Toyota Marketing in Virtual Worlds

From creating a night club made of interlinked virtual cars to creating its own virtual city, Toyota takes marketing in virtual worlds very seriously.

In 2007, to help promote the Scion brand, Toyota created Club Scion – a club that exists only in the 3D virtual world of There. The Scion brand already had a strong marketing presence in other virtual worlds like Whyville, but Club Scion trumped them all in terms of grandness. The club consisted of virtual towers of Scion car models that were big enough to each function as nightclubs, special lighting effects, seats and hot tubs.

But Wait, There’s More

In another virtual world of MeetMe, Toyota created its own city which the company named as Toyota Metapolis. People can either visit Toyota Metapolis through MeetMe or by signing up at the Toyota Metapolis website.

Toyota Metapolis is a complete living area with car shops, residential areas, a museum, a garage for the user’s car collection and more. It is a place where users can simulate life – especially the kind of life where you drive around the city on a variety of Toyota cars.

How Your Business Can Benefit from Marketing in Virtual Worlds

• Marketing in virtual worlds gives you the opportunity to connect with tons of prospects that are definitely capable of spending money. In 2010, the money generated from virtual gaming hit the $2 billion mark and it’s expected to grow rapidly in the foreseeable future.

• Virtual worlds can give users the opportunity to experience your product(s) in a 3D world. It’s a great place to increase brand awareness because the market is still fresh. There are few businesses competing for attention.