Thakar advised any brand considering incorporating emerging technology into their marketing to choose AI over more situational technologies such as the metaverse or NFTs. However, he acknowledged the metaverse can be valuable for brands interested in offering consumers an immersive experience or creating an online community. Last year, Coca-Cola teamed up with the video game Fortnite to launch a “pixel-flavored” soda flavor, Zero Sugar Byte, as part of an overarching push to attract Gen Z consumers.
Coca-Cola has done quite a bit with NFTs in an effort to connect with both existing collectors of physical Coca-Cola products and digital collectors who are fans of the brand, Thakar said.
“I always say that good brands have loyal consumers; iconic brands have community,” he said. “You’ll always, in any city you go [to], find Coke collectors, whether they collect our bottles or cans or signage or vintage vending machines. And now, there is a huge opportunity for us to have a community in the virtual world and with virtual collectors.”
However, Thakar is more optimistic about the potential impacts of AI on brands than he is about the metaverse, as AI has far more practical applications than the entertainment-oriented metaverse, he said. And unlike the metaverse, which is still largely a developing concept and has encountered many stumbling blocks, AI tools such as DALL-E and ChatGPT are already functional, he said.
“[AI] isn’t just a promise for the future,” Thakar said. “It’s available right now.”
from Digital Marketing Education https://ift.tt/s9Afl5H
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