Augmented Reality is one of the most exciting technologies on the market today. The technology shares similar exponential growth with Virtual Reality and has made incredible use of mobile software. The platform has seen innovation going back at least 5 years to Nintendo’s 3DS, which made special use of the software in video games.
AR uses a camera and a screen to present objects in 3D as if they were truly in your physical space. In other words, AR uses a screen as a viewfinder so that you can see things that only exist digitally. This technology in video games has been widely used and is generally considered a positive innovation in the industry. This is made readily apparent by the overwhelming success of Pokemon GO, a game that seemed to dominate the mobile landscape for years.
The impact of the technology may seem obvious, but, it’s the potentiality that has businesses intrigued
Software innovations that take full use of the platform have seen wonderful returns on their investments and this has caused growth in the sector. Like with VR, AR was initially written off as too outlandish of an idea but has since proven its worth in retail and tech—specifically, how it can impact business on a broad scale and bring innovation to an industry that is always in pursuit of the next landmark innovation.
Augmented Reality has already impacted business in a huge way and can further the trend by utilizing its key advantage over VR. That advantage, of course, is its lack of headset. Not requiring users to adorn a cumbersome piece of hardware opens up the potential for mass appeal as it reduces cost and headache, literally. In fact, its primary device of operation is the smartphone.
Luckily, there are over 2 billion smartphone users in the world, which leads to an incredible base audience. The numbers for Pokemon GO showcase how impactful the technology is as over 750 million people downloaded the app and over 65 million people play the game monthly. Those targets are incredible by every test and should inspire anyone to look into the platform with any interest in technology at all. That amount of exposure has lured marketing teams from businesses all over the world to the technology hoping to develop an application or advertisement that can utilize the consumer base.
Marketing and design teams will now share some of the responsibilities of development teams as they can now develop apps for Augmented Reality
Marketing teams and advertising heads will want to use the platform as well as they can to target the massive amount of smartphones users around the globe.
This leads to innovative software like Ikea’s design app and Minecraft’s AR mode shown at a Microsoft conference a few years back. These types of applications utilize the software while also providing a useful application. This creates a connection to the consumer that goes beyond what traditional marketing can accomplish. By creating a useful application, companies can advertise in way that seems more like a handshake than a slap in the face. These application typically yield positive turn around and leads to incredible rates of conversion. Every marketing team on earth will want to use the technology to create more impactful campaign that do more than just push a brand.
Indeed, Augmented Reality, and its related technologies, will completely revolutionize marketing
The current state of advertising is still too traditional for the new age of technological innovation. If a business wants to stay ahead of the curve then they will have to adapt to the new platforms as they emerge. Turning marketing teams into software development teams, and vice-versa, will be the only to stay up-to-date and relevant to the new generations. Marketing is no longer a one way street and Augmented Reality will make sure that it never is again. This technology will not only change consumers’ lives, but will revolutionize how businesses interact with their customers forever.
