According to a new report more than one-third of consumers (35 per cent) have never heard of the buzzword. The survey found that 58 per cent of respondents have either heard of the metaverse but do not know what it means, or think they understand the metaverse but would struggle to explain it to someone else.
Only 6 per cent of people identify as being comfortable enough in their understanding of the metaverse to explain it to others.
Gartner Marketing practice Senior director analyst Kyle Rees said this was a helpful signal to temper short-term expectations of the metaverse, and its potential impact on consumer’s daily life.
“It will be exciting to see how meta-aware companies begin to make sense of next-generation technologies to bring new products, services and experiences to the world around us.
“Technologies that are intertwined with the metaverse, such as projects on the blockchain or digital currencies, need to be highlighted as disruptive to the status quo thinking.
“Even properly communicating business use cases around metaverse-adjacent concepts, such as AI and augmented reality, will go a long way in demystifying what is still largely an unknown technology to the everyday consumer,” said Rees.
Of those who at least know about the metaverse, 60% have no opinion on it, and only 18% are actually excited about it. Meanwhile, 21% say they’re concerned about the impacts the metaverse might have.
“Companies with interests in the metaverse have a lot of work to change consumer’s attitudes,” continued Rees. “Contemplating the metaverse is a luxury that most people don’t have time for currently.”
“Getting people on board to see past the individual pieces of AI or head-mounted displays is paramount to them truly embracing the multiple technologies that make up a complete metaverse. There are complex, innovative new opportunities and business models that the average consumer needs to be able to grasp easily, or companies risk losing their interest.”
Meta (formerly Facebook) has popularised the buzzword, with plans to invest $10 billion into building the AR/VR technology around metaverse. It even calls its employees ‘metamates’.
“Contemplating the metaverse is a luxury that most people don’t have time for currently. Getting people on board to see past the individual pieces of AI or head-mounted displays is paramount to them truly embracing the multiple technologies that make up a complete metaverse,” said Rees.
“It will be exciting to see how meta-aware companies begin to make sense of next-generation technologies to bring new products, services and experiences to the world around us.”