Augmented Reality – Gold Mine or Black Hole?

Augmented reality (AR) is creating a huge buzz and has been touted by some industry experts as the next wave of marketing innovation. High-profile companies such as Carlsberg, Time Out, Royal Mail and Coca-Cola are racing to integrate the technology into their existing services and according to recent figures from Juniper research, global revenues for augmented reality apps and services are expected to approach $1.5bn by 2015.

With such a vast potential market, brands could be forgiven for thinking that they simply have to develop compelling AR products and then sit back and wait for the inevitable windfall. However, they need to realise that despite the hype there is a lack of appreciation and understanding about AR in the consumer community.

Developers and brand marketers alike remain unconvinced of its feasibility as a customer engagement tool, with some even writing the technology off as nothing more than a gimmick.

When the novelty fades, AR will be judged on what value it offers brands and how successful it is in terms of customer engagement. One of its main advantages is that it gives consumers the opportunity to virtually experience products or services in the comfort of their own home.

This is particularly useful for situations like buying a television which involves a longer decision making process due to the cost of the item and the huge range of choices available. That’s why we recently developed and launched Samsung’s first augmented reality campaign, ‘Take the Samsung LED TV home’.

It gave consumers the opportunity to ‘see’ how a new flat screen LED TV would look in their homes and make a purchasing decision while creating a new way for consumers to engage with the brand.

AR can also be used to engage with consumers through integration with social media as social networking has proven to be a key driver for uptake of products and brand engagement. Brands should look for opportunities to embed AR into social media sites such as Facebook and Twitter. Facial recognition technology is an effective way to do this as it is easily embedded into these social platforms.

A great example of doing this successfully is the Share Happy ice cream vending machine, developed for Unilever by SapientNitro, which combines augmented reality, facial recognition and social media. An entertaining “attractor screen” uses gesture recognition to playfully immerse passersby into the world of augmented reality.

Once drawn closer to the machine, the person’s face is overlayed with big moustaches, funny hats and bow ties which prompt the customer to smile. The ‘smile-o-meter’ measures the size of their smile using facial recognition technology, a photo is taken and, with permission, uploaded onto Facebook.

The consumer can then pick out their free ice cream by using the touch-screen interface on the vending machine. This creative use of AR enables Unilever to offer a revolutionary new way for consumers to buy ice cream, and a revolutionary brand experience.

AR is still in its infancy and most brands are a long way off incorporating it into their everyday toolkit. The technology still has a way to go before it can follow through on its “wow factor” promise and become the success story that some experts have predicted.

However, if AR is used correctly, the results can be astounding, allowing consumers to feel as though you have brought a little piece of your imaginary world into their reality.

Marketers and technology innovators have already created very interesting examples of augmented reality, however I believe the true opportunity lies in the not too distant future as the technology matures and proves AR to be much more than just a buzz word.