No One Will Tell You the Truth About Augmented Reality

Show me a marketer that wasn’t marketed Virtual Reality (VR) and Augmented Reality (AR) as the next best thing since bread came sliced. Seeing new technologies before they are mainstream is one of the many reasons I love my job.

AR was one of those technologies 5 years ago, but we had little knowledge of what to do with it.

The world has changed, thanks to Snap or Instagram. But do marketers see AR as more than just a gimmick? What do you think?

I was a non-believer in the power of AR or VR until one of our brands built a campaign that answered a current consumer insight: Dogs don’t enjoy selfies as much as humans are obsessed with front-facing camera techniques. How can you solve this with technology?

Pedigree did it nicely, creating a leave-behind item that enables technology to do its magic better.

But we are not alone, this month Gucci showed us that AR can be used on other body parts than just your face. All this to sell 500$ sneakers. Will it work?

Jewelry is another category where AR can do magic. In our social distancing times, AR helps by replacing the awkward masked in-store interactions or the never-ending trials with an experience you can have at home. I assume the technology works even better on fingers compared to faces.

And last but not least, IKEA shows us how to model our homes, using AR. Their branded app allows anyone to browse unlimited color options and placements for that sofa or chair you always wanted next to your plant.

All those ideas have 3 big benefits:

• minimize the path to purchase,
• solve a real problem (trial).
• create a “coolness” factor for your brand
  

What’s not to like?