This post written by Elevation's Creative Strategy Director, Brett Rakestraw, was originally published on Brandingmag.
I’ve been thinking a lot recently about Web3. Maybe you’re in the same boat. Or, maybe Web3 just looks like a typo. If you’re in the latter camp, and I was until recently, let’s start with a quick overview.
The first generation of the web, now known as the “static” web, was composed of basic websites existing to pass along information to visitors. This was the predominant site format from the early 1990s to the early 2000s. Then, a combination of web technology advances and broadband internet adoption ushered in the Web 2.0 era. Web 2.0 brought us social media and user-generated content, along with ad retargeting and influencer marketing.
We’ve actually been living in the Web 2.0 world for about 15 years now. But, we are starting to see a new web emerging. There is a paradigm shift happening as our lives continue to become more digital and as many web users become fed up with the “surveillance economy” and with the big tech players holding all the cards. This shift in technology and power is pushing us towards Web3 (or Web 3.0). And, its foundation is based on blockchain technology and decentralization.
Well, when Facebook was being developed in a dorm room, were brand stakeholders worried about how they would get attention on the platform? Probably not. But...