Consumer goods businesses are busy finding newer ways to stand apart from the competition, grab consumers’ attention, and offer an immersive and stimulating experience with their brands. In the context of marketing and branding, augmented reality technology enables consumer goods brands to provide unique digital experiences to engage consumers.

A report on Augmented Reality says that the global augmented reality and virtual reality market clocks in at US$ 5,176M in 2016. It will record a CAGR of 42.2% between 2017 and 2025. Let us look at how the CPG sector benefits from augmented reality (AR) integration across various areas.

Can Augmented Reality Turn Your Packaging Into a Brand Experience?

With the traditional packs, companies can only share a limited amount of information, and customers interpret what they see on the packing. AR presents an exciting and informative spin on products and their packs. You can add elements to your product packaging that are not evident in the first look. For example, you can add nutritional information, brand history, and many other stories via a simple QR code on the package. The technology also allows you to present your brand to consumers beyond the box and can add insights into the brand identity.

Your marketing campaigns are easy to enhance with digital content on packs such as videos, animations, and others using AR.

Does Gamification Through AR Build the Consumer Relationships That Drive Long-Term Loyalty?

Gamification can help facilitate customer engagement, and when customers take action and build a connection, they draw closer to your brand. Gamification through AR can help you increase consumer involvement through a fun and interactive approach. AR-based games can be added to the product packaging or presented via your mobile. You can even add AR-based games in retail stores to engage and entertain visitors and inform them about your company and its various products.

AR can go that extra mile for your business through gamification with fun games and trivia. Gamified tools in AR are excellent ways to engage with consumers, boost sales over the long term, and attract new audiences. In-store AR gamification also serves a distinct commercial purpose: engaging retail visitors who are not yet in a purchase mindset, informing them about the product range in an entertaining format, and increasing the time they spend in the brand’s orbit within the store. The downstream impact on conversion rates and category penetration is measurable — and the production cost of a well-designed AR gamification experience is typically lower than traditional promotional mechanics that achieve a fraction of the engagement.

Can 3D Product Visualization Via AR Improve Both Conversion and the In-Store Experience?

Are you struggling to convey your promotions effectively? Are you not able to garner enough excitement through marketing? Try 3D product visualization powered by the AR that can transform bland in-store experiences of the past.

Augmented reality can demonstrate the benefits of your product in a whole new dimension and improved visualizations. 3D product visualizations through AR will allow your customer to see and configure your products on-screen and enable them to engage with the digital models of your products before purchasing.
A real-to-life retail experience of virtually exploring the product and accessing information before the purchase can help your customers choose products precisely, thus increasing conversions while reducing product return rates.
AR can also help your sales reps see how products and displays can look in-store on the screen of their mobile device in real-time and with the exact scale. Reps can visualize assets like refrigerators or coolers within store spaces and can easily send augmented images for internal budget approvals and allocations.

Are AR-Powered Catalogs Changing How Retailers and Consumers Explore Your Product Range?

A ready-to-assemble furniture conglomerate from Sweden has put a spin on furniture shopping with its AR catalog. Customers can use their mobile devices to visualize how a piece of furniture will look in their homes.

Similarly, in CPG, an immersive AR retail catalog can become an explorable map for the shopper to delve into leisurely than a brick-and-mortar store. It also increases the store’s capacity to engage visitors without expanding its physical space. Customers can view 3D models of products right above their images in AR catalogs, including detailed product information, specifications, and prices. As a customer looks at an AR catalog with the models of your products, they can appreciate their unique features and benefits.

For CPG sales reps using AR catalogs in distributor and retailer conversations, the ability to present products in three dimensions — with immediate access to pricing, promotional mechanics, and product specifications — transforms the sales interaction from a flat presentation into an immersive product experience that drives order confidence and reduces the hesitation that unfamiliar product launches often generate.

Is AR Transforming How You Train Your Field Force — and How Quickly They Reach Peak Performance?

Many businesses have started using AR for sales force training. With AR technology, you can imitate real-world retail experiences your reps may encounter to educate them on tackling those effectively. These training programs will be accessible from anywhere anytime, keep your sales reps’ skills relevant, and be cost-effective in the long run.

To enhance this further, you can allow your sales reps to immerse themselves in real-life situations using VR (virtual reality) headsets and take them on a store tour to test their capabilities and skills in new challenges. And if there were any mistakes during the training, your reps can reset the training program and start over again, helping them gain perfection over time.

How Far Can AR Take Your Consumer Goods Brand?

It has gained popularity with large corporations, but we are yet to explore the expanse of AR. Leading furniture companies are testing AR features with their furniture catalogs, and some popular makeup brands are using AR to allow their user to test makeup within their apps.

The boundaries of what AR can do in consumer goods are still being explored. Leading furniture companies are deploying AR catalog features at scale. Makeup brands are enabling virtual product trials within their apps. In CPG field execution, Ivy Mobility’s Retail Execution platform is already delivering AR-guided planogramming and asset visualization that measurably improves compliance and accelerates approval workflows in field operations.

Short-term campaigns can boost sales, and long-term strategies build brand identity. In either case, AR can change how consumers interact with your products. How far could you take your consumer goods brand with AR? The only limits lie in your imagination. See what’s in store from one of our favorite features.