Incorporating augmented reality (AR) into brand strategy isn’t for the faint-hearted. Dave Mather of Zappar breaks down key considerations for AR-curious marketers.
Augmented reality (AR) is scientifically proven to be more visually engaging and memorable, and to elicit an emotional response in users – outcomes that every marketer cares about. But for many, it still feels like a nascent technology that’s hard to wield and compare against more traditional channels.
For marketers looking to integrate AR into their marketing, here are a few pointers to help you deliver more impactful campaigns, and showcase its value back to your business and clients.
Start with a clearly defined brief
Before using AR in your marketing, start with a clearly defined brief. If you don’t have a well-defined reason for using AR to achieve your strategic objectives, then don’t use it – use email, paid social, video or another channel you’re more familiar with instead.
Make sure you can clearly communicate your brief and associated objectives to the wider business, so you can bring them on the journey with you.
Think about where your audience is
As part of your brief, make sure that your target audience will be receptive to the technology, that they know how to use it, and that they have access to WiFi or 4G/5G.
Create surveys, carry out user testing, and make sure AR will add value to your audience beyond what you’re already doing in your marketing. Think about where most of your audience is; this will help to inform where you’ll deliver your AR solution.
For instance, social AR (delivered through Instagram, Snap, TikTok, etc) makes sense if you’ve already got a big following there; WebAR (web-based augmented reality) might work if you want more freedom and flexibility to deliver AR across multiple channels. Let your audience inform your delivery method.
Choose your channel(s) wisely
If you have a clearly defined objective and audience match, AR can be deployed across your full marketing mix from PPC to brand storytelling, product launches, and more. Think about AR as the glue that strengthens and binds your disparate campaign channels together, uniting their differences and serving a more holistic and immersive customer experience.
AR should enhance and complement your existing marketing to drive the strategic objectives that you’ve set out. However, if this is your first time implementing …….