As mobile virtual reality has emerged as a mainstream consumer technology, so too have media owners, tech firms and venture capitalists stepped up their interest. In 2017 virtual reality (VR) will be far more than just wearing a headset. As more smartphones are built with virtual reality in mind, consumers’ mobile devices will become the main driver of VR experiences.
Consumers can already experience VR video on their smartphones. Facebook and Twitter have enabled live streams to and from VR headsets, creating an infrastructure for instant full-immersion experiences accessible to any brand. As more people gain access to virtual reality, it becomes more important for media owners and advertisers to consider using it to bring their brand to life.
Film studios such as Twentieth Century Fox, Disney and Warner Brothers have already given viewers a new way to experience their content through special VR trailers and bonus content. Void – the world’s first VR theme park – opened in Utah in 2016 and allows users to freely walk through and explore a virtual world. There is even a new virtual reality social network called vTime that uses head-tracking and spatial audio to create the illusion
of social presence in detailed virtual environments. In early 2017 Facebook will launch Carmel, a VR web browser. This will enable brands to develop virtual reality experiences such as virtual aisles, allowing consumers to shop from the comfort of their headset.
Virtual reality has often been criticised for being socially isolating, but this is beginning to change. VR content creators need to think carefully about what works in a physical space rather than the flat screens that a century of media production has learned to accommodate.
What does this mean for brands?
Virtual reality has the potential to vastly change the way retailers design the stores of the future, as its incorporation into retail enables shoppers to try out products without ever having to visit a bricks and mortar store.
However, marketers must think about the big picture. To build a business case for virtual reality, brands need to determine what users expect from the experience, and ascertain whether it meets its needs given the price of production, consumer demand, relevancy and point of entry.
Virtual reality should be treated as part of larger marketing campaigns, rather than one-time events, with content for mobile consumers on the go linking to the in-store experience to create a consistent consumer journey.
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