What Will it Mean for Restaurants to Enter the Metaverse?

What would you do for a chance to live a second life? The answer doesn’t have to be big – because the opportunity to do so is here and now and easy to access. Coined in popular media as the metaverse, the new generation of internet is here and if companies have anything to say about it, it’s here for the long run.

Barbara Castiglia of Modern Restaurant Management jots down her insight into the industry particularly when it comes to the metaverse, “I can be kind of flippant about the metaverse because it’s like this uncharted territory where we don’t know what’s going on yet…but…how many companies have filed trademarks related to their virtual presence?”

The list is large but includes companies such as Wendy’s, Yum Brands, Chipotle, Burger King, Mcdonald’s, Hooters, and even Jimmy John’s. The latter of which is “connecting the virtual to the real” by inviting customers to build a custom meta-sandwich that they can then pick up in the real world.

Exploring this new opportunity for marketing and growth is vital to staying relevant and in touch with the customer base. Wendy’s own Wendy-verse boasts unique online games to stay in contact with new generations. And staying in touch with new generations means staying online.

In a study conducted by Razorfish, “Gen-Z customers are spending twice as much time socially interacting in the metaverse than they do in real-life,” said Castiglia. Having an online presence would directly correlate with the new values that this study shows is present in the newer generation.

Although the metaverse is new and virtually unknown as of yet, it is largely made up of a “customer-first economy” which is a “perfect place for restaurants to be” and allows for more marketable and transactional creativity.

“It’s a nice new step for the restaurants,” noted Castiglia.