Web3 and the metaverse are the talk of the town this year, and brands are dipping their big toe in these new realities and platforms, one at a time.

A recent organization that has made the jump with a metaverse project is Interpol. The international police organization, nothing less.

The metaverse is not just for gamers

When most people think about the metaverse these days, most see teenagers wearing VR headsets, playing in virtual environments.

But these virtual worlds composed of theme parks, fashions brands’ stores (think Vans World and Ralph Lauren), mini-games are not all there is.

Although the technology is not there quite yet, and the equipment and platforms that allow one to connect and interact in virtual spaces are not up to expectations, there is potential for content, for brands, offered in an immersive experience.

Education is one sector where Web3 and the metaverse can have enormous impact. We’ve been reading about this for decades, being able to learn and discover in a virtual reality context.

And this virtual context of information, education, but also entertainment paves the way for potentially very impactful content marketing.

A metaverse version of the Interpol General Secretariat headquarters in Lyon, France

“The Metaverse has the potential to transform every aspect of our daily lives with enormous implications for law enforcement,” said Mr. Oberoi, Interpol’s Executive Director of Technology and Innovation. “But in order for police to understand the Metaverse, we need to experience it.” (Source: interpol.int)

This is the main reason Interpol launched a digital version of the Interpol General Secretariat headquarters, where visitors can visit and interact with other officers from different departments by wearing virtual-reality headsets.

In a recent demonstration, experts from the Interpol Capacity Development and Training Directorate delivered a train­ing session on travel document verifica­tion and passport control using Interpol capabilities in metaverse classrooms. Students were then teleport­ed to an airport where they could practise applying their new knowledge by verifying passports at a virtual border checkpoint.

Why does Interpol’s presence in the metaverse matter?

As more and more brands build projects in virtual worlds, more and more marketers, communicators and C-suite executives learn how brands can behave and exist in these new realities.

As mentioned in the Advertising Week article “What the metaverse means for brands and branding“, brands must learn from one another, and build a presence that has relevance and fits with the interactivity offered.

Brands must avoid being perceived as opportunistic, or worse, gimmicky when launching metaverse projects. They must think about what value the experience will be to the target audience.

In essence, they must go through the same hoops they do when thinking about branded content outside virtual worlds: know your audience, create value, measure.

And while all this is happening, creators need to learn new skills, and adapt. These technologies have the potential to make a big impact on content creation and content creators and many of them are already getting ready.

There are dozens of questions brands will ask themselves in the coming years on this matter, and our goal at Toast is to be part of the conversation. Throughout our history, we’ve demonstrated how, through the launch of so many digital platforms, we build a narrative and build insights before recommending projects like these to our clients. Want to discuss this with us? Do not hesitate to email us or call us!