NFTs and eCommerce – are they the future of selling online? It has been 18 months since we first mentioned NFTs on our podcast. Additionally, it has been interesting seeing this topic evolve and all the action around it. $44.2 billion of cryptocurrency was sent to smart contracts associated with NFT marketplaces in 2021 alone. This is up from just $106 million in 2020, according to a report by Chainalysis.
By 2026, 25% of people will spend at least one hour a day in the metaverse for work, shopping, education, social, and entertainment, according to Gartner Inc. As brands, it’s our job to follow people’s interests and create experiences they can extract value from. When it comes to the Metaverse, it’s about showing people why these experiences are meaningful and why they would want to join.
From memberships, to loyalty and smart contracts, there are a number of ways brands can create value and connect with their customers through NFTs. Listen to this week’s episode as our eCommerce experts discuss where this value lies, the opportunities for brands using NFTs, and how other brands are using them.
NFTs are also known as non-fungible tokens. The owner can say they own the original copy of a digital file, just like you would with a pair of sneakers or a house. NFTs hold valuable information, and their price is set by the market. Individuals can buy and sell their NFTs, just like you would with other physical items.
The fashion industry has always set the latest trends, and NFTs are no exception. 17% of brands featured in the Vogue Business Index have already worked with NFTs in some capacity.
For example, Zara partnered with the South Korean label Ader Error to launch its first NFT project. Customers who purchase any of the items in their AZ Collection have their own virtual avatar in the Metaverse, with the same clothes they purchased online. Other large brands such as Nike, Adidas and Dolce and Gabbana are also using NFTs to voyage further into the Metaverse with their customers.
Zara’s AZ Collection in the Metaverse
From a marketing perspective, NFTs is something we expect to hear more and more about. HubSpot’s CEO Kipp Bodnar said “We’re moving to a market-based society where everything is going to be ownable, priceable, traceable — everything — and NFTs is just a fancy way to do that and create the marketplace around it.”
