Research Shows Consumers Believe Metaverse Will Be Mainstream in 5 Years

Brands that are expected to lead the charge in building out a truly interconnected metaverse estimate that it will not be completed for at least a decade. However, consumers’ expectations appear to be several years ahead, according to San Francisco-based Talkdesk’s “Connecting in the Metaverse” report that surveyed 1,500 U.S. consumers ages 16 and older. More than one-third of those surveyed (34%) believe the metaverse will be mainstream within the next five years. 

Already, nearly half of consumers (47%) who are dabbling in the metaverse are buying virtual items or finding inspiration for purchasing a physical product. Consumer expectations around these digital worlds are high though:

• More than half (51%) of consumers expect customer service to be better in the metaverse. 
• Nearly a third (32%) believe these immersive environments will provide less frustration and anxiety than calling and talking to a contract center agent.
• More than one in four consumers envision the metaverse as making it easier to access product or brand information (27%), and that it will be more effective and interactive to seek assistance from an omni-agent’s metaverse avatar than to engage with a chatbot online (27%).