The Evolution of Brand Relationship with NFT

The rise of Internet usage in the digital era gives an excellent opportunity to the brand owner for connecting to their customers directly with minimum barriers. How does it happen?

In building a connection with the target audience, every brand has to implement Integrated Strategic Communications with different ways to implement it based on the brand culture and the target audience’s behavior. The rise of digital usage makes the brand owner should adapt wisely and have a deep understanding of every technology element. The emergence of digital use makes them adjust and customize every process to minimize the connection gap with customers and optimize the outcome. The technology development started with the appearance of Web 1.0, where the target audiences were only able to receive content that is available on the Internet. In current days, that era is already changed with the establishment of Web3, where blockchain technology supports the decentralized web.

The technology change started from Web1, where the brand’s objective was only focused on building brand awareness to the target audiences and also increasing the website’s traffic. Since the establishment of Web2 and social media marketing, the brand started to build a relationship with its target audiences and increase their engagement in long-term relationships. The latest technology is Web3, which can be said as the new era of digital marketing. In this period, the brand will prioritize authenticity, trust, transparency, and ownership among its customers. It will increase customer loyalty and strengthen engagement.

The Role of NFT within Brand Activities

It starts with the meaning of NFT itself. NFT stands for “Non-Fungible Token”, which means that the product cannot be substituted with another item. The token represents the ownership of the digital unique items because of the exclusivity of one NFT among others. Type of NFTs is various, like a domain name, digital artworks, music royalties, tickets, sports-related, and other unique digital items.

In this digital era, NFT can be used by the brand to engage with a larger community of their target audiences and increase brand relationships, which is called a brand investment. The larger scope is well aware of the brand, takes some immediate actions, and creates an opportunity for future sales and resale. Therefore, a number of brands are competing in using NFT on a regular basis in their digital campaigns, such as Burger King, NIKE, McDonald’s, Time Magazine, Space Beyond, Adidas, Prada, and other knowable brands.

Burger King and their NFT Campaign

One of the examples of how NFT is being applied in the brand is the “Keep It Real Meals” NFT Campaign that was launched by Burger King, which partners with Sweet. This campaign consists of three celebrities, which are LILHUDDY, Anitta, and Nelly. How does NFT work in this campaign? Customers should choose one of the Keep It Real Meal boxes by those celebrities at Burger King restaurants in the US. Then, they should scan the Real Meal box QR code provided to get one of the collectible game pieces and will continue until they complete the set to be granted a 4th reward-based NFT. The successful customers will get 3D BK digital collectibles, Whopper sandwiches, autographed swag, or the ability to call one of the artists.

NIKE and Cryptokicks project

In running the digital campaign, NIKE partnered with RTFKT Studios to announce the NFT project called Cryptokicks. This campaign was very unique, attractive, and targeted to their existing fans. It was about the collectible digital sneakers, which have similar look to their established model, and the NFT owners will share the royalties with NIKE and RTFKT in future sales. This kind of campaign creates the excitement of NIKE fans and thousands of NFTs are sold out in only a short period.

How NFT can Increase the Relationship with the Brand?

By implementing NFT in the digital campaign, the brand will have the opportunity to get closer to its customers, which leads to an increase the engagement, brand recognition, and brand loyalty. As part of Integrated Strategic Communications, NFT build a connection between the brand and its target audiences, especially in the digital era. It means that the target audiences or customers able to recognize and take an action in real-time via the brand website. NFT is one of the digital marketing campaign programs that minimize the barrier to building a relationship with customers.