The metaverse is considered to be the next step in the evolution of the internet. As we all know, many people have been able to earn enough money using web 2.0 to earn a sustainable income and build successful businesses. With web3, the opportunity to make money online is even greater.
The interactive nature and completely immersive experience that the metaverse offers its users opens up an entire world of possibilities to make money in the metaverse.
How to Make Money in the Metaverse
1. Invest in virtual real estate
One of the best ways to earn a living in the metaverse is to invest in digital real estate. Similar to the real world, virtual real estate will grow to be extremely desirable as more brands move their business ventures into the virtual world.
Nike and Adidas for example, have already begun expanding their businesses into the metaverse. Moreover, companies like Meta and Sony are investing hundreds of millions of dollars to help develop different sectors of the virtual economy as well.
Considering all the existing brands will need property in the metaverse, and not to mention all the future brands, investing in metaverse real estate should be at the forefront of your metaverse investment strategy.
2. Trade metaverse crypto
Many people have already experienced extreme success trading various cryptocurrencies. Now with the metaverse, you have even more opportunities to earn money from investing in digital currencies that are used in these different virtual worlds.
Decentraland is one example of a metaverse that currently uses its own currency called MANA. This currency is an Ethereum token that powers the virtual economy of Decentrland. MANA is used to buy plots of land and other goods that you can find in Decentraland.
MANA is only one example of virtual currency that may end up being worth more than its current value. If more people continue to join Decentraland’s economy, then it’s possible that the price of MANA could increase substantially, and you could earn a nice profit if you were to invest early.
3. Play-to-earn gaming
Play-to-earn (P2E) gaming is one of the most recognized ways of making money in the metaverse. P2E games are metaverse platforms that incorporate innovative economic models that enable users to earn a consistent income while playing. These games are often blockchain-powered, with users receiving prizes and incentives depending on their platform activity and in-game achievements.
One popular example of P2E gaming in the metaverse is Axie Infinity. Axie Infinity is a metaverse game in which users compete by battling their pets, known as Axies. The game is based on Pokemon and follows an open-ended digital pet world storyline in which players may complete solo and shared objectives to win more prizes.
The main difference between Pokemon and Axie is that you can actually earn money trading your Axies on online marketplaces such as Opensea because NFTs allow you to own your digital assets.
I like to compare P2E gaming to trading cards in the real world. Numerous sports cards and Pokemon cards have been known to trade for hundreds of thousands, and even millions of dollars. I believe that trading the actual in-game characters and assets may be even more valuable considering you can use them in-game, versus a card that can only be showcased.
4. Renting land in the metaverse
If you own virtual property, then you may be able to rent that property to someone else. Property in many parts of the metaverse is not cheap, so not everyone can afford to spend thousands of dollars to buy their own land.
However, if you have a desirable plot in the metaverse that’s perfect for hosting a party or some other type of social gathering, then you can rent your property to someone else who is looking to host an event.
5. Become a virtual land broker
I tend to think that many of the real-world jobs we know so well today, will all bridge into the metaverse to some degree, and a land broker is one of those jobs I see being necessary and potentially lucrative in the metaverse space.
A broker is a person or company who works as an intermediary for an investor and a securities exchange. Discount brokers make trades on a client’s behalf but do not often give investing advice. Where a full-service broker offers both execution services and customized investment advice and solutions.
In the metaverse especially, I believe there are many investors looking to invest in their own plot of land but don’t feel comfortable doing it alone, hence where a metaverse land broker can be of great help.
As a metaverse land broker, you can attain a wealth of knowledge in several metaverse worlds to better help potential investors find the best locations to invest in early, and even give investment advice if you possess that kind of knowledge. Regardless, I’m extremely optimistic that people want to invest in virtual land, but they don’t want to do it alone.
6. Be a metaverse event planner
The metaverse is and will be considered new territory for years to come, and with that comes a lot of people who want to host their own virtual events but have no clue how to organize it all. That’s where you can come in and offer your knowledge of the metaverse, as well as your organizational skills to be one of the most desired event planners in the metaverse.
A great event planner is priceless to those looking to host the best possible experience, especially in the metaverse. In the real world, event planners can range from $50 to over $150 per hour for their services.
Imagine bringing your real-world event planning skills into a virtual environment where very little is known or understood. Not only will people appreciate your service and knowledge of the space, but you will be able to charge a premium because people will value you even more in such unknown territory, where there are more questions than ever.
7. Open a virtual art gallery
Art has been around for centuries, and so has the demand to view and collect what’s considered to be valuable pieces of history. With that being said, more than $41 billion dollar worth of Ethereum-based NFTs were purchased in 2021, and you can bet that a majority of those NFTs purchased were considered to be pieces of art.
Beeple’s Everydays – The First 5000 Days NFT art piece brought in $69 million alone, and that was just the beginning of many more years of art creating and collecting to come. That’s why opening an art gallery in the metaverse may be a good idea.
Digital art is becoming more desirable, as is a place to showcase it all. The metaverse gives you the ability to display any piece of art you desire and provide a link to purchase the art directly from the market. As the gallery owner, you can charge a flat fee to display pieces of art or even take a percentage of the final sale price, similar to how real-world art auction houses operate today.
8. Create NFTs
There’s no denying that creating NFTs is a great way to make money, especially if you are working towards building a long-lasting and sustainable brand for you or your company. The metaverse allows NFT creators to profit even more.
Digital assets live in the metaverse. Clothing, furniture, and various collectibles all have their place in the metaverse and as a creator, you can profit from your creations. It’s up to you to decide what it is you want to create, but once you understand that people will soon desire the same things we want in the real world, in the metaverse, the possibilities are endless.
Ultimately, NFTs provide us with the ability to own digital items, and as the demand for ownership of digital goods increases, so will the demand for people to create them.
9. Become a virtual architect
Becoming a virtual architect is likely one of the most needed and lucrative jobs that will exist in the metaverse. Just like the real world, the metaverse needs people to help build all the different cities and worlds found within the metaverse, and this is no simple task.
Not only will it take years to build out all the cities of the metaverse, but as more metaverse worlds are created, there will be a higher demand for virtual architects and builders to help develop the entire metaverse. That’s why Mark Zuckerberg is investing so much time, money, and effort to build a virtual economy.
From housing to businesses, the metaverse is in need of knowledgeable and creative architects to build these structures. A metaverse architect project can range anywhere from $10,000 for a small project, to hundreds of thousands of dollars for a complete build-out.
The cool thing about building in the metaverse is that it takes less time to build these structures compared to real-life architectural projects, and fewer resources, meaning as the creator you can make more profit, and take on more clients.
In the real world, the average single-family home takes around four months to build, whereas in the metaverse it may only take a few weeks.
10. Use your developer skills to build the metaverse
The entire concept of the metaverse wouldn’t be possible without developers to design all the applications necessary to build these virtual worlds and everything in between. One search on Google for metaverse developer jobs will result in a ton of postings from several start-ups and big-name brands looking for developers to help shape the future of the metaverse.
If you have a passion for coding and developing platforms online, then you can earn a great living developing the metaverse as these companies are paying top dollar for developers to quickly assist in the development of the virtual economy. As well, I expect metaverse developers to only grow in demand as the space evolves and becomes better known by the masses.
11. Take up freelance writing
Believe it or not, many digital media brands are looking to hire writers who have a good understanding and curiosity to continue learning about the metaverse. With new technology always comes many questions and a need for people to explain the answers in an easy-to-understand way.
If you enjoy writing and are knowledgeable about the metaverse, then becoming a freelance writer or a full-time writer for a company may be a good fit for you.
As a freelance writer, you can work on your own schedule and make a good amount of money because there aren’t many writers who understand the metaverse enough to write an entire article on the topic.
Likewise, if you’re already a full-time writer but you’re interested in the metaverse, perhaps you can find a company that will pay you to continue learning and writing about the metaverse as a full-time gig.
12. Sell your products virtually
Offering real-world products through metaverse platforms is a complete game-changer in e-commerce. Imagine being able to walk through a virtual store using your human-like avatar to try on clothes and other accessories before purchasing. The metaverse makes this possible.
In fact, Dimension Studio, a London-based startup is doing exactly this. This studio uses 106 cameras to volumetrically scan people into a 360-degree digital human in a matter of seconds, and then drops them into various virtual worlds ranging from gaming to fashion.
Although it may be a few years before we see people shopping strictly in the metaverse, I don’t think it’s unreasonable to expect virtual shopping to happen sooner rather than later. People love shopping online as it is, however, the lack of ability to know exactly what you’re getting before you buy continues to be a roadblock in the online world.
The combination of virtual reality and the metaverse platform allows stores to bring their entire inventory into a virtual space where people can actually see the items, try them out, and make a better decision before adding them to their cart and checking out.
13. Be a virtual travel guide
The metaverse is such a new space that it can be difficult to decide where to begin. However, if you are someone who enjoys exploring the metaverse for fun, then you can offer your knowledge of the space to others who wish to explore but have no idea where to start.
A metaverse travel guide could be a fun and interactive way to make money in the metaverse and even help onboard people into the space. Not only can you take people around the cities and different worlds, but you can provide context to the history of the worlds considering you are knowledgeable in the spaces you’re exploring.
Think Airbnb experiences, but in the metaverse. You can show people around and include fun recreational activities such as yoga, racing cars, or literally anything the metaverse has to offer.
14. Build your own business
Building a business is a pretty broad example of earning an income in the metaverse, but that’s because the type of business you can build in the metaverse is only limited to your creativity.
Among all the options I’ve mentioned above, there is huge potential to build a completely new business from the ground up using the metaverse as your starting point.
You can create a virtual place of business where others can come to seek your product or services, without having to physically build anything. Let’s say you’re a metaverse realtor, you can build your office in the metaverse, access it from the comfort of your home, and build your entire business without leaving your office.
I’m not saying that this is what everyone wants to do, but my point is that your possibilities to build a business around your passion are more likely than ever before using the metaverse as your foundation.
15. Invest in metaverse stocks
Perhaps you aren’t keen on building your own business in the metaverse or even working in the realm, but you still want to cash in on all the money that is being invested in the metaverse.
One way you can do this is by investing in metaverse companies that are publicly traded on the stock market such as Meta, Nike, Sony, and Addidas just to name a few.
As expected with any kind of investing, this should be considered an extremely risky investment and approached with extreme caution and thoughtfulness. That’s not to say that investing in metaverse stocks can’t be a very lucrative option for those looking to get a piece of the metaverse pie though.
16. Offer metaverse classes
Do you have a special skill or a unique range of knowledge that people desire? If so, you should consider bringing your knowledge to the metaverse and offering virtual classes for a price. Thanks to virtual reality technology, you can show others how to do something hands-on, from anywhere in the world.
I like to use personal trainers as an example. You can teach an entire workout class in the metaverse in a virtual environment from home, where you and your clients feel most comfortable.
The ability to train others, no matter where they live in the world provides you with the opportunity to take on more clients, give better feedback, and provide an overall more interactive and immersive experience compared to a video session using a web 2.0 platform like YouTube for example. That goes for anything you may want to teach others.
17. Become a metaverse influencer
This one gets me excited because I know that web3 is a platform designed specifically for creators. As a metaverse influencer, you can create content and become a known member of society within the metaverse. Being an influencer in the metaverse is likely easier than through web 2.0, simply because web 2.0 is already flooded with influencers.
Using social media platforms such as TikTok and Instagram to build an audience is difficult because these platforms already have billions of users, whereas the metaverse contains a lot fewer users, and even fewer people trying to become influencers.
Of course, it may be more difficult to grow your audience if there are fewer people using the platform, but building a solid foundation while the metaverse is still small is the key to being successful in the future once the metaverse becomes more active.
Additionally, you can bridge your influencer audience from the metaverse to grow your web 2.0 followers as well, and vice versa. You just have to get creative.
18. Try out digital advertising
Where there are consumers, you can bet there’s going to be advertising, and the metaverse is a near-perfect platform for any digital marketing company looking to grow its business. From digital billboards to product placement in VR games and settings, the metaverse will be the ultimate advertising jungle.
The immersive experience offered by the metaverse will also provide a native ad experience to users of the metaverse, offering completely interactive products that can be purchased as easily, if not easier than using your Amazon account.
I envision digital advertising in the metaverse to be similar to all the forms of advertising seen in today’s real-world, except, even better. Not only will consumers be able to see all the ads from the comfort of their homes, but ad agencies can track their ad engagement similarly to modern-day websites, while still offering a completely immersive experience. Ultimately, it’s the best of both worlds.
19. Become a customer service representative
Considering the number of users that the metaverse will soon support, there will have to be people who can provide customer service to people in need as well as unsatisfied customers. Imagine a busy store in the metaverse, just because it’s a virtual experience doesn’t mean there’s not a need for customer support.
Although individual brands and businesses will likely hire specifically for these positions, you could potentially create your own customer service crew who offers their services and expertise in the metaverse to brands and businesses looking for customer support.
I’m not exactly sure how customer service will look in the metaverse, but what I do know is that it’s going to be needed.
20. Be a troubleshooter
When it comes to technology, you’re always going to need people who are able to troubleshoot any technical difficulties. If you’re someone who understands the back end of the metaverse then offering your skills as a freelance troubleshooter may be a unique option that allows you the freedom to work when you want and make as much money as you need.
Or, maybe you want to be a full-time troubleshooter for a specific company so they can use your skills whenever needed. Either way, troubleshooting will be absolutely essential in the metaverse world and a must-have for every business.
Final thoughts
Ultimately, there will be a million ways to make money in the metaverse. But before we get to that point, we need people who can help build the foundation of the metaverse and provide support for what currently exists, and that’s where I believe a lot of the opportunities lie right now.
As the metaverse space continues to grow and advance with time, so will the number of users and the need for different types of jobs. Moreover, there are some jobs that likely don’t exist today, but will be created in the near future.
Whether you’re an entrepreneur looking to build something new and innovative, or even if you’re looking to work remotely from home for someone else, I believe the metaverse holds an extreme amount of opportunities for anyone looking to earn a living.
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