Metaverse in marketing and logistics: the state of the art and the path forward

Abstract

PurposeEver since its emergence, the metaverse has presented opportunities and disruptions to every stakeholder, including individual users and organizations. This article aims to offer valuable perspectives on six identified critical areas that the metaverse could significantly impact: marketing ethics, marketing communication, relationship marketing, retail marketing, supply chain management and transportation management.Design/methodology/approachThrough a multi-perspective approach, this paper gathers valuable perspectives from various invited contributors to each of the six identified key areas that the metaverse could significantly impact.FindingsFor each key area identified, the invited contributors first share their valuable perspectives by discussing the roles of the metaverse. Subsequently, the invited contributors discuss their views on vital opportunities, challenges and research agenda concerning the metaverse.Originality/valueWith the widespread metaverse, it is expected that each key area identified is likely to undergo significant levels of disruption. Against this backdrop, this paper contributes to the academic literature and industry by gathering different perspectives from invited contributors on the relevance of the metaverse in marketing and logistics domains.

Transforming metaverse marketing into strategic agility in SMEs through mediating roles of IMT and CI: theoretical framework and research propositions

“…The term “metaverse marketing” (MVM) refers to promotional operations that take place inside completely immersive virtual environments, also referred to as “metaverse” worlds. This kind of marketing engages with virtual customers through a variety of platform-specific methods, enabling firms to advertise their products and services in virtual settings (Tan et al ., 2023). According to Ramadan (2023), MVM offers a conduit or platform that makes it easier to convey products and services to customers.…”

Banking in the metaverse: a new frontier for financial institutions

“…The banking, commerce and financial services industries are lauded to be the next entrants in the metaverse after gaming, media and entertainment (Forbes, 2022b;Koohang et al, 2023;Tan et al, 2023). The metaverse will allow users to purchase or lease digital assets requiring financial services and the presence of trusted payment rails (Sheehan, 2022).…”

“…The banking, commerce and financial services industries are lauded to be the next entrants in the metaverse after gaming, media and entertainment (Forbes, 2022b; Koohang et al. , 2023; Tan et al. , 2023).…”

MetaWOM – toward a sensory word-of-mouth (WOM) in the metaverse

“…Travelers can take virtual tours of hotels and rooms, customize their stay by previewing different amenities and even book their entire trip within the Metaverse. As travelers’ behavior, and VR evolves, Metaverse is to take a more disrupting role in areas such as marketing, communication, service provision and the like (Gursoy et al , 2022; Tan et al , 2023).…”

“…While the whole domain is in its infancy, several scientific contributions portray the current state of affairs in the Metaverse context (Dwivedi et al , 2022; Giang Barrera and Shah, 2023; Koohang et al , 2023; Tan et al , 2023). There is a consensus among scholars on the major paradigm shifts in the domains of consumer behavior, interpersonal and branding communication and decision-making.…”