Augmented Reality(AR) in the Marketing World

Augmented Reality

The new kid on the block 

In our day-to-day lives, we may overlook the rapid developments of technology. Since the turn of the century, our lives have changed drastically with countless new devices and systems. Even in the world of marketing, modern technology has been implemented and used to significant effect.  

With an ever-growing list of companies vying for your precious attention and, more importantly, your money, marketers have turned to the latest innovations for help. Today, the shiniest tool in a shed is Augmented Reality (AR).

Augmented Reality

AR in marketing

AR in marketing brings endless possibilities and solutions to a wide range of industries. These benefits are countless, especially for creative brands that choose to use this frontier technology in attracting and engaging their target audience. With the ease of application, AR can demonstrate to potential customers how to make full use of specific products and services without spending time on user manuals.

AR technology has been used on particular social media such as Instagram and Pinterest. On those platforms, brands can use the AR filter feature to showcase their product. But when brands want to start their AR campaign on Instagram for example, they need a particular strategy, so they can reach their goal.

Furthermore, AR creates a semblance of ownership of the product for its users before they purchase it. It enables users to see how they would look in a t-shirt or a pair of pants through their smartphone or laptop screen without having to be in the physical store itself. 

This process is already occurring with brands like Ikea enabling AR technology in their app whereby users can place pieces of furniture in their room to gain a better feel for how the product would fit.

With AR now being possible on virtually all web browsers, the entry barriers for users are incredibly low. They do not need to purchase expensive equipment or have the deep technical know-how. All a user requires is their smartphone’s camera, and they are ready to step into the world of AR.

AR in Pizza

The explosive growth in AR-capable devices has revolutionized how companies can promote their customers’ goods and services. The latest example of that would be Pizza Hut’s brand new campaign dubbed “Newstalgia”. Pizza Hut has launched its new brand campaign to bring back nostalgic memories to its customers. 

They partnered with PAC-MAN to offer a limited-edition PAC-MAN box, which features an augmented reality version of the iconic game printed directly on the packaging that fans can play using their smartphones. 

To participate, one must order a large pizza from Pizza Hut. First, they need to scan the QR code on the limited-edition PAC-MAN box and play the retro Augmented Reality (AR) PAC-MAN game. Next, to enter the competition, follow the instructions on their mobile device to share their score with @PizzaHut on Twitter using #PizzaHutARcade #Sweepstakes. Making it all the more tempting, regardless of your high score, you have a chance to win if you shared it.

This is just the latest example of companies employing cutting-edge AR technologies in their marketing campaigns. In 2014, Pepsi installed AR technology in a London bus stop, making it seem like a lion, UFOs, flying saucers, or other objects were headed straight for Londoners.

 This illustrated Pepsi’s playful personality and left the audience with a memorable and fun experience. Through this campaign, Pepsi demonstrated that they thoroughly understood their audience by trusting them to appreciate the demonstration and thus created excitement around the brand.

Where is AR Marketing in Singapore?

Right now, you may be thinking, AR sounds fantastic, but it is not very popular in Singapore. That’s true. Companies in Singapore, albeit creative, have still not completely embraced the use of technology in their advertising and marketing campaigns. Sure, there are countless creative and memorable marketing campaigns like, for example, Shopee Singapore introducing Phua Chu Kang as their brand ambassador in 2020.

 However, we have not yet seen marketing campaigns like that of Pizza Hut’s Newstalgia. Currently, one of the rare uses of AR is at NUS’s Lee Kong Chian Museum, where they have blended this technology into part of their museum where stories are shown through AR. 

That being said, the change could soon be on the horizon. With the implementation of AR growing easier and cheaper day by day, Singaporean companies could soon be joining the bandwagon. 

How you may ask. 

AR technology in marketing tends to be personal and engaging. In Singapore’s case, our companies would probably integrate it into something that’s part of our daily lives. 

With companies doing their best for viral content generation, AR could be a means to this end. Local companies could create an exceptional AR experience for the user that could be easily spread on social media. These experiences are highly personalized by helping users add virtual objects to their faces or environment. Doesn’t that sound like fun? Imagine being able to visualize Bubble Tea falling from the sky when you are stuck at the bus stop waiting for the rain to stop. 

Future of AR

AR technologies in marketing and advertising continue to develop along with technological infrastructure. Companies will continue to adopt AR into their marketing efforts to provide potential customers with an immersive experience and feel of their goods and services. With the potential to dominate in E-Commerce, companies striving to improve their digital marketing will hopefully one day introduce this mode of advertising to Singapore, enabling us to view the world in a new dimension.

 

Build your Business with a Long-Term Brand Strategy

Building Brand Awareness With A Branding Consultant For Your

Introduction

An arrow drawn on paper pointing towards the words target audience. A bullseye lies beside it, symbolising striking the target audience with a possible business strategy.
Hitting the mark for any business strategy means nailing target audience impressions.

Have you ever realised how some brand names are synonymous with their functions?

When you search for something, people say, “Google it”. Sounds natural, right? But you never hear of a “Bing it” or “Yahoo it”.

That’s what fantastic branding does for a company. You become sacrosanct to the industry. Robust brand awareness breeds brand loyalists, and once consumers have your name in their mouths, you’ll have solidified a foothold within the industry.

In other words, you’ve made it.

Read on to understand the importance of branding in this digital age.

 

Why is Partnering with a Brand Building Agency so Important?


Today’s market is so saturated that it seems increasingly impossible to stand out. Every idea feels reused, and for good reason.

As studied by Lippincott in 2024, consumers feel that only 5% of all brands are unique.

It makes sense: we’re only inspired by what we can see, and what we can see is often limited. 

With only a singular perspective on branding matters, we know building strategies can feel stifling. How do you break out and make something noteworthy nowadays?

A tried-and-true tactic is marketing your brand as ‘the product’.

iPhones are beloved worldwide, yes, but there’s an exclusivity there. The Apple community – a sense of belonging and being in the know.

Forget owning an iPhone. Now, it’s all about owning the latest iPhone.

Apple’s brand value goes beyond its products. It’s ingrained into their name. That is true longevity. That’s where long-term brand strategies come into play. They’re more than just logos and catchy taglines.

These are full-service roadmaps for how your brand can evolve, communicate, and maintain longevity in today’s full-throttle zeitgeist.

“BRAND” big idea with branches extending, indicating 6 key components: Strategy, Marketing, Logo, Design, Advertising, and Identity.
Having a robust brand identity requires fine-tuning your strategies for maximum benefit.

 

What are Long-Term Brand Strategies?


Long-term brand strategies are forward-looking plans that align a company’s identity, messaging, and values with its business goals. Easy enough!

Consistency breeds loyalty. It ensures your target audience can always look to you to satisfy their needs, especially important now with innovation reaching a head across industries.

Capture satisfaction. Show consumers something that strikes a chord, whether that’s inspiring aspiration, tugging the heartstrings, or striking good old-fashioned intrigue. To make an impression is to build rapport.

Enable deeper connections that pave the path for trust, creating a loyalist base for your company. Long-term content creation gives you a succinct way to capture consistent branding and consumer impressions at large.

Strong brands require strong forces backing them. Enlisting a brand building agency aids in actualising your growth vision.

 

Where can Full-Service Branding Agencies take you?


Two words: market dominance.

The impact of robust branding doesn’t happen overnight. But when it does materialise, it can be profoundly transformative. A steadfast brand vision breeds trust among your target audience and lights the way for all future works.

Eliminate choice paralysis from your drawing boards and heighten your success by creating content that speaks to your audience.

Long-term branding isn’t just about company colours and flashy logos. It’s about building a culture of trust, relevance, and connection with your audience.

Integrating these into your core business pillar stabilises your brand amidst shifting trends and market disruptions.

To remain a thought leader in your field, foster emotional connections through genuine marketing messages and innovative design, ensuring your services cater to emerging industry demands.

It keeps you credible even when breaking into new industries and while mitigating market uncertainty.

Bespoke branding builds the potential to make industry trends, not just follow them. Today’s consumers appreciate originality – the marketing world severely lacks it.

 

So, How do you Choose a Digital Branding Agency?


Well, it all depends on how well an
agency communicates your message. An arsenal of services is only as good as their proficiency in actualising your marketing goals, acutely.

Highlight your brand’s mission and values. What image do you aim to convey through your marketing?

A creative agency that has processes in place to understand exactly what your brand stands for and where it wants to go takes your goals from just a vision to being tangible.

Full-service branding agencies identify your brand’s true purpose. From there, you can diversify your social media content to keep your platforms dynamic.

These agencies cover everything, from graphic design to the written word, with robust business development to boot!

Make your brand a go-to in the industry for consistent consumer satisfaction spanning every media.

 

Sure, But What are the Results?


Hiring a branding agency gives you:

1. Increased brand visibility

Good brand visibility expands beyond local spheres. Nike’s signature stripe stands out internationally. It’s the logo that attracts customers without a verbal effort and drives conversions just from its associated credibility.

Branding agencies take evolving industry trends and make them consistent with you.

This cohesion is coupled with engaging your target audience’s needs, desires, and pain points to kickstart the sales process starting just from a single look.

2. Improved consumer retention

Effective marketing doesn’t tell you how good it is. It shows you. Invoke positive attachments from your target demographic by fulfilling a gratifying consumer experience across mediums.

Whether it’s product packaging, effective website navigation, or a compelling social media identity, consumers look to your assets as a whole to know just how much they can identify with you.

Branding agencies provide the framework to allow this feedback to ease through. Strategic branding allows for targeted insights that show you how close you are to your marketing goals.

Build this trust and elevated customer retention is soon to follow.

3. Industry credibility

Branding agencies hone your professional credibility.

Through polished visuals, fonts, tones, and messaging, you can signal your trustworthiness in B2B and B2C interactions with just a glance.

Branding agencies propel you towards market dominance by providing optimised media through blog posts, managing social media, and marketing collateral.

Have a library of authority showing brands your industry finesse.

4. Distinct marketing from competitors

Branding agencies keep your Unique Selling Point (USP) crystal-clear.

They conduct research on your brand and industry for bespoke branding and market domination.

Leveraging these in-depth statistics clears room for creative campaigns and a framework that allows innovative play with your marketing strategies.

Overall, very good stuff! Take marketing trends and convert them into actionable insights for you and yours.

Whether you’re looking for a brand launch strategy or aiming to refine existing tactics, partnering with a branding agency covers all your bases for you.

A well-crafted branding strategy is essential to achieving business goals in this digital market.

 

Conclusion


In today’s vast digital landscape, having a robust branding strategy separates the good ideas from the great ones. Consumers know when a message is tailored for them, and turn their heads away from everything else.

Original branding strategies provide sustained market longevity. This comprehensive company branding makes detailed analyses of your brand and competitors that much easier – centering precision as an ethos.

Go the distance with a branding agency in Singapore, and let your audience see your visions come to life in no time.

At MIU, your online presence takes centre stage. 

Our suite of services is designed for your success, and innovation powers all that we do.

Don’t worry. MIU has you covered.