Industry Updates
Magazine
Brand Story
Press Release
BLOGS
Yesterday’s content creators promoting other brands become today’s entrepreneurs. Current advances in technology enable people to connect more easily and give voice to the voiceless. From text and image to video and live stream, more and more people can connect with niche-but-global audiences. With the emergence of the Web 3, this democratization of storytelling has now reached the 3D animation and video game space. And it won’t stop there. Rather than focusing on the mediums or technologies themselves, such as blockchain or cryptocurrency, we must acknowledge the shift in societal power dynamics.
Social media is the modern day television network. The only difference being that the almost-infinite number of channels and shows lead to wider inclusion of niche interests, higher levels of personalization, and anywhere, anytime accessibility. Scrolling your feed on your phone is the channel zapping of today. Influencers and celebrities are the showrunners and leading actors of their own shows.
The penetration of social media and smartphones allowed millions of target consumers to become the channel owners and producers selling their own ad spots to brands.
Despite their popularity, most social content creators are not true brands or IP. Rather than taking on the role of executive producer, they’re more like the billboards that display others’ movie posters. They may promote sneakers, but they don’t own a piece of the brand. Unless they’re as big as the Kardashians, most influencers don’t have the capital to turn their online brands into physical products or services. Yes, they can sell merchandise, offer exclusive content or request donations which loyal fans might open their wallets to support, but it’s not like consumers buying designer brands to satisfy their own self-expression needs.
However when 1:1 interaction on social media becomes more like an open forum video game; when products and services become entirely digital, easy to both create and widely distribute; when personalities, influencers, creative storytellers, and camera-shy-but-skilled builders all come together to collaborate; then content creators become brand and IP owners.
Ad targets of yesterday become ad space sellers. Ad sellers of yesterday become business owners.
Imagine what it takes to launch your own designer brand in the physical world. Designing, fabric and trim sourcing, document and feedback exchange with the factory just to get a sample produced. Manufacturing, supply chain logistics, marketing, distribution, the list goes on. Overwhelmed by this list, many of us gave up on our idea, leaving it behind as a dream because we didn’t even know where to start.
ZEPETO is a place where more than 300 million of yesterday’s mobile game players are becoming today’s designers, stylists, celebrities, architects, engineers, script writers, voice actors and brand owners. There have been over 1 billion virtual items sold on ZEPETO with a large majority taking place in the United States, home to the platform’s 3rd largest active user base. Without corporate sponsorships in any form, some creators make over six figures of income designing and selling their own virtual items and wearables. Some are even hiring employees to scale their businesses. For example, one 3D modeler who used to work for a large game studio is now working for himself as an entrepreneur and brand owner in the metaverse.
How? Thanks to the advancement of 3D technologies, platforms like ZEPETO and Roblox empower creators to become their own brands by lowering the barrier to creation and fostering collaboration among various types of talented creators. Anyone can shoot a film or music video, throw a runway fashion show, host a live quiz show, launch a new designer brand, meet and greet with fans all over the world. Anything you imagine can happen, all for less time and nearly-zero money.
The metaverse is about making the impossible real while redefining the notion of play.
Things that bring you pleasure can also bring you a sizable paycheck. The metaverse unlocks the creative potential you may have left untapped due to physical barriers such as education, finances, personal network and societal pressure. To be an entrepreneur here, you don’t need an MBA degree or to be a part of a venture-backed accelerator program. You can unleash your creativity with virtually limitless opportunities.
Keep an eye on how consumers and passive players of yesterday, content creators of today are becoming entrepreneurs of tomorrow. It is here already. When you think of the metaverse, rather than think of tomorrow’s technological advances, pay attention to how the consumers, content creators and passive players of yesterday are becoming the entrepreneurs of today. It’s already here.
