It is the next mass media marketplace
Hopefully, I don’t remember the time when there was no TV, radio and any real technology that we are using on a day to day basis.
However I do remember the beginning of the internet. For me it was September 2000 when I got my first PC. I was only 6 years old but that stuff was quite interesting. Obviously in comparison to the processing power we have right now, that is hilarious but still very novel and fun.
It took just a few years to get from miserable, slow and limited internet access into extraordinary consumption of information anywhere we want, anytime we want, as much as we want.
Speaking about consumption, it got a little addictive over the last few years. And I’m not only talking about the useless clothe that we all tend to buy, but also a consistent flow of notifications, thoughtless scrolling of hundreds of posts, numerous likes and dozens of comments, and all of the stuff that people are doing just to feel more social.
And guess what, since we all love to have fun and being entertained, augmented reality is going to be the next move of reaching a large audience.
I’m not sure about VR (virtual reality), I still think the technology for average consumer is not ready yet, but AR is here. It doesn’t require a ton of processing power to scan a card with your camera to observe a completely different universe.
It is awesome to be able to see a 3-D model, as if it is alive, standing near you, moving and making some sounds.
Marketers should definitely play with it, starting right now because it can give a significant advantage over the others. There’s no competition out there, it is rare, and that’s why I’m going all in on that pretty soon.
Mark Zukerberg made his bet
Usually I don’t watch Facebook Developer Conferences but the last one (F8) was pretty cool.
If you haven’t watched it, basically there was announced a lot of AR integration into Facebook itself. I’m not an active user of Facebook so I may not notice them but the majority of people are, so I bet you may find some additional functionality, like adding info or objects on top of the real world, applying new filters that enhance the existing reality and so forth.
It seems like some basic concepts but actually there were used a lot of machine learning, deep research of user behavior and strategic acquisitions of certain companies/technologies (like Oculus for VR/AR, MSQRD for filters).
Besides, are you already on Facebook Spaces? This platform combines both VR and AR to create an immersive social experience. It blew my mind when I figured that you can actually take a photo with a virtual selfie stick while somebody calls you. Mind-boggling.
The biggest drawback I see in here is the cost of Oculus Rift which is the only headset you can use with Facebook Spaces right now.
The next iPhone will have AR camera
On top of social media, AR is going to be embedded into iPhone 8. They officially announced that they will have a camera with AR capabilities which is extremely interesting for me.
I have never used iPhone, and I doubt I will but hey, I may play with it for some time.
I do believe that everything happens for a reason, and the fact that 2 biggest players in IT are signaling positive in AR space, I will listen.
The technology is almost there
Despite of the fact that the first prototypes of AR were a few years ago, the world was not ready yet. The smartphones were not that powerful, if they existed at all, machine learning was not popular as it becomes right now, and in general the space stayed at a dead zone.
That means that technologies have also their timing. They don’t appear randomly and become mainstream. They have some cycles which usually take several years. The good sign is that the more advanced technology we build, the faster the next generation technology can be built from that.
It has unlimited potential in areas you might not even thought of
If virtual reality have less applications that can be used daily by an average user, augmented reality has limitless option.
Education will be probably one of the biggest spaces that will be affected. Just think about the possibility to explore the structure of cosmos in 3D in details. Kids can finally have fun during the studying process, instead of being bored to death because of static picture and lots of text.
Marketing will be also affected. In fact, I believe AR will bring a ton of sales to the businesses that are going to use new tech like this today. Customers will be insanely surprised and will more likely to buy from such innovative businesses.
Medicine will bring a new level of understanding of how to treat their patients. Imagine to have a test operation where you can see and observe any part of the body, it can have huge potential.
Retail will become even more addictive, since you will be able to test out how a certain outfit will look on you.
Art is my favorite one. I’m kind of struggle with design my entire life but I adore when people make something beautiful. AR will bring the next stage of how we can draw and display the creative side of ourselves. It will be both fun and exciting.
Obviously there will be tens of more industries that AR will improve but I highlighted those, as I think they are the most valuable once.