What Is Web 3.0?
The Internet is a complicated place. The way Internet users relate to various websites and social media platforms is one of the primary drivers behind social selling – but it hasn’t always been that way, and it will not remain the way it is now. The Internet is a rapidly evolving network, and if you want to understand where it’s going, you should pay attention to where it’s been.
The Evolution of the Internet
When we look at the Internet and how it’s changed over the years, there are lots of ways that different eras can be defined. The Web 1.0-2.0-3.0 framework is a convenient way to look at how Internet use has changed over the years. This framework considers the ways that content is delivered to users, and what types of content are most prevalent and most important.
Web 1.0
Web 1.0 was how the Internet largely looked and worked between 1991 and 2004. Back then, web pages were largely static. Users jumped from page to page, taking in information, but not really having social shared experiences– unless they were visiting web forums designed for that exact purpose. Comment sections were virtually nonexistent, and social plugins were yet to be invented. The web pages were busy, with lots of links and information-packed onto one page, and ads were much different than they are today.
Web 1.0 was an informational product. While people could place different types of ads, and e-commerce certainly existed, companies’ ability to target people with ads was highly limited. Typically, advertisement was done by simply linking to another page, and many large websites didn’t have ads at all. This all changed when the Google Ads service launched in 2004.
Web 2.0
Web 2.0 is broadly defined as anything that came after Google Ads. It’s the Internet that embraces SEO and follows swiftly changing marketing trends. It’s the Internet that we’re most used to today. Web 2.0 led to greater collaboration and access to the Internet at large. It emphasizes user-generated content, made it easier to communicate with others, and led to the creation of sites like YouTube and image-sharing sites like Flickr and Imgur.
At the same time, Web 2.0 relied on people integrating web use into their daily lives not just for their own sake, but for the sake of advertising and sales. One of the biggest features of Web 2.0 is the tracking and storing of private information by various companies in order to sell more products to more consumers.
Social media made it much easier for demographic data to be collected and sold. Web 2.0 also relies heavily on algorithms to serve highly specific content based on demographic information, which means that no two people share the same web experience. Newsfeeds, following pages, and even shopping sites are personalized to every user’s interests. As a result, everyone sees different content, even if they follow the same pages and have the same search keywords.
This experience has been unsatisfactory for many people, who realize quickly that their information has become a product. And while more people are logging on every day, the Internet is being controlled by fewer people as large companies acquire an ever-growing share of Internet traffic– like Facebook’s transformation into the Metaverse. This centralization has seen a lot of pushback, which has led to the early days of Web 3.0
Web 3.0
Web 3.0 is the newest iteration of Internet technology and relies heavily on blockchain technology. Perhaps most notably for marketers, in Web 3.0, you can view pages, and products, and make purchases without these things becoming incorporated into your newsfeeds. While many web companies are still trying to figure out how they’ll respond to Web 3.0, marketing 3.0 has already begun to take hold.
One of the biggest differences between Web 3.0 and its predecessors is that blockchain transactions are public, leading to both greater transparency overall and greater privacy for Internet users. Because each user is only represented by numbers, their transactions are not tied to their identities, keeping their consumption and their content separate. These users don’t like being treated like products, and will often choose companies that satisfy deeper needs like creativity and community.
The transparency and information that blockchain technology can provide means that when you’re generating leads or encouraging conversion, you can demonstrate trustworthiness and openness to a customer base that rewards this kind of corporate behavior.
If you want to grow your business in Web 3.0, talk to our team and schedule a call today. Whether you need help with lead generation, website design, and development, automation, or any other aspect of digital marketing, NexLaunch has the skills and solutions you need.
