Action Agenda
The metaverse – or the µniverse as I term the B2C metaverse – will get built over the years to come. Meanwhile, CEOs and their marketing teams can take many actions to begin the journey to the new world.
First, collect customer data across all touchpoints. Machines and not humans in marketing departments are going to process this, so there is no need to economise! Every datapoint is a piece that goes on to create a single, unified, composite view of the customer, so no data is irrelevant. Computing and storage are cheap enough to make this almost a given. And yet few companies do this well. So, start by creating a “Chief Data Officer” (distinct from Chief Digital Officer). In the right hands and with the right software, data can tell amazing stories.
Second, invest in a full-stack communications and martech solution. The “full-stack” bit is important. The mistake marketers make is to get the next shiny point solution and then face a big challenge with silo-ed data and integration hurdles; they lose sight of the forest for the trees. For the magic of AI-ML to work, a single omnichannel stack is the way to go.
Third, lay the foundation for Velvet Rope Marketing – by analysing the customer data to calculate customer lifetime value (CLV) and decode the Best Customer Genome (BCG). CLV will help identify the Best Customers, and BCG will offer clues on the ideal customer profile and journey.
Fourth, construct digital twins for the Best Customers. AI-ML software can do this. With this, it will also become possible to predict the next best action that needs to be proposed for the customer. This is an iterative process – with every new customer input in the form of an action (or inaction) creating a new output in the form of personalised recommendations.
Fifth, consider atomic rewards as the answer to information overload and attention recession. This is where Mu, the attention currency, comes into play. Selected customers can be rewarded for their attention (push messages to begin with). Atomic rewards help nudge the customer along the journey and also bring in an element of gamification.
Sixth, imagine new, rich experiences for Best Customers. What is it that will surprise and delight them? How can the combination of content, context and community create lasting memories and the urge to share and refer others like them?
Seventh, use gaming engines to give life to these experiences in a private µniverse. Even as the larger metaverse takes shape, it is possible to create gateways to new worlds with today’s technologies to strengthen relationships with the Best Customers – the first step to creating a profipoly (profits monopoly).
Each one of these seven actions can be begun today – readying the business for tomorrow’s world. The basics of business success have always remained the same: get the category’s best customers, keep them forever, and persuade them to refer their friends and family. The metaverse is the next evolution in doing the basics even better. The digital journey that began with the Internet is ready for its next – and most exciting – big leap. It is our combined imagination that will birth the new µniverse future.
