Internet is currently undergoing a radical transformation and Web3 is at the heart of the evolution. Web3 is a decentralized and blockchain-powered version of the web. Users here can regain control over their data, identity and digital experiences. Web3 is gradually gaining attention and it is just the beginning to fundamentally reshaping principles of digital marketing as well as search engine marketing (SEM).
Google, Meta and other tech giants are currently dominating the centralized infrastructure of Web2. Web3 has empowered users with ownership and participation in online ecosystems. Hence, marketers need to rethink strategies around privacy, attribution, engagement and trust.
User data was collected passively in the traditional marketing model and often without consent through cookies, tracking pixels as well as third-party platforms. Web3 has flipped the model. It has introduced decentralized identities (DIDs) and self-sovereign wallets. It allows users to control when, how as well as with whom their data is shared.
Access to Web3 user data now is based on permission and not surveillance. This means that campaigns need to be value-driven and consent-based. Marketers should offer rewards or meaningful experiences in exchange for user participation.
Wallets serve as digital identities in Web3. It contains transaction history, token holdings, NFT purchases and DAO memberships. All these have become valuable signals for advertisers.
Several emerging platforms are now enabling wallet-based advertising and they are letting the brands to target users by on-chain behavior and not by demographic assumptions. A wallet that has interacted with DeFi apps or holds specific tokens signals high engagement. this allows marketers to craft tailored messages.
The targeting is more relevant and simultaneously also with respect to privacy as it operates without harvesting personal data. It is a unique model and made possible just because of the transparent as well as decentralized infrastructure of Web3.
Marketers have long struggled with measuring success. Click fraud, fake impressions and attribution ambiguity usually plague traditional SEM. Web3 has come up with a solution and it is on-chain attribution.
Every click, view or transaction can be recorded immutably with blockchain. Smart contracts automate ad payments only when verified actions occur. This brings transparency and trust into the core of campaign performance.
It can be said that SEM in a Web3 context is more accountable as there are no black-box algorithms or unverifiable claims. There are only clear and auditable results.
Users are consumers as well as participants in Web3. One important tool is tokenization in the arsenal of marketer in Web3.
Users can earn tokens or NFTs for engaging with content, completing tasks or referring friends. Brave Browser’s Basic Attention Token (BAT) rewards users for viewing ads and they can achieve average click-through rates of around 8%.
Web3 transforms engagement from a passive interaction into a mutually beneficial exchange by rewarding attention. Users in it receive value for their time and data.
Web3 brands increasingly use NFTs as more than art as they are the digital keys to access. Gucci, Adidas, Starbucks and more such brands have experimented with NFT-based campaigns. They have offered holders early product access, exclusive merchandise or community perks.
POAPs (Proof of Attendance Protocols) are also widely used in Web3 events to reward participation and simultaneously encourage future interaction. The strategies strengthen deeper emotional loyalty and strengthen brand identity.
NFTs are programmable, verifiable and transferable. These make them ideal assets for modern loyalty programs and immersive brand experiences.
Social platforms are of course heart to any marketing strategy, but Web3 is rebuilding them from the ground up. Lens, Farcaster and more such protocols let users own their content, monetize their following and also control their data.
Influencer marketing in Web3 becomes more transparent as audience size, engagement and rewards are verifiable on-chain. Influencers can receive micropayments directly from fans or brands and without intermediaries. This ensures fair compensation as well as good trust.
The decentralization of course reduces fake followers, bots and inflated metrics that plague traditional platforms.
Web3 ad networks operate differently. Permission.io, Brave Ads and more such platforms enable opt-in advertising where users are rewarded in tokens for choosing to view ads.
Payments are executed via smart contracts and this ensures that advertisers only pay when verified criteria are met such as views, clicks or conversions. This removes the need for ad fraud detection software or complex analytics.
Web3 marketers enjoy reduced costs, improved ROI and a more ethical ad experience.
Quests have become a common tool in Web3 marketing. Galxe, Layer3, Zealy and more such platforms enable brands to launch quest-based campaigns to incentivize users to complete specific tasks such as exploring a product, joining a community or spreading the word on social media.
Arbitrum Odyssey is a good example. It is a campaign that witnessed more than 1.67 million NFTs and it was minted by 623,000 participants. It proved that engagement scales rapidly and organically when users are properly incentivized.
This is a superpower of Web3 to turn marketing into a game where everyone plays as well as earns.
Web3 marketing extends into immersive spaces such as the metaverse where brands are building digital storefronts and hosting interactive experiences. Marketers are exploring new frontiers of attention from Balenciaga in Fortnite to virtual concerts in Decentraland.
The merging of physical and digital is becoming a key tactic. NFTs can serve as tickets, memberships or collectibles tied to physical goods. It creates a seamless online-offline brand presence.
Blockchain brings transparency and AI adds intelligence. AI can analyze on-chain data to craft personalized content, recommend tokens or predict user behavior in Web3.
Semantic metadata is a core feature of the Semantic Web. It helps structure content and decentralized search engines can better understand as well as rank it. This leads to such SEM campaigns which are context-aware, behavior-driven and far more relevant than their Web2 counterparts.
The community does not just consume content in Web3, but also helps to shape it. Many projects now involve DAOs (Decentralized Autonomous Organizations) where users vote on branding, campaign direction and even budgets.
The participatory model makes marketing democratic. It aligns community interest with brand growth as well as helps in creating passionate advocates and not the passive consumers.
DAO-led marketing is happening with brands like Uniswap, ENS and ApeCoin. It is the ultimate form of user-driven strategy.
Web3 undoubtedly offers incredible promise and it is not without hurdles or challenges. Many users are still unfamiliar with wallets and seed phrases. Transaction fees can slow down campaign execution and regulations around crypto marketing are still evolving. Buzzwords like NFTs and metaverse can trigger skepticism if these are misused.
