What is VR?
Virtual reality (VR) is a technology that stimulates senses like vision, hearing, touch and even smell after immersing a user in a simulation of a real-life environment. The technology uses headsets equipped with the virtual reality technology. Virtual reality has been around for decades and is exactly what you imagine when someone mentions the movie Tron or The Matrix where the characters inhabit virtual worlds.
What is AR?
Augmented reality (AR) is a technology that enhances a real-life environment simulated to make it more meaningful by simulating artificial objects in the real environment. The use of the technology enhances the user’s current perception of reality through computer generated images. A great example of this is Pokemon Go where users visit real-world locations to capture digital creatures — which they see through the use of their smart device’s camera.
The Future of Content Marketing
Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach that involves the creation of high quality content which is valuable to buyers and consumers. Such content is meant to engage and inform them as well as market a brand. With the rate at which technology is evolving, technologies like virtual reality and augmented reality will work well in content marketing. Many consumers are eagerly waiting to embrace the power of virtual reality when it comes to choosing brands.
Previously known to dominate the video game and science fiction industries, virtual reality is slowly changing inbound and outbound marketing strategies as they are gradually being used in campaigns.
Virtual reality and augmented reality often operate alongside each other, generating an immersing experience for the user. Both technologies have qualities that will shape the future of e-commerce in great lengths.
How VR and AR Can Be Used In Content Marketing For Better Engagement
Whether you are a consumer or business owner, VR and AR technologies are going to be more popular in the near future. Both technologies can be used to build engagement with customers in all kinds of businesses. Customer engagement, being a key factor, and building long term relationship with customers can be effectively achieved by these two technologies.
Industries like the hospitality industry use VR to showcase their rooms through the simulation of real life room. Getting a glimpse of the room and its interior is a great way to market and convince the customer to book the room. This helps the company to narrate a story much more effectively, instead of using the usual 2D graphics. In this way, content marketing is taking on a more realistic and engaging turn.
VR is a great way for customers to get more useful information about a company, its products and solutions too. Customers can also use the technology offered by virtual reality to get an in-depth feel of product details through senses such as touch, sight, smell and hearing. The real-life simulation of how it feels gives the customer a chance to engage and truly immerse in the experience, which in turn helps build an emotional connection which is very important in customer engagement. Continued emotional connections are a great way to build long term business relationships with customers and there is no better content marketing than this.
The enhanced experiences from the use of virtual reality and augmented reality in content marketing offer a great solution to both consumers and companies to engage and share information. By enabling customers to immerse themselves in a real-life environment like a hotel, showroom or laboratory, VR and AR help businesses adopt a much more engaging and effective form of content marketing.