Companies Looking for Ways to Advertise in AR

The release of tools like ARKit and other platforms are making developing for Augmented Reality experiences more accessible to developers. As customers clamor for AR in apps and mobile devices, companies are looking for ways to get revenue the AR experience beyond an initial download purchase. One of the main ways is by inserting ads in Augmented Reality experiences.

“AR technology was previously used in very limited applications to simulate surgery for training purposes; it was not accessible to everyday people,” explains Gokul Solai, CEO of tech firm Novatio Solutions. “Just like Amazon’s Echo and Google’s Home brings AI mainstream, so is ARKit and other development platforms.”

Now that developers have access to AR, they want to monetize the experience. Ad formats could take different forms, including interactive ads that pop up related to objects users interact with. There could even be point rewards or scavenger hunts for themed promotions that make the “ad hunt” an exciting event.

OTHER MARKETING OPPORTUNITIES WITH AR

Gaming

Gaming companies could promote similar games in a game the user is currently playing. Or, they could offer add-on packages or accessory bundles. For example, if you are attacking zombies in your backyard, you may have the option the purchase a more skilled lightning sword to ward off the oncoming hoard.

Entertainment

Hollywood might also launch AR experiences to coincide with upcoming movies or TV shows. Just image yourself making your way through a guarded compound with James Bond at your side. You could then unlock access to the new trailer upon completion.

Education

Grade schools can give virtual field trips to the Mesozoic Era and walk among an AR Tyrannosaurus rex without leaving the classroom (with the help of corporate sponsors, of course). Museums could offer custom experiences where visitors can interact with key historical exhibits — along with ads promoting related products from their gift shop.

Retail

“AR’s impact on retail could be even more significant than mobile apps,” says Solai. “An app facilitated the easy access to retail products. New technologies like AR and AI simulate the look and feel of products, which will have a much bigger impact on the industry.”

KNOWLEDGEABLE PARTNER IS KEY

“Emerging technology like AR is just beginning to unlock possibilities of heightened user experience,” says Solai. “We are just at the beginning stages, but it’s already the next big thing.”

Instead of pushing aside new trends like AR, Solai encourages companies to dive in.

“As with any tech, corporations might have fear over embracing AR,” he says. “But with the right partner to guide and apply new innovation, companies can decrease their time to achieve great things.”

Targeted behavioral marketing could help us make better wellness decisions … and sell us stuff.

You see an ad on social media for a pair of trendy sneakers, featuring your city’s skyline in the background. After clicking on the ad and visiting the online shoe store, you decide not to buy. Over the next few days, you see ads for the same shoes on almost every website you visit … almost as if it’s following you.

Targeted marketing (and “re-marketing”) techniques based on consumer location, demographics, and behavior are ubiquitous in online retail. But could we really see these tactics make its way into healthcare? How could artificial intelligence and machine learning influence our wellness (and purchase) decisions? Is this the next platform to be used by retailers for targeting potential customers?

New sources of data collection, integration, and analyzation have shown glimpses of a future with AI-assisted health “coaching,” partnered with opportunities for advertising. Here are some benefits and key challenges of these technology advancements.

Fitness is the New Marketing Frontier

In 2016, Apple launched HealthKit, a software platform designed to pool personal health data from different apps into one central hub. Other apps, like branded health apps from Weight Watchers, Nike, or UnderArmor (its diet tracker, My Fitness Pal), can pull data from this hub, as well. All that personal data in the hands of retail giants? I’m sure it’s enough to make any marketer salivate.

Just recently, leaks within Apple revealed the tech company wants to expand the information stored in HealthKit to include clinical information, allergies, lab results, and other medical data. Users could then choose to share this info with hospitals or other third-parties. Imagine if pharmaceutical companies could target messaging toward users with certain allergies and test results (maybe even seconds after those results come back)?

With global wearable technology market growing from $26 billion in 2015 to an estimated $171 billion by 2025, smartwatches, fitness trackers, and other tech have the potential audience numbers that cannot be ignored by retailers.

What The Future Might Look Like

It’s 7 a.m., the time you usually take your morning 3-mile run. It’s already 80 degrees outside and air pollution levels are high. Your smartwatch buzzes you:

Time to for your daily run! It’s hot out today, so drink plenty of fluids.

While running, you pass a Walgreen’s. Your smartwatch buzzes again.

Hydration time! $1 off Gatorade at this Walgreen’s location.

This is a glimpse of what the future may look like — multiple data sources combining to help people make better health choices (while covertly marketing to your needs and interests).

Online portals — hosted by healthcare providers, pharmacies, or even fitness retailers — could allow for users to regularly enter their health information. Info can be synced from wearable health trackers. This data can be analyzed by complex algorithms, along with medical history, to send treatment plans, health advice, and recommended products to smart devices.

As technology evolves, more data becomes available, and trends are spotted, recommendations can be catered around individuals. Brand X medication not effective for your heartburn? Your history and medical records could quickly be investigated to find possible causes and make alternate drug suggestions.

At Novatio, we’ve used technology in the IT space to proactively identify alerts before they happen. Why couldn’t we do that in healthcare (or healthcare-related retail)? Similar technology could be used to flag high-risk patients or monitor patient trends, give them intervention, or send product recommendations before they actually get sick.

Our automated workflow solutions have been used to sample close to 1 million incident tickets per day to discover trends. Before this technology was implemented, only 20,000 tickets a day were being analyzed. Why only make important health and targeted marketing decisions based on 20% of available data? Technology can help us do the tedious work so we can shape more informed conclusions.

Possible Challenges from Digital Health Coaching

Online marketing tactics are so ever-present it’s becoming annoying, if not invasive. We download web browser plugins and turn off pop-up windows to block digital ads from displaying. If these techniques bleed into other spaces like our health, we could feel that there’s no escape from the bombardment of push notifications and alerts. Will current tactics become ineffective? Would we disconnect entirely?

And what happens when a push notification recommends something we may feel is offensive or inappropriate — like our rising BMI triggers a liposuction clinic ad? What if the owners of health data portals offer our information to retailers for yet more targeted marketing?

Also, with the rise of technology like this, humans run the risk of dulling their personal decision-making ability. Will we rely too much on technology to tell us what to do, where to go, and how to feel? Instead of using our own judgement to make healthy choices, will we lean too much on tech to do our thinking for us?

These are questions and challenges that will need addressed as artificial intelligence and machine learning becomes more a part of our daily lives. Global standards will need to be established to tell providers what they can and can’t do with an individual’s data. Users will need controls for how and what kind of recommendations are given. Consumers will need to learn how to partner with technology to make balanced decisions, together.

Even with these challenges, the future is brighter with AI-human partnerships than just us on our own. And we may get a push notification to avoid those chocolate chip cookies, but there’s no algorithm that can take away “cheat days.” Yet.

About the Author

Gokul Solai, MD is co-founder of technology firm Solai & Cameron and Novatio Solutions, a leader in digital workforce solutions. As a trained doctor, Solai brings a unique perspective to technological innovation, with the ultimate goal of using tech to make people’s lives better.