Consumers in virtual worlds: is there a tangible relation with brands?

Abstract

Consumer activities are constantly changing. They’ve begun to move their interests to the virtual, looking at the internet as a new and interesting space to be. With easier access to information and communication technologies, the consumer requests from social networks space to exist and coexist. From the current social being emerges a new digital social being. The outcome of this research tries to seek how brands should re-strategize their marketing given consumers' fast changing multimedia habits. We believe brands should realize that they are no longer the “conversation” leaders. Consumers are now in the control of the propagation of messages. Thus brands need to put aside the holy branding and follow the information flux coming from the users’ conversations taking place in virtual worlds. They can support this new approach making use of more engaging experiences of their products based in interactivity and simulation. Support of these new media must be seen as complementary to current use of traditional media. The study we present tried to understand the new media use done by brands and understand if the models were supportive enough for the new digital social audience. An analysis based on interactivity models of McMillan and Downes (2002) and Shedroff (1999) designed to find problems and make suggestions to support actions of enhancement of the relation brand-consumer.