The customer experience is essential, take your brand to another level through augmented retail experiences. As consumers spend more time online and buying behaviour changes, brands must adapt to staying relevant to the latest tech trends to improve online shopping experiences. Augmented reality (AR) provides consumers with an immersive 3D interactive product experience beyond a brick and mortar or ecommerce site using 2D images and videos to showcase and sell product.

Early adopters are delivering new 3D retail interactions via desktop and mobile through real time via configurators and AR visualiser. Augmented reality (AR) has come a long way through improved technology and is now becoming accessible for most retailers in the market. With ease of use and having the software accessible at any time on mobile devices with commonly used browsers apps provides an enhanced experience for the end user. The customer also can experiment and share their experience with the brand, all on the app.

A study from Deloitte has found the following: 

• Augmented reality (AR) content creation will grow with 300 million monthly content creators and over 10 million individuals weekly sharing content. In 2018 over 1 billion users generated AR content on mobile devices. 
  
• In previous years augmented reality (AR) technology produced cartoonish animations, the technology is advancing to become more 3D and realistic.
  
• The increase in user demand in augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) will increase revenue to over $162 billion in 2020. 
   
• More and more tech companies are seeing the benefits of augmented reality (AR) technology, with 8 out of 10 leading tech companies investing augmented reality or virtual reality. 
  

Why is it the right time to transition your brand’s shopping experience?

• As more and more brands adopt augmented reality the of cost has reduced significantly over the years to produce and implement this technology. 
  
• Greater ability to track the customer journey across multiple channels which enables brands to provide contextual information during a time when the consumer needs it. 
  
• Allows convinience during your customer’s purchase journey, providing them an experience with the product prior to them visiting the store, which enables the customer to make more informed decisions on purchase, hence increasing conversion. 
  
• Enhance brand engagement with consumers and differentiate your brand from competitors in the market. 
  
• Greater reliance on e-commerce and online products to promote and sell due unexpected situations such as lock downs due to pandemics which leads to closure of brick and mortar outlets. 

The retail landscape is continually changing with the introduction of technology, the future of shopping maybe that customers no longer rely on brick and mortar outlets to try on, test and see products instead want to rely on 3D, augmented reality (AR) technology to do this at the convenience of their own home prior to making purchases. This reality is not far out of reach with consumers increasing their usage of augmented reality (AR) technology since 2018 almost increasing 50% with social media driving this demand and trend. In 2021 this trend is likely to increase with 100 million expected consumers using augmented reality (AR) technology during their shopping journey. Retailers are taking up the opportunity to improve the shopping experience and meet consumers appetite with 46% implementing augmented reality or virtual reality into their strategy. 

The common uses of augmented reality in shopping including trying and testing the product on yourself, seeing how the product looks in your environment and interacting with the product there are key industry sectors who are implementing these benefits of augmented reality include:

• Home good and furniture 
• Accessories 
• Beauty 

Discover and build your knowledge on how augmented reality (AR) shopping can improve your brand’s growth. Ensure you are ahead of the game, provide solutions to exceed your customer’s shopping experience by empowering them with augmented reality (AR) shopping tool so they can discover, try and purchase all on their own in the comfort of their homes. If you are not exploring or considering including augmented reality (AR) in your brand’s strategy you may not be prepared for the changes which will take place in the retail landscape and will fall behind the game.