It is estimated that by 2028, the global AR market is expected to have grown from $6.12 billion in 2021 to $97.76 billion.
The epidemic of Covid-19 has likely accelerated investment in recent months, owing to a higher demand for businesses to enhance client interactions through digital platforms.
In terms of marketing, augmented reality enables businesses to provide consumers with new and engaging digital experiences, as well as to engage them creatively.
What Is Augmented Reality?
According to Investopedia, Augmented reality (AR) is an enhanced version of the real physical world that is achieved through the use of digital visual elements, sound, or other sensory stimuli delivered via technology. It is a growing trend among companies involved in mobile computing and business applications in particular.
One of the key goals of enhanced reality is to highlight certain elements of physical life, increase knowledge of those characteristics, and generate smart and available insight that can be used for practical uses, amidst the rise of data collecting and analysis. Big data may be used to assist businesses to make better decisions and obtain insight into consumer purchasing habits, among other things.
Augmented Reality: A Basic Guide
Augmented reality is evolving and becoming more widely used in a variety of settings. Advertisers and technology companies have had to fight the notion that augmented reality is nothing more than a promotional tool since its inception. Customers, on the other hand, appear to be reaping actual benefits from this feature and are starting to demand it.
Some early investors in the retail industry, for example, have created technology to improve the customer shopping experience. Stores may let customers see how different brands would look in various contexts by introducing augmented reality into catalog apps. In the case of furniture, customers just point the camera at the desired room, and the item appears in the front.
Aside from that, the benefits of virtual reality could expand to the healthcare industry, where it could play a far larger role. One option is to employ apps that allow users to examine highly detailed, 3D images of various body systems by hovering their mobile phone over the target image. For example, medical practitioners could use augmented reality as a great learning aid throughout their education.
Wearable technologies, according to some experts, might be a game-changer for augmented reality. Smart eyeglasses, for example, may enable a fuller link between the actual and virtual domains if it improves enough to become ubiquitous, whereas tablets and smartphones only show a small fraction of the user’s landscape.
Here’s a look at what augmented reality has in store – a selection of
Here is our Recommended list of Examples of AR experiences
Festive Campaign using Vossle
‘Bring Shree Ganesha to your Home’ campaign made on Vossle Platform to promote Eco-friendly celebration of the festival Ganesh Chaturthi.
Walmart is experimenting with augmented reality for inventory management
Walmart stated in October 2020 that four of its physical retail sites would be converted into “test stores” to experiment with new technology.
Inventory control is an essential aspect of these establishments, with one test using an app meant to reduce the time it takes to convey things from the backroom to the sales floor. Instead of scanning each item, the program employs augmented reality to allow staff to hold up a portable device.
City Painter (Snap)
Snap has recently debuted ‘City Painter’ in London’s Carnaby Street in October 2020. Users can digitally spray paint murals over the businesses on the street with the AR tool. One of the most distinctive features of ‘City Painter’ is that this is a shared virtual experience, which means that any changes made by one person are visible in real-time to others who are already using it
‘See My Fit’ by ASOS
Asos is no stranger to technological innovations, having integrated visual search into its very useful mobile app in the past. By the end of the year, Asos had completely embraced augmented reality, unveiling an experimental tool called Virtual Catwalk to assist smartphone users to visualise 100 Asos Design goods.
Video game by Pull & Bear
Inditex, the operator of Pull & Bear, has released ‘Pacific Game,’ an augmented reality game developed in partnership with Facebook’s ‘Creative Shop.’ The game takes players on a virtual voyage from California to Tokyo, throughout which they must move their heads to avoid hazards and earn points.
IKEA Studio app developed by IKEA
Ikea’s design lab, Space10, has redesigned Ikea’s augmented reality (AR) offerings to make it more functional and immersive.
Users could previously install virtual objects in a space using the Ikea Place app. The all-new Ikea Studio app uses LiDAR cameras on iPhone to record and re-design whole 3D room designs, for everything from window and doorways to color schemes and rugs.
Hair colouring at Amazon Salon
Amazon Salon, the company’s first brick-and-mortar hair salon, was created in part to test new retail technologies. One instance is Amazon’s “Point and Learn” feature, which allows users to “just point at the product they’re interested in on a display shelf and important data, like brand films and educational material, would appear.”
Virtual sneakers by Gucci
One of the key reasons that retailers have invested in augmented reality technology is to assist customers in making better decision-making purchase decisions. Gucci was one of the first premium firms to do so, incorporating an augmented reality function into its smartphone that allows users to virtually try on sneakers. This is a great example of AR for retail; it gives customers a visual picture of how a product will look before they buy it.
‘View in Room’ from Wayfair
Ikea isn’t the only retailer investing extensively in virtual reality. Wayfair announced the launching of an improved version of its “View in Room” app in September 2020, which uses LiDAR technologies to combine “increased functionality and heightened delight when shopping for home furnishings.”
Machine A represents a virtual concept store
Machine-A is a conceptual store in London that focuses on displaying current fashion innovation. With next year’s London Fashion Week either canceled or limited to digital exhibitions, Machine-A devised a plan to allow as many customers as possible to see rising designers’ works.
Virtual Artist – Sephora
Sephora’s ‘Virtual Artist’ tool has already been available through the company’s main application since 2016, and it’s still one of the best instances of augmented reality in the beauty industry. Of course, Sephora has been promoting the use of the app as a substitute for in-store buying in recent years.
Kohl’s has a Snapchat-enabled virtual closet
Due to the closure of retail establishments during the pandemic, many firms turned to augmented reality (AR) to assist customers to see products or “try before they buy.”
Kohl’s is a prime example, partnering with Snapchat in spring 2020 to refresh its ‘virtual closet’ with lockdown-appropriate attire like athleisurewear.
L’Oreal App Modiface on Amazon
Modiface, a function of L’Oréal’s app that allows users to digitally Try-On make-up, is one of the most well-known applications of AR in retail. Modiface, a smartphone app from L’Oréal, now allows Amazon customers to digitally overlay make-up styles onto live photographs and videos.
Adidas has released a new pair of virtual sneakers
Adidas launched the capability to its iOS app in November 2019, allowing shoppers to make purchases without ever having to enter a shop – something that was likely to become inevitable for all consumers. The AR software, which was developed in collaboration with machine vision platform Vyking, tracks users’ foot movements and allows them to see how sneakers appear on their feet in real-time, with or without shoes.
our 6 top trends and what to expect from the world of AR in the coming year
- Smart Glasses
Smart glasses were on the market for more than a decade, but they have yet to gain widespread public acceptance. With a slew of new products set to hit the market this year, 2021 represents a promising year for AR smart glasses to become more widely available.
- Avatars
The British Academy Film Awards were promoted as having a world-first for augmented reality at this year’s event. The 2021 BAFTAs featured an avatar music composition by Liam Payne in real-time augmented reality technology, which took advantage of 5G capabilities, thanks to their sponsors EE.
- 5G is a popular AR trend
It’s a trend you’ve probably heard about, as 5G has become a popular issue in recent years as it’s been steadily introduced across the United Kingdom. 5G coverage is now available in more than 100 cities across the country, with the bulk of the population expected to have access by 2027. The speed of the internet available through 5G technology will help in accelerating Augmented Reality adoption.
- Augmented Reality in Education
As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to damage education and the dependency on distant learning grows, we can expect to see an increase in AR technologies being optimized to improve students’ educational experiences in 2021.
- Virtual Theme Park
The opening of Super Nintendo World at Theme Parks Japan in spring 2021 will include a Mario Kart immersive virtual reality attraction. The opening was originally scheduled for Summer 2020 but was delayed to February this year because of the pandemic scenario in Osaka, Japan.
- LiDAR & Object Capture on iOS
LiDAR technology isn’t new; it has been around for decades and has a variety of applications in several sectors. However, Apple has lately used LiDAR technology with Object Capture to boost the AR capabilities on a number of its Apple devices, with speculation that the technology might be further improved in 2021 to accelerate its adoption.
Bottom Line
That concludes our recommended list of the Top Augmented Reality (AR) Experiences. The increase in usage of technology like 5G & LiDAR should witness a rise in AR capabilities in 2022.
Consumers are getting more access to augmented reality technology. There were an estimated 598 million AR active devices at the end of 2020, and this number is expected to rise.
AR will become more widespread as more customers accept it, and it will no longer be considered a fringe technology. AR saw a substantial period of growth in 2020, with growth expected to continue in 2021.
If you want to create awesome AR Experiences for your Website or Your Next Marketing campaign without the hassle of getting it coded from a developer, sign up for Vossle today.