Virtual and Augmented Reality Marketing trends

Today’s tech media giants like Microsoft, Samsung, HTC, Google (by backing Magic Leap), Facebook (with Oculus), and others are creating their own custom VR and AR headsets and they are all competing for their piece of the immersive technology market.

Once the stuff of futuristic sci-fi and marketing gimmicks, augmented reality and virtual reality are becoming more and more of a reality (no pun intended). In the near future VR and AR technologies will dominate the market, becoming the new norm. These new technologies are sure to revolutionize the way people advertise and view content. Augmented reality is also trending among marketing campaigns, showing a promising future.

Refined and Evolved AR and VR Marketing Solutions

We are now leaving the early stages of exploring Augmented and Virtual Reality in a sales and marketing setting. At first the focus leaned toward QR codes that would launch videos or images. These gimmicks looked to be straight out of a 70’s sci-fi film. At the time this article is being written in 2015, AR and VR are quickly becoming more refined and captivating.

There are all sorts of new marketing applications emerging. In 2014 milestones were made with VR with hits like Land Rover’s virtual showroom and the Daqri Smart Helmet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BmqmgsAYJiI

Going into 2016, we can expect to see many business and marketing teams leverage AR and VR in their marketing strategies. VR and AR provide ideal solutions to the logistics of collecting data, analyzing data, reducing inventory and imprinting a deep experience on viewers.

As AR and VR become more and more ubiquitous, people will soon expect nothing less. Proprietors will look to benefit from the immersive experience provided by these rich technologies by integrating them into their marketing strategies.

Many retailers are opting to create experientially focused displays that their customers can interact with. Having an interactive environment can really help the customer connect. Things like motion controlled displays and fully interactive 3D environments will become commonplace. As 3D scanning and printing devices continue to evolve, we can also expect to notice more of these technologies used to deliver a rich in store experience.

You don’t need a headset for Augmented Reality. Many marketers have launched smartphone based AR solutions. Check out some of the commercial applications currently possible with AR today.

Also check out the augmented reality possibilities available on the Blippar platform today.

As VR gets cheaper and more developers embrace it, there will be a shift in the way content is delivered. Brands will get on board and turn their attention away from marketing with less immersive mediums such as text and image alone. We are at the dawn of a new advertising era. With Virtual Reality you can definitely expect to see ads in the VR environments you’re immersed in dynamically personalized to match your profile and preferences.

For now gamers are still the ones shaping the development of VR and AR technology. As the technology becomes more widely available, there will be more focus on consumer oriented content. The power in providing a much richer experience than video, audio, images or all those combined will be realized to it’s potential with this personalised, interactive and immersive medium.

Credit:

Wikitude augmented reality browser in London by Francis Storr under CC license 2.0