Making strides: Kickers reworks traditional back to school campaign in the metaverse

Kickers UK is launching its latest marketing campaign via gaming platform Roblox. The footwear brand has announced a reworking of its traditional ‘back to school’ marketing efforts, with a campaign that aims to nurture children’s self-expression and creativity using the Roblox metaverse.

Kickers partnered with Dubit, a digital development company that creates metaverse games, experiences, and events for brands, together launching a month-long activation. The campaign features playful branding and cosmetics to popular games on Roblox, which alongside an immersive experience includes a shoe simulator.

FashionUnited spoke with Jaye Taylor, Senior Brand Manager, Kickers UK, to dive deeper into the brand's latest digital direction.

Do you think the metaverse will bring the same return on engagement as traditional media (i.e. social or printed)?

Yes, if not more in the long term. Traditional media like print has been notoriously hard to pin down ROI for, but by creating an experience that players can engage with, rather than just printing an image with our logo on it, we believe we can increase consumer engagement and brand equity.

As the metaverse is an expansion of digital media, the more platforms progress and brands get involved the more developed insights and data will become.

The metaverse remains vague for many audiences and shoppers. How do you see the digital realm as an extension of your marketing and growth efforts without alienating or losing more traditional customers?

We are product people, so nothing will ever beat seeing, feeling and trying on the product in real life. Our view on marketing in the metaverse is that it is not about choosing one over the other, technology is constantly evolving and it’s ok if you like to see products in a shop window and go and browse. Likewise, if you are digitally curious and like to follow, engage, and learn about brands and products online, we want to serve you in a way that’s more engaging and experiential; digitally.

A great comparison is the experiential in-real-life activations brands, especially luxury ones, create. The best experiences feel personal, they stimulate your senses, the service is fantastic, and it makes you want to connect and learn more about the brand or product. We think the metaverse has this opportunity digitally, to remove barriers and to engage with consumers in a more creative way.

Are you forecasting increased revenue for digital products and activations for 2023?

We’re exploring what the likes of UGC (user generated content) could mean and look like for us moving forward, however it is essential we feel confident in payment methods and consumer security before we introduce any revenue strategies.