Augmented reality (AR) has become hot property in the past few months. The upward trend in interest began with the release of Pokemon Go, and accelerated with the release of Apple’s ARKit. Now Mindshare UK and Zappar have released a report into how brands need to adapt to the rise of AR.
Several retailers and brands have begun using AR features to help customers get a better view of their products. Companies such as IKEA have used AR to help customers view how their products might look situated in the home. The report indicates that this trend is set to continue.
The report shows that 33% of customers believe AR would help narrow down choices when shopping. 55% if consumers surveyed wanted to be able to point their phone at an object and receive information about it, rising to 75% among people who have tried AR.
Jeremy Pounder, Futures Director at Mindshare UK, explains: “To date, AR has largely been used to give people a small dose of in-the-moment fun – Snap’s dancing hotdog and Pokémon Go epitomise this. Our research shows that AR will evolve from one-off ‘surprise and delight’ moments to provide everyday utility and practical value, right across the consumer journey. This could include helping people visualise how products look in their home, locating products in-store through wayfinding applications, or getting more out of a product post-purchase through usage guidance.”
Max Dawes, Marketing & Partnerships Director at Zappar, adds: “At Zappar we’ve been living and breathing AR for the past seven years, so we jumped at the opportunity to partner with Mindshare UK to reflect on what’s been and what’s on the way. As the AR landscape evolves and matures there’s one certainty, that’s the need for software to build experiences for this new canvas. These are of fundamental importance for brands and content developers to have the opportunity to tell stories, create genuinely worthwhile experiences and provide practical and engaging solutions within the consumer user-journey. We’re in a time where whole sectors, such as product packaging, are being reimagined as always on media channels.”
The full report, titled Layered, can be found on the Mindshare website. VRFocus will continue to report on new developments and trends within the AR sector.
via Mint VR