What is Web3 and what has changed since:

2022 is all about Web3, decentralisation, and a new way of looking at the new normal, both from COVID19, economy, geopolitics, financial crisis, and what it means for marketer, brands, and way of communications. In this article we will break down what is Web3, what are the changes that it will bring, what does it mean for us, business owners, and what can we do to excel and thrive in the transition era. 

To understand Web3, we need to understand Web 1 & 2. 

Web1, is essentially one way of communication. People submit information to the world(the internet) and it is free for all to consume. This information, can now be for everyone. No sense of ownership. 

Web2, in the other hand, is two way of communication. You receive and submit information. You’re able to interact. This information that you receive and submit, is digitally owned by whoever touch it. 

Now Web3, is where everyone who’s communicating in one place, is validated, recorded, and it has sense of ownership that will become your highest value in the future, Identity & Validation. It involves semantic web technology and artificial intelligence.

Web3 is an upgraded version of Web 2.0 and is forecasted to be the virtual world within the Internet through websites such as online virtual shopping malls, which allow users to interact with each other and buy products, on top a personalization, it also offer the Semantic Web, which provides a framework for information to be reused and shared more easily among programs, communities, and companies. 

What does it mean for brands and marketing

In Web 2.0, data was collected and controlled by platforms and companies. Companies like Facebook own our data and decide how to share this data with advertisers, we don’t have the ownership of data pulled by them. Marketers only need to deal with the platform to access the data and create strategies to acquire, retain, and engage their customers, given by the platform like; Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, LinkedIn, etc. 

In Web3, all the above mentioned will be controlled by private citizens rather than private entities. No single entity or person will own the data in Web 3.0. Rather than storing data in centralized locations (like Meta, Google, or Amazon), data will be stored in a distributed network that’s owned by no one. 

This gives users control of their data. They can decide where and how to share it. Marketers, in turn, have more stakeholders to market to, engage with, and retain. These stakeholders include users, developers, and the communities they engage with. Web 3.0 will usher in the evolution of community marketing. As the stakeholders expand, we have to invest time and resources in learning what customers care about and building strategies around it.

These are two things that we have noticed within our case study this year;

1. Data mining, will be replaced by community building. This will provide a holistic approach in building your target audience.
   
2. Ownership, Identity, and Brands, become one of the highest priority when it comes to Web3. 

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All you need to know for your business about Web3

1. Reassess, and realign your community and values.
   
   What is valuable for your current user, might shift in few months, or years. Understanding and making sure that your community is present and strong should be your main focus today.
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2. Educate yourself about the concept of it.
   
   Everything is new, nothing is certain. Be critical in consuming information. 

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