Brands need to be ahead of the curve when it comes to NFTs and the Metaverse, Cognito Media vice president of digital Marji Sherman tells Doug Simon.

"I would rather a brand be an innovator and know what they're doing by the time that other brands are adopting, rather than be stuck in the weeds," she says, "because it is a complex topic."

One way a brand can get up to speed, Sherman tells Simon, is "by hosting a conference on the Metaverse, and being able to host breakout sessions to the group sessions, and keynote all the way to parties." She also says that brands can use the Metaverse "to actually create an office environment."

Landing the right Metaverse environment, she says, isn't all that different from finding real-world office space. "There are different planets and even universes that you can rent out space on in the Metaverse. You can also buy the space, but there's also a way to create a metaverse without renting or buying and more creating it from the ground up."

When renting, Sherman says potential users need to look at questions such as "Are your avatars included? Can you visit the rest of the Metaverse? Are there other people in the Metaverse?"

The right way for marketing to use NFTs is also discussed. "There are many different ways to think about how do we use these NFTs and how do we make them realistic and valuable? Because when we think of an NFT, it really is just owning that digital product at the end of the day, and it's the hype around having the ownership to that digital product."

Sherman also brings up the legal issues clients face in the Metaverse/NFT era. She says that lawsuits surrounding copyright issues in the virual arena will clarify "how far we can go in the Metaverse and if brands will be protected."

In addition, Sherman says that it is essential for communicators to "get educated around the Metaverse and understand what the angle is for your brand, and just make sure that you understand what you're getting into with the Metaverse and understand that it's not something that you can ignore."

The first step in getting educated? "Join a Metaverse." She also suggests taking a look at blockchaincouncil.org, which has a lot of information about the Metaverse. "And if you do have an agency, I recommend talking to your agency about this now, and see if they're working on this with any other client, if it would be a good fit for your brand, and just get those conversations rolling."

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