start to prepare and be at the forefront of the next stage of digital disruption.

What is the metaverse?

The metaverse is a conception of the online world as a single, universal and immersive virtual environment. Via the metaverse, users can interact with each other and with virtual objects and their surroundings in real time, moving from today’s reality of sharing information to tomorrow’s model of exchanging experiences in a shared environment.

In the metaverse, we move from a world of screens to an immersive extended reality where we’re part of the action, not just observers. This shared virtual space will transform the way we communicate, play and interact with each other – including the world of work. 

The metaverse has already seen significant interest from investors, businesses and individuals, with the space expected to reach $678.80 billion in global market value by 2030, with 22% of businesses already seeing it as key to their future.

How will you prepare for the metaverse?

What the metaverse means for the world of work

The metaverse will have a significant impact on every industry and sector. Virtual worlds will change the way we work and interact with each other and will open up new possibilities for communication, collaboration and creativity.

Here are some examples:

• Virtual Workspaces - The metaverse will allow companies to create virtual offices and meeting spaces, enabling companies to hire the best talent from anywhere in the world.

• Training & Development - Employees will be able to acquire and improve skills in a virtual environment, with interactive lessons leading to better engagement and retention through personalised user experiences. 

• Relationship Building - The metaverse will provide a platform for companies to build connections and promote empathy between employees, such as showing head office employees what it’s like to work on the front line.

• Health & Wellbeing - Working in closer digital collaboration, there is increased opportunity for virtual diagnostics, group discussion and building custom work environments.

3 ways your business can prepare for the metaverse

As more business activity moves into this virtual world, companies will need to adapt to offering services, experience and work in the metaverse, or fall behind. 

Here are three key steps you can take to prepare your business for the metaverse:

1. Develop or acquire the relevant knowledge

As with any new trend, the first step is having the right expertise – this requires dedicating time, resources and people to the project.

Cocentric recommendations:

• Establish a team or individual to research and develop a deep understanding of the metaverse technology and its potential impact on the company. 

• This person or team should be responsible for staying up to date on the latest developments in the metaverse and identifying how they can be applied to the business. 

• Explore the resources available to help businesses develop their knowledge of the metaverse, such as training courses and articles on the topic, including from Meta.

For businesses with strong alignment with the field, a great way to seriously prepare for the metaverse is by hiring or promoting a Chief Metaverse Officer (CMO) who can combine business knowledge, market analysis, innovation orientation and technical know-how to drive your metaverse strategy.

2. Keep up to date on technologies

To prepare for the metaverse effectively and ensure you’re in a position to incorporate it, you need to be aware of the various technologies available and how they can be used, including VR, AR, real-time communications and new hardware. 

The metaverse is poised to drastically expand available use cases for AR and VR technology, from its current niche popularity in gaming, to becoming an everyday tool for work  and communication. Predictions indicate a boom in AR/VR investment in 2024 in areas outside recreation, including retail, industrial maintenance and training. 

Cocentric recommendations:

• To maximise ROI, choosing from the technology available should start with your business objectives and how you want to participate and make the most of its potential.

• Explore tools and solutions that enable your employees to collaborate across virtual, digital and physical spaces, such as:
  • Virtual reality (VR) headsets - provides employees with immersive collaborative and learning experiences, with fewer distractions and opportunities to be more efficient and innovative.
  • Meta Horizon Workrooms - a virtual space that allows your team to join the metaverse environment, from either VR headsets or video conferencing calls, to meet, collaborate, brainstorm or present.

• Consider partnering with a company that has expertise in the metaverse to help your business get up to speed, such as Cocentric - we are a certified and Elite Tier Meta partner.

3. Watch and learn how to prepare for the metaverse

In this emerging field, businesses will have to learn, test and experiment - sharing knowledge in this new world. This starts with watching and learning about how to prepare for the metaverse from others who are already using this technology. 

Concentric recommendations:

• Keep an eye on companies and individuals that are pioneering the use of the metaverse in various industries, follow their progress and learn from their experiences. Whilst most are trialling its use in the B2C space, it points towards what will be possible for internal communications, collaboration and innovation. Here are some examples of companies using early metaverse solutions:
  • Huge US organisations, like NASA and PwC, are trialling the use of Meta Horizon Workrooms in beta.
  • Nike and Hyundai are using Roblox to create metaverse environments for customers to enjoy immersive browsing product experiences and interact with other users, including brand-inspired games.
  • Accenture have used the metaverse to onboard new team members virtually, with new hires given XR headsets and introduced within a virtual “One Accenture Park”.
  • German railway operator Deutsche Bahn is building an industrial metaverse of its entire rail network to optimise efficiency and provide actionable, real-time transparency over operations.
  • Beer giant AB InBev has been working with Microsoft to create digital twins of its breweries to monitor operations and provide employees with key insights into the fermentation processes, identify bottlenecks, schedule maintenance and help front-line staff to connect with technicians to fix issues via AR headsets.

As a Meta Elite partner, Cocentric will be sharing content and hosting events related to the metaverse, and we encourage businesses. Sign up for our latest events here.

5 further resources to help prepare your business for the metaverse

• Meta: A Complete Guide to the Metaverse | Meta for Business 

• McKinsey: What is the Metaverse?

• TechTarget: 10 Real-World Use Cases of the Metaverse

• Forbes: Why Every Business Should Have a Metaverse Strategy

• Gartner: What Is a Metaverse? And Should You Be Buying In

Conclusion

The metaverse has the potential to revolutionise nearly every aspect of the business world. Now is the time to think about how you can prepare for the metaverse and be at the forefront of utilising this technology. 

If you want to discuss the metaverse further or believe there’s a business case for your company,  speak with our team today.

Alternatively, if you’d like to learn more about how to empower your workforce and enhance employee experience through modern communication and collaboration solutions,  download our free guide: How to Transform the Digital Employee Experience.