TL;DR
- Consumers are looking for more creative and immersive experiences that add real value to their daily lives, according to a new report from Snap.
- Augmented reality, viewed via smartphones, could deliver that experience in particular to transform the way we shop.
- While 93% of brands agree that AR offers engaging shopping opportunities, Snap urges more of them to get involved in AR activations.
READ MORE: Augmentality Shift U.S. Report (Snap)
Are brands making the most out of Augmented Reality? Social media company Snap, Inc. shares evidence suggesting that plenty of potential customer engagement with the tech is being left on the table.
Snap commissioned market researcher Ipsos to learn what 25,000 people in 16 markets really think about AR. Broadly, the “Augmentality Shift” report found that consumer interest is high for a broad range of AR experiences, but there’s a big gap to brands interested in delivering them. That’s why Snap makes the case for an “Augmentality Shift.”
With around 60% of people in the US (including almost all those who use social media) expected to be frequent AR users by 2025, AR seems ripe for exploration — especially since retail is the current most favored use of it among consumers.
Per the report, most consumers (six out of 10) identify shopping as their main reason for using AR. Some 84% of consumers say they are interested in using AR to interact with a product before buying.
Interacting with products that have AR experiences leads to a 94% higher purchase conversion rate with 81% of shoppers feeling more confident in their purchases as a result of using AR.
“Thanks to its immersive ‘try-on’ technology, AR gives consumers confidence about how a product will look and fit, enabling them to make more accurate choices. This can result in less returns, helping brands to save money and reduce their environmental impact overall,” says Snap.
Brands and consumers already using AR see the potential. Seventy-eight percent of brands claim the number of returns a customer makes will be reduced by AR.
Nearly three-quarters of consumers express an interest in experiencing AR at events and conferences. Some 79% are interested in AR for entertainment at live events such as concerts and sports.
Eighty-four percent of consumers say they’re interested in AR to enhance learning — an area Snap calls “the greatest untapped opportunity for brands to become early adopters.”
Other ideas include giving consumers an AR map to access on their phone that projects a virtual map to help navigate a city or a large store.
“Imagine a consumer surfacing information about how to build or fix an item they purchased,” Snap proposes.
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“Our digital world is designed for discovery. Consumers are accustomed to sifting through messages, notifications and ads from multiple channels to engage with brands at speed. It’s no longer enough just to have great content.
“The challenge for brands is to break through the noise and establish their presence in this loud environment.”