• by Jennifer Barthe , May 5, 2025

Remember losing yourself in a TV series so completely that your overflowing inbox and that awkward meeting from earlier just... disappear? That kind of immersion isn't just enjoyable; it's increasingly valuable. According to Accenture, 61% of consumers are more likely to buy from brands offering immersive experiences.

As we enter the era of spatial computing with increasingly rich media opportunities, it's time to stop thinking in banner ads and start designing rabbit holes worth falling into.

Streaming platforms, naturally, play this game like pros. Making addictive TV shows means they're essentially professional world-builders. Netflix's Nextworld platform on Roblox now gives brands a glimpse of how we might evolve from interrupting linear storytelling to crafting universes worth getting lost in.

Three Secret Ingredients for Building Your Brand's Multiverse

A deeply motivated quest. Traditional advertising typically presents a simple problem-solution narrative: Have dandruff? Use this shampoo. But in an age where audiences can skip, block, or scroll past messages that feel transactional, brands need to transform everyday moments into meaningful chapters of a larger adventure.

Walmart's new Unlimited Shoppable Game shows how brands can employ this principle. In the game, young characters chase dreams like getting off an inner city rooftop to become world-famous artists or fashion designers, battling internal "Silencers" like self-doubt. Beyond the usual purchase journeys portrayed in ads, these quests offer personal transformations that audiences want to engage in.

Characters with strategic flaws. Many brand characters feel hollow -- AI chatbots and focus-grouped mascots that only exist to sell. But the most binge-worthy TV characters -- from “Breaking Bad”’s Walter White to “Succession”’s Roy family -- grip us precisely because their flaws create dramatic tension. We watch because we want to see how their personality will further or derail the pursuit of their deepest darkest desires.

Netflix's Nextworld brings this principle to interactive spaces. For example, Wednesday Addams's pathological aversion to anything cheerful or social constantly derails her mission to solve Nevermore Academy's mysteries -- and that's exactly what makes stepping into her combat boots so irresistible. Her disdain for normal human interaction isn't a flaw to fix; it's the hook that keeps us coming back.

Similarly, Duolingo’s owl transformed passive aggression into a $7.7 billion business. These strategically flawed characters feel exciting enough to follow, bond with -- and even mourn, as proven by Duo's recent viral "death" stunt.

Worlds that whisper "welcome to wonderland." The brand guidelines of tomorrow won't just specify logo dimensions; they'll define the rules and rituals of entire universes.

In the realm of consumer brands, Gucci has created a distinct and powerful storyworld style. Its esthetic DNA mutates purposefully across touchpoints while remaining instantly recognizable: Runway shows erupt into fever dreams with models cradling dragons or busts of their own heads, and neo-romantic, maximalist virtual spaces transform brand signatures into coveted artifacts.

Brands’ new challenge is to create signature universes that feel familiar enough to trust, yet hold endless capacity for wonder. The goal isn't visual uniformity – it's emotional resonance that deepens with each new chapter.

Your challenge in this future media world isn't to find better ways to interrupt. It's to become irresistible.