Evolution Of Marketing & Introduction Of Web3 In The Marketing Mix

Anjali Krishnan Dec 09, 2022

From newspapers to 3D LED billboards to Metaverse, marketing has transcended eras. Adapting to the fast-paced technological advancement and consumer needs, marketers have surprised consumers with innovative ways to highlight their brand at every single touch point. For instance, the Macintosh personal computer advertisement during the 1984 Superbowl is a phenomenal example of inspiring consumers to warm up to new technology. The entire commercial is cantered on the premise that a new world is possible by taking a different approach to the adoption of technology — one that places individual consumers, not big companies, firmly at the center.

Web 3.0 was coined by Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood after the launch of the cryptocurrency in 2014. It is underscored by concepts like decentralisation, blockchain technology, openness, and greater user utility and was a device for early adopters of digital currency to feel more secure by giving greater control of the web experience to the builders and users of the platform instead of having it controlled by a handful of private companies. From a marketing lens, Web 3.0 also offers better control over data privacy and security while also delivering a more personalised user experience. Apart from personalisation via AI, marketing has also seen the dawn of NFTs being used as a key asset to promote products as well as actively connect with users in a novel and ground-breaking way.

For instance, expanding their horizons, global brands such as Nike have forayed into the metaverse with Nikeland – a place where users can explore different activities, try on digital clothing and purchase in-game fashion items. Luxury brand Gucci created a virtual reality experience called “Garden Archetypes” where visitors enter the Garden and interact with the mannequins. Everyone experienced the space differently, leaving behind their interpretation.

However, with the coming-of-age WWW, marketing strategies will need to be updated as third-party cookies will no longer be available due to cookie deprecation. Marketers, Publishers, and Ad-Tech companies have been spending a lot of time preparing for a cookie-less future. Marketers will need to leverage a variety of user data sources to effectively target and engage with audiences and drive personalisation. With shifting consumer demands and tech paving the way, marketing will continue to evolve; with the sustained adoption of AR-VR aiding marketers to create newer, innovative, and immersive experiences.

Preparing the brand for Web 3.0 marketing

Web 3.0 marketing is much more than being on a web 3 platform, it is about building relationships with your stakeholders and creating richer immersive experiences for consumers driven by purpose and value.

As a brand, we are constantly looking for newer means to engage with our consumers and have taken a step in that direction by carefully weaving in tech from the inception of each campaign. In February, Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk launched its Valentine’s Day campaign with the introduction of real-time personalisation of augmented reality that enabled consumers to unlock TV spots, newspapers, hoardings, and even open spaces at home to view custom messages from their loved ones on (their personal) hoardings with a unique message from their loved one. In addition to this, the brand surprised a young couple with a dinner date in the Metaverse. Taking tech integration a notch higher, Cadbury Gems launched its “Junior NFT” campaign where artworks made by children were converted into NFTs with the proceeds going to the education of underprivileged children. The insight behind the NFT campaign came from the millions of doodles and drawings, so passionately created by kids, being lost, and forgotten. The effort garnered a lot of love and received high traction with a reach of 15mm and 210k registrations. The brand observed 56k total uploads from which 15k NFTs were shortlisted.

However, while operating in this upgraded avatar of the internet, brands must be cognizant of implementing transparent operations, along with driving value for their consumers. Privacy and data security are critical components of Web 3.0 that uses blockchain technology.

At Mondelez, we are very serious about consumer privacy and security. We only collect consented data from our consumers. We don't manually intervene with the data and it sits on CRM tools that have encryption to ensure complete privacy and it sits on CRM tools that have encryption to ensure complete privacy. We use this data only to better communicate our brand proposition or to offer improved value or experiences to our consumers with our brands. Our data is secure and follows legally compliant processes in collection, storage, and usage of the same.