TO START WITH, WHAT IS SPARK AR?
Spark AR is Facebook’s augmented reality platform that allows anyone to design, build and share an AR experience. By leaving beta phase and opening their platform to the whole Instagram community, Facebook is making augmented reality accessible to the mass. To put it simply, you do not need any developer skills to create AR fi lters as the platform has been built to be accessible to anyone. The objective being to let the community express itself in the moment and connect with friends, and AR adds rich, interactive, and dynamic layers to those experiences.
WHAT IS AR?
Augmented Reality is a technology that superimposes a computer-generated image on a user’s view of the real world, thus providing a composite view, often relying on image recognition. Previously considered as a niche technology feature, augmented reality is becoming mainstream thanks to social media fi lters that have brought the technology to the eyes of a global audience. What used to be one-off fun is now including multi-use and everyday utility.
IN SHORT
Facebook is constantly reinventing its offer to keep users and brands glued to its cluster of networks. That’s why, the tech giant announced the widespread rollout of Spark AR last month, making the creation of Instagram AR filters available to anyone, from users to content creators to businesses. And while the focus is user and organic first, brands aiming to stand tall in times of attention scarcity and fragmentation should also pay attention. Moreover, AR ads could become a reality by beginning of 2020, according to recent Facebook statements.
WHY IS IT A BIG DEAL?
Spark AR allows Instagrammers to add AR filters and effects to Stories, helping them to unlock an uncharted level of tailored creativity. For about a year the feature was only available in beta and has been gradually shared with selected creators to build the hype. Now, the ambition is loud and clear: become an undisputed add-on for Instagram users.
With this roll-out Facebook isn’t necessarily going right while the rest goes left. Some of their competitors have been on the AR bandwagon for months and already are capitalizing on it (ie. Snap and owned Lens Studio). But generally speaking, the ubiquitous usage of AR on social is still far from set in stone.
This might change though. Take Instagram’s massive inventory into account, added up with cross-media sharing possibilities (e.g. Facebook or Messenger). That level of scale and visibility can be an important catharsis for users – and thus brands – to express themselves in a vibrant, custom AR-fueled way. With an average of 500M daily Stories users, chances are high you will see more AR content by peers and brands dominating your feed in the next weeks or months.
WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
MERCEDES ‘PLAY BY YOUR RULES’
Instagram users who follow the @mercedesbenz IG account can select AR fi lter to decorate their pictures with computer-generated visuals that are inspired by the neon lights of Tokyo, as seen in the ‘Play by your rules’ short fi lm that accompanies the campaign.
PEPSI #SUMMERGRAM
The campaign makes available hundreds of summer-themed custom augmented reality (AR) filters on Instagram that are unlocked via QR codes. Hundreds of digital Pepsi #Summergram stickers will also be available on Instagram.
DIOR ‘DIORSOLIGHT’ SUNGLASSES RANGE
The luxury fashion retailer’s new filter, available via its stories page on Instagram, maps a virtual model of both its new sunglasses range and / or its double headband products onto the users face, allowing them to visualise how they would look wearing the product.
WHAT’S IN IT FOR ADVERTISERS?
Brands are forced to tap into evolutions to (re-)connect with an audience that’s closer to digital dieting than spending time on social. And even though AR isn’t the newest kid on the block, it makes users thumb-stoplonger compared to traditional content. For obvious verticals such as automotive, entertainment, lifestyle, fashion and FMCG, enabling AR is a no-brainer. But regardless of what you’re offering, users crave experience, more nuance and playfulness rather than brands screaming for a like or a click. To put it that way, we are now living in a social era where attention has outperformed engagement, and users are more likely to remember your brand if they spent time experiencing it.
Another positive evolution is the accessibility to the technology. What was once very challenging to put in place – because of its very niche expertise, costs and unprofitability – no longer is, as you don’t need developer skills to create your own AR filter. Advertisers can now easily conceptualise and integrate AR in their strategy whilst the tech is being streamlined and made available by the likes of Facebook (Spark) and Snapchat (Lens Studio).
An annotation though. While AR infused content will become more present, oversaturation might kick in at the same speed. Advertisers should think and consider when and how to implement AR in their messaging. Whether it is for an activation or for ecommerce, AR should stay cool, smart and well-thought-out. Overdoing it can only result in a backlash.
INFLUENCERS AND AR
Spark AR works as a medium, not a traditional ad placement and therefore no direct paid media possibilities exist. Still, advertisers can seed AR content into a wider marketing ecosystem to yield scale. For instance, linking AR with OOH campaigns is an option. And as the technology is seamlessly connected with customer satisfaction focused verticals, influencers are great to bridge the gap between brand and user. Scripted product placement ads are losing their punch and authenticity is under pressure. This is why influencers rather position themselves as content creators, relevant for their community and for the brand they collaborate with. Influencers can play without constraints of time and physics, offer relevant content and thus capture the audience’s attention for a longer time. For example, throughout the Spark beta phase examples, trying on make-up and sneakers generated quite some buzz. For brands, this kind of mechanism is ideal for personalization and next level engagement. Influencers and AR are certainly a promising combination.
TO CONCLUDE
Without predicting the future or overpraising AR as the overarching social medium, we do believe in exciting times for social users and brands. With the shift from engagement to attention in mind, AR-driven campaigns can only contribute to more verticality. And in the meantime, this new feature coupled with more developed smartphones will only have a positive effect on the technology’s wider breakthrough. Can’t start a fire without a spark.