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How Web3 Technology Will Impact the Future of Consumer Trends [Expert Insights]

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How Web3 Technology Will Impact the Future of Consumer Trends [Expert Insights]

Many years ago, I waited hours in line after a concert to get a coveted Selena Gomez autograph.

After she signed my poster, I hung it up in my bedroom, where it felt like my most prized possession. Because, although plenty of other people had Selena’s autograph — no one had this specific one.

It was one-of-a-kind. And worth every penny I paid to attend the meet-and-greet.

And, although it may not seem like it at first, web3 technology — and how it will ultimately impact consumers — is actually very similar to my experience at the Selena Gomez concert.

Here, I spoke with three web3 experts to learn more about how web3 will impact the future of consumer trends.

But first … what is web3, anyway?

What is Web3?

If you’re unsure what web3 is, you’re not alone. HubSpot’s Blog Research recently found 51% of consumers don’t understand the concept of web3.

Before writing this post, I didn’t either.

We cover what web3 is in-depth in this post, but for a brief recap: web3, or the third-generation of the internet, is a vision of a more decentralized web that places the power in the hands of users instead of large tech companies like Google, Apple, and Netflix.

Web3 is built on blockchains using existing infrastructure with the goal of making the internet more accessible, private, and secure for users.

Anna Seacat, VP of Marketing and web3 Community at Proxy and Co-Founder of Glypta.org, says a major benefit of web3 is ownership over data.

As Seacat puts it, “Today, when we create content or submit personal data online, we’re handing over ownership to companies who can change, delete, or sell it. With web3, we own our data. You can mint content through a decentralized app, but that app can never change or remove it, because it’s yours forever, unless you decide to sell it.”

anna seacat quote on web3

Essentially, it’s an evolution of the internet that will be supported by blockchain and hosted on servers owned by individuals and many organizations rather than a handful of corporations. This gives users the ability to vote over the web’s rules and regulations, rather than putting all power into the hands of those who own the servers (think: Democracy versus Monarchy).

At least, that’s the idea — although it’s still in early days of development, so it’s unknown whether reality will live up to these ideals.

But how does web3 relate, specifically, to consumers and e-commerce brands? Let’s explore that next.

How does web3 relate to consumers?

Web3 Will Provide a Foundation for Decentralized Finance

So … How does web3 relate to consumers? Well, in many ways, web3 is opening up new opportunities for how people will ultimately spend and sell.

In essence, web3 could become a strong foundation for a secure, protected digital economy.

For instance, one critical component of web3 is decentralized finance.

Decentralized finance, which uses the same blockchain technology used by cryptocurrencies, has a similar goal as web3 itself: Give people the power to control their own money through a digital wallet, rather than relying on major financial institutions and banks. (Similar to how web3 aims to give people the power to control their data, rather than relying on major tech corporations.)

Many brands already accept digital currencies from consumers. Microsoft, for instance, allows consumers to purchase products from the Windows Store with bitcoin; AT&T accepts cryptocurrency for bill payments; and even retailers like Overstock.com accepts bitcoin on its online site.

So decentralized finance could be the next leap towards encouraging more digital transactions by providing incentives for consumers to store their finances digitally.

Cryptocurrency, bitcoin, and a decentralized financial system are three components that could flourish on web3. But all three exist in much the same way the dollar does: as a fungible token. In other words, you can trade one dollar of bitcoin for another identical dollar of bitcoin. They are interchangeable.  

But there’s another major element of web3 that many brands are seeing value in, and it’s likely something you’ve already heard something about: NFTs.

More Consumers Will Begin Purchasing NFTs 

NFTs — or non-fungible tokens — are part of the Ethereum blockchain, and have exploded in growth over the past few years. In fact, investment bank Jefferies forecasts that NFTs will reach more than $35 billion in market value in 2022, and over $80 billion by 2025.

Many of us have seen the wild west of NFTs first-hand. A few examples come to mind, including a Tweet that sold for $2 million, a meme that sold for $590,000, and a bundle of monkey drawings that sold for over $24 million.  

But what does ‘buying’ any of these digital assets actually mean? Essentially, it means you purchase the digital certificate which verifies you’re the sole owner of the original. Consider it synonymous with owning the original Mona Lisa, versus purchasing a copy.

NFTs aren’t limited to digital artwork, however. NFTs can be a digital asset from any industry, including gaming, fashion, and even music.

The potential ramifications of NFTs are enormous. As consumers shift towards NFTs, major corporations like Google or Meta could see a decline in how many consumers use their shopping tools.

As Seacat puts it, “If NFTs are any indication of how marketing, shopping, and selling online will change, we’re in for true disruption. For instance, Google is not used for NFT shopping. Instead, consumers rely on gated apps and decentralized marketplaces — neither of which show up in traditional search engine results.”

Web3 Will Lead to More Trust Between Buyers and Sellers, and Reduced Prices

As previously mentioned, web3 will offer more security and control over personal data — which will directly impact a consumer’s sense of trust when making purchasing decisions. 

Jeremy Merrell Williams, CEO at Vyudu Inc and web3 and Blockchain Analyst, says web3 will greatly impact how consumer shop in the future. 

“For instance,” Williams says, “with blockchain technology, shoppers can directly connect with producers and retailers without having to go through intermediaries. This could lead to more trust between buyers and sellers, as well as lower prices due to reduced fees.”

He adds, “Web3-based marketplaces could also make it easier for consumers to find the best deals on products and services.”

Ultimately, with web3, you don’t need to put your trust — and data — into the hands of a third-party corporation. Given that 76% of consumers feel they don’t know what companies are doing with their data, this could ultimately lead to a renewed sense of trust between consumers and brands.

Some Consumers Will be Wary of Web3 Because of The Volatility of Crypto

Before we dive into how brands can leverage web3, let’s take a look at some consumer concerns when it comes to web3.

One major concern? The purchasing process is too confusing.

Seacat says, “Web3 doesn’t currently support the average consumer’s purchasing process. You have to take big gambles and go into what’s called a ‘rabbit hole’ to get education and onboarding.”

For this reason alone, Seacat and a team of women started a nonprofit, Glypta.org, to make web3 safer for women, especially those who are just getting started in the space. Seacat adds, “We shouldn’t have to risk thousands of dollars in a rabbit hole to be a part of web3.”

Additionally, digital currencies like cryptocurrencies have proven to be volatile, which dissuades many from investing in the first place. And since you can’t use U.S. dollars on web3, those who don’t feel confident purchasing cryptocurrencies are excluded from purchasing on web3.

Finally, there are some steep fees on web3, particularly when buying NFTs.

As Holly Shannon, producer of Culture Factor, a high-ranking NFT and emerging technologies podcast, told me, “The fees incurred when buying an NFT on the blockchain are high. They are referred to as ‘gas fees’. The use of crypto and the gas fees relative to a purchase are a major drawback at this time.”

Shannon adds, “The exercise to get a wallet that is unique to this framework is also cumbersome and full of friction. There are hot, warm, and cold wallets. There are secret codes and layers of authentication.”

Ultimately, we’re a long ways away from making web3 feel mainstream for consumers. But it’s still useful to consider: When consumers do begin joining web3, how can brands meet them there?

How Brands Can Leverage Web3

Brands Can Leverage NFTs to Build Direct-to-Consumer Relationships

In recent years, major brands have begun seeing the value in NFTs. Nike, for instance, has begun selling branded sneakers on Roblox, a virtual world, for fans’ avatars to wear as they play sports virtually. Those virtual sneakers, which won’t exist in real life, are an example of NFTs.

Meanwhile, in the fashion industry, Dolce & Gabbana set a record of nearly $6 million for a nine-piece collection of digital NFTs, including a “Glass Suit” that the auction winner’s avatar can wear in a metaverse.

Shannon says: “I believe the ability to prove ownership makes for a great opportunity. Let’s say you purchase a Hermés bag. By using an NFT that establishes the purchase on a blockchain, it creates a permanent record of that sale.”

holly shannon quote on web3

Shannon adds, “Think of that NFT as a ticket or token that represents an asset — or your Hermés handbag. It authenticates your purchase as the original. Which, as an aside, makes a good case for reducing counterfeit sales. Additionally, it gives the brand an opportunity to have a direct relationship with the consumer.”

Ultimately, Shannon believes the power of NFTs for brands lies in this concept: Direct-to-consumer.

For instance, Shannon notes, Hermés could use NFTs to delight their customers with unlockable experiences.

Shannon posits, “Hermés could invite consumers to a fashion show, or send them a gift using NFTs. Alternatively, maybe a sports team uses NFTs to give fans a chance to meet their favorite players, or send SWAG directly to them. This merely scratches the surface of experiential marketing, but hopefully you can see the magic, too.”

Which leads me to my next, and hopefully last, Matrix-sounding buzzword: Metaverse.

Brands Can Engage with Consumers in the Metaverse

The metaverse is essentially a 3-D virtual reality (check out this post with a full run-down of the metaverse if you need a refresher), and it’s where many consumers will purchase and wear the digital items we’ve listed so far.

I’m willing to bet you’re thinking NFTs and the metaverse seem a little far-fetched for most consumers. (I’m not in the financial position to purchase a $2 million Tweet myself, anyway.)

But HubSpot’s Blog Research found it does, in fact, impact many consumers today. A few quick stats:

  • Over half of those who have ever bought virtual currency/items have done so within the past three months. (Including 75% who bought cryptocurrency; 62% who bought virtual items like Fortnite skin; and 60% who bought NFTs.)
  • 30% say more brands should have virtual stores in the metaverse.
  • 34% of cryptocurrency owners have used crypto to make a purchase (other than using it to buy other crypto).
  • 27% say they would be more likely to use a platform if they received virtual currency for using it.

As it turns out, consumers are interested in purchasing virtual products and services; and they’re interested in using virtual currencies to do so.

In many ways, this makes sense: Much of what we do nowadays exists online. We meet our partners online using dating apps; we make new friends via social communities like Facebook; and some of us even work entirely online, leveraging remote tools like Zoom to communicate with colleagues.

Web3 is an iteration that could, ideally, meet more consumers needs when it comes to data privacy, convenience, socialization, and entertainment.

And if your consumers are on web3, why wouldn’t you want to meet them there?

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The Complete Guide to Becoming an Authentic Thought Leader

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The Complete Guide to Becoming an Authentic Thought Leader

Introduce your processes: If you’ve streamlined a particular process, share it. It could be the solution someone else is looking for.

Jump on trends and news: If there’s a hot topic or emerging trend, offer your unique perspective.

Share industry insights: Attended a webinar or podcast that offered valuable insights. Summarize the key takeaways and how they can be applied.

Share your successes: Write about strategies that have worked exceptionally well for you. Your audience will appreciate the proven advice. For example, I shared the process I used to help a former client rank for a keyword with over 2.2 million monthly searches.

Question outdated strategies: If you see a strategy that’s losing steam, suggest alternatives based on your experience and data.

5. Establish communication channels (How)

Once you know who your audience is and what they want to hear, the next step is figuring out how to reach them. Here’s how:

Choose the right platforms: You don’t need to have a presence on every social media platform. Pick two platforms where your audience hangs out and create content for that platform. For example, I’m active on LinkedIn and X because my target audience (SEOs, B2B SaaS, and marketers) is active on these platforms.

Repurpose content: Don’t limit yourself to just one type of content. Consider repurposing your content on Quora, Reddit, or even in webinars and podcasts. This increases your reach and reinforces your message.

Follow Your audience: Go where your audience goes. If they’re active on X, that’s where you should be posting. If they frequent industry webinars, consider becoming a guest on these webinars.

Daily vs. In-depth content: Balance is key. Use social media for daily tips and insights, and reserve your blog for more comprehensive guides and articles.

Network with influencers: Your audience is likely following other experts in the field. Engaging with these influencers puts your content in front of a like-minded audience. I try to spend 30 minutes to an hour daily engaging with content on X and LinkedIn. This is the best way to build a relationship so you’re not a complete stranger when you DM privately.

6. Think of thought leadership as part of your content marketing efforts

As with other content efforts, thought leadership doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It thrives when woven into a cohesive content marketing strategy. By aligning individual authority with your brand, you amplify the credibility of both.

Think of it as top-of-the-funnel content to:

  • Build awareness about your brand

  • Highlight the problems you solve

  • Demonstrate expertise by platforming experts within the company who deliver solutions

Consider the user journey. An individual enters at the top through a social media post, podcast, or blog post. Intrigued, they want to learn more about you and either search your name on Google or social media. If they like what they see, they might visit your website, and if the information fits their needs, they move from passive readers to active prospects in your sales pipeline.

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How to Increase Survey Completion Rate With 5 Top Tips

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How to Increase Survey Completion Rate With 5 Top Tips

Collecting high-quality data is crucial to making strategic observations about your customers. Researchers have to consider the best ways to design their surveys and then how to increase survey completion, because it makes the data more reliable.

→ Free Download: 5 Customer Survey Templates [Access Now]

I’m going to explain how survey completion plays into the reliability of data. Then, we’ll get into how to calculate your survey completion rate versus the number of questions you ask. Finally, I’ll offer some tips to help you increase survey completion rates.

My goal is to make your data-driven decisions more accurate and effective. And just for fun, I’ll use cats in the examples because mine won’t stop walking across my keyboard.

Why Measure Survey Completion

Let’s set the scene: We’re inside a laboratory with a group of cat researchers. They’re wearing little white coats and goggles — and they desperately want to know what other cats think of various fish.

They’ve written up a 10-question survey and invited 100 cats from all socioeconomic rungs — rough and hungry alley cats all the way up to the ones that thrice daily enjoy their Fancy Feast from a crystal dish.

Now, survey completion rates are measured with two metrics: response rate and completion rate. Combining those metrics determines what percentage, out of all 100 cats, finished the entire survey. If all 100 give their full report on how delicious fish is, you’d achieve 100% survey completion and know that your information is as accurate as possible.

But the truth is, nobody achieves 100% survey completion, not even golden retrievers.

With this in mind, here’s how it plays out:

  • Let’s say 10 cats never show up for the survey because they were sleeping.
  • Of the 90 cats that started the survey, only 25 got through a few questions. Then, they wandered off to knock over drinks.
  • Thus, 90 cats gave some level of response, and 65 completed the survey (90 – 25 = 65).
  • Unfortunately, those 25 cats who only partially completed the survey had important opinions — they like salmon way more than any other fish.

The cat researchers achieved 72% survey completion (65 divided by 90), but their survey will not reflect the 25% of cats — a full quarter! — that vastly prefer salmon. (The other 65 cats had no statistically significant preference, by the way. They just wanted to eat whatever fish they saw.)

Now, the Kitty Committee reviews the research and decides, well, if they like any old fish they see, then offer the least expensive ones so they get the highest profit margin.

CatCorp, their competitors, ran the same survey; however, they offered all 100 participants their own glass of water to knock over — with a fish inside, even!

Only 10 of their 100 cats started, but did not finish the survey. And the same 10 lazy cats from the other survey didn’t show up to this one, either.

So, there were 90 respondents and 80 completed surveys. CatCorp achieved an 88% completion rate (80 divided by 90), which recorded that most cats don’t care, but some really want salmon. CatCorp made salmon available and enjoyed higher profits than the Kitty Committee.

So you see, the higher your survey completion rates, the more reliable your data is. From there, you can make solid, data-driven decisions that are more accurate and effective. That’s the goal.

We measure the completion rates to be able to say, “Here’s how sure we can feel that this information is accurate.”

And if there’s a Maine Coon tycoon looking to invest, will they be more likely to do business with a cat food company whose decision-making metrics are 72% accurate or 88%? I suppose it could depend on who’s serving salmon.

While math was not my strongest subject in school, I had the great opportunity to take several college-level research and statistics classes, and the software we used did the math for us. That’s why I used 100 cats — to keep the math easy so we could focus on the importance of building reliable data.

Now, we’re going to talk equations and use more realistic numbers. Here’s the formula:

Completion rate equals the # of completed surveys divided by the # of survey respondents.

So, we need to take the number of completed surveys and divide that by the number of people who responded to at least one of your survey questions. Even just one question answered qualifies them as a respondent (versus nonrespondent, i.e., the 10 lazy cats who never show up).

Now, you’re running an email survey for, let’s say, Patton Avenue Pet Company. We’ll guess that the email list has 5,000 unique addresses to contact. You send out your survey to all of them.

Your analytics data reports that 3,000 people responded to one or more of your survey questions. Then, 1,200 of those respondents actually completed the entire survey.

3,000/5000 = 0.6 = 60% — that’s your pool of survey respondents who answered at least one question. That sounds pretty good! But some of them didn’t finish the survey. You need to know the percentage of people who completed the entire survey. So here we go:

Completion rate equals the # of completed surveys divided by the # of survey respondents.

Completion rate = (1,200/3,000) = 0.40 = 40%

Voila, 40% of your respondents did the entire survey.

Response Rate vs. Completion Rate

Okay, so we know why the completion rate matters and how we find the right number. But did you also hear the term response rate? They are completely different figures based on separate equations, and I’ll show them side by side to highlight the differences.

  • Completion Rate = # of Completed Surveys divided by # of Respondents
  • Response Rate = # of Respondents divided by Total # of surveys sent out

Here are examples using the same numbers from above:

Completion Rate = (1200/3,000) = 0.40 = 40%

Response Rate = (3,000/5000) = 0.60 = 60%

So, they are different figures that describe different things:

  • Completion rate: The percentage of your respondents that completed the entire survey. As a result, it indicates how sure we are that the information we have is accurate.
  • Response rate: The percentage of people who responded in any way to our survey questions.

The follow-up question is: How can we make this number as high as possible in order to be closer to a truer and more complete data set from the population we surveyed?

There’s more to learn about response rates and how to bump them up as high as you can, but we’re going to keep trucking with completion rates!

What’s a good survey completion rate?

That is a heavily loaded question. People in our industry have to say, “It depends,” far more than anybody wants to hear it, but it depends. Sorry about that.

There are lots of factors at play, such as what kind of survey you’re doing, what industry you’re doing it in, if it’s an internal or external survey, the population or sample size, the confidence level you’d like to hit, the margin of error you’re willing to accept, etc.

But you can’t really get a high completion rate unless you increase response rates first.

So instead of focusing on what’s a good completion rate, I think it’s more important to understand what makes a good response rate. Aim high enough, and survey completions should follow.

I checked in with the Qualtrics community and found this discussion about survey response rates:

“Just wondering what are the average response rates we see for online B2B CX surveys? […]

Current response rates: 6%–8%… We are looking at boosting the response rates but would first like to understand what is the average.”

The best answer came from a government service provider that works with businesses. The poster notes that their service is free to use, so they get very high response rates.

“I would say around 30–40% response rates to transactional surveys,” they write. “Our annual pulse survey usually sits closer to 12%. I think the type of survey and how long it has been since you rendered services is a huge factor.”

Since this conversation, “Delighted” (the Qualtrics blog) reported some fresher data:

survey completion rate vs number of questions new data, qualtrics data

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The takeaway here is that response rates vary widely depending on the channel you use to reach respondents. On the upper end, the Qualtrics blog reports that customers had 85% response rates for employee email NPS surveys and 33% for email NPS surveys.

A good response rate, the blog writes, “ranges between 5% and 30%. An excellent response rate is 50% or higher.”

This echoes reports from Customer Thermometer, which marks a response rate of 50% or higher as excellent. Response rates between 5%-30% are much more typical, the report notes. High response rates are driven by a strong motivation to complete the survey or a personal relationship between the brand and the customer.

If your business does little person-to-person contact, you’re out of luck. Customer Thermometer says you should expect responses on the lower end of the scale. The same goes for surveys distributed from unknown senders, which typically yield the lowest level of responses.

According to SurveyMonkey, surveys where the sender has no prior relationship have response rates of 20% to 30% on the high end.

Whatever numbers you do get, keep making those efforts to bring response rates up. That way, you have a better chance of increasing your survey completion rate. How, you ask?

Tips to Increase Survey Completion

If you want to boost survey completions among your customers, try the following tips.

1. Keep your survey brief.

We shouldn’t cram lots of questions into one survey, even if it’s tempting. Sure, it’d be nice to have more data points, but random people will probably not hunker down for 100 questions when we catch them during their half-hour lunch break.

Keep it short. Pare it down in any way you can.

Survey completion rate versus number of questions is a correlative relationship — the more questions you ask, the fewer people will answer them all. If you have the budget to pay the respondents, it’s a different story — to a degree.

“If you’re paying for survey responses, you’re more likely to get completions of a decently-sized survey. You’ll just want to avoid survey lengths that might tire, confuse, or frustrate the user. You’ll want to aim for quality over quantity,” says Pamela Bump, Head of Content Growth at HubSpot.

2. Give your customers an incentive.

For instance, if they’re cats, you could give them a glass of water with a fish inside.

Offer incentives that make sense for your target audience. If they feel like they are being rewarded for giving their time, they will have more motivation to complete the survey.

This can even accomplish two things at once — if you offer promo codes, discounts on products, or free shipping, it encourages them to shop with you again.

3. Keep it smooth and easy.

Keep your survey easy to read. Simplifying your questions has at least two benefits: People will understand the question better and give you the information you need, and people won’t get confused or frustrated and just leave the survey.

4. Know your customers and how to meet them where they are.

Here’s an anecdote about understanding your customers and learning how best to meet them where they are.

Early on in her role, Pamela Bump, HubSpot’s Head of Content Growth, conducted a survey of HubSpot Blog readers to learn more about their expertise levels, interests, challenges, and opportunities. Once published, she shared the survey with the blog’s email subscribers and a top reader list she had developed, aiming to receive 150+ responses.

“When the 20-question survey was getting a low response rate, I realized that blog readers were on the blog to read — not to give feedback. I removed questions that wouldn’t serve actionable insights. When I reshared a shorter, 10-question survey, it passed 200 responses in one week,” Bump shares.

Tip 5. Gamify your survey.

Make it fun! Brands have started turning surveys into eye candy with entertaining interfaces so they’re enjoyable to interact with.

Your respondents could unlock micro incentives as they answer more questions. You can word your questions in a fun and exciting way so it feels more like a BuzzFeed quiz. Someone saw the opportunity to make surveys into entertainment, and your imagination — well, and your budget — is the limit!

Your Turn to Boost Survey Completion Rates

Now, it’s time to start surveying. Remember to keep your user at the heart of the experience. Value your respondents’ time, and they’re more likely to give you compelling information. Creating short, fun-to-take surveys can also boost your completion rates.

Editor’s note: This post was originally published in December 2010 and has been updated for comprehensiveness.

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Take back your ROI by owning your data

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Other brands can copy your style, tone and strategy — but they can’t copy your data.

Your data is your competitive advantage in an environment where enterprises are working to grab market share by designing can’t-miss, always-on customer experiences. Your marketing tech stack enables those experiences. 

Join ActionIQ and Snowplow to learn the value of composing your stack – decoupling the data collection and activation layers to drive more intelligent targeting.

Register and attend “Maximizing Marketing ROI With a Composable Stack: Separating Reality from Fallacy,” presented by Snowplow and ActionIQ.


Click here to view more MarTech webinars.


About the author

Cynthia RamsaranCynthia Ramsaran

Cynthia Ramsaran is director of custom content at Third Door Media, publishers of Search Engine Land and MarTech. A multi-channel storyteller with over two decades of editorial/content marketing experience, Cynthia’s expertise spans the marketing, technology, finance, manufacturing and gaming industries. She was a writer/producer for CNBC.com and produced thought leadership for KPMG. Cynthia hails from Queens, NY and earned her Bachelor’s and MBA from St. John’s University.

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