The Ownable Web3 Internet Fundamentally Shifts Brand-Consumer Relationships

Web 3 is the next era of connected consumer behavior on the Internet - increasing numbers of consumers live in a digital-first reality where culture meets technology.

Powered by blockchain technology, advanced computing, and immersive realities, this new ownable Internet is well on its way to altering brand-consumer relations in a big way.

It's part of the reason why major global brands are actively polishing up their digital strategies as well as thinking about launching NFT projects. Compared to cryptocurrencies and altcoins, the communal and visual aspects of NFTs as a digital brand strategy offer up previously unavailable advantages to brands.

The brand retains IP ownership while the consumer owns the digital asset, in effect creating this powerful global affiliate program of influencer owners.

Consumers are spending less and less time in traditional settings, which means that brands must figure out alternative means through which to connect with their consumers as well as monetize their digital presence.

A Web3 Brand Strategy Is An Insurance Policy

Brands involving themselves in emerging Web 3 consumer dynamics are effectively sanctioning their connection to the next generation of young internet-native consumers who not only seem to enjoy more direct, mutually beneficial relationships with brands but also prefer to co-build with companies.

This partly explains the proliferation of community-building brand initiatives looking to leverage Web 3 community ethos. Such communities can also readily act as focus groups yielding useful brand insights.

Cross-chain interoperability will also be a key factor for Web 3 digital ownership and consumer behavior, as brands will need to launch tokens locking up these loyal communities - tokens that consumers can move with to and from across platforms.

Such NFTs, since they will be mostly hosted on open-source blockchains, also offer up a much better understanding of the consumer and what they are up to across the Internet.

Asset-backed tokens have become a real use-case within the luxury goods space for instance, where high-end wines and spirits bottles are actually hard-to-get in real life.

NFTs make sense for a category like this, being traditionally illiquid, opaque markets that involve goods that often trade freely above their market retail price depending on their demand, scarcity, and speculation.

For mid-range and low-end brands, owning a little piece of the brand through community tokens that bring consumers together creates a form of community collaboration that is quite net-new for brands.

NFTs on EVM & Non-EVM Chains

The EVM-compatible ecosystem currently carries the bulk of blockchain users and tooling available, which means that users can interact and carry their tokens around to different projects being built e.g Decentraland

The bigger vision for Web 3 however is a co-created consumer Internet in which consumers get to vote on decisions and provide their input in unprecedented ways for brands.

The result is a generative, personalized, and ownable Internet that completely transforms the relationships between major brands and their consumers.