5 tips to help pitch AR for your next project

Paula

Tips for agencies and developers to successfully pitch AR to clients and potential customers.

You get it – AR is incredibly cool, and most definitely the wave of the future – but your client might still be wondering if it’s time to ride the AR wave.

Have you pinpointed an excellent use-case for AR within a client’s project? We want to give you a few tips and suggest tools you can use to help get them on board. As a bonus, you will have an additional product for your portfolio you can really be proud of!

1. Explain the added value

Let’s talk about flash – and not the Adobe kind. Sizzle, wow-factor, attention-grabber, whatever you want to call it, AR has it.

It not only lets you see more of the world around you – it skyrockets user engagement with interactive content. A customized AR-experience is one of the most attention-grabbing features an app can offer.

For a little extra inspiration for your speech, check out 7 ways to use augmented reality in marketing today.

2. Demonstrate return of investment (ROI)

You’re a business, and they’re a business – the extra spending has to be justified.

The easiest way to do that? Show them a clear example of how AR can be linked directly to revenue – like in this video below from Takondi, one of Wikitude’s premium partners. Watch to see how easily AR can be used to implement mobile commerce.

There are a bunch of ways augmented reality can help businesses make more money. Here are a few of our favorites:

  • e-commerce – directly link real-world items to purchases
  • In-game purchases in an AR environment – you’ve seen the success of Pokémon Go – and remember virtual products have an excellent margin
  • Location-based deals – let users explore top deals near them (and guide them there)
  • Time-sensitive offers – reach people at the right time with the right offer
  • Augmented shopping – make every print material your user’s check out button
    Offer enhanced multimedia about products using 2D and 3D recognition
  • Premium apps – offer an entirely in-app shopping experience!

3. Show the future of AR with facts

When Google, Apple, Facebook, and Microsoft start heavily investing in augmented reality, it is safe to assume the tech is not only on the rise but on the verge of something great.

To have an idea of the current predictions, Digi-Capital’s long-term virtual and augmented reality forecast is for the AR/VR market to reach around $65 billion revenue by 2024. And Worldwide spending on AR/VR products and services throughout the 2019-2023 forecast period, should achieve a five-year compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 77.0% (IDC).

Access this AR facts and predictions article for more data. And for real-world examples, note that “Pokémon Go, once a viral sensation all over the globe, hasn’t fallen off the map. In fact, the augmented reality game is earning more money than it ever has before. According to mobile analytics firm Sensor Tower, Pokémon Go had a record year in 2019, taking in an estimated $900 million through in-app purchases.” – via the Verge.

Image: Sensor Tower

4. Highlight the simplicity of the tech

Excuse us while we toot our own horn, but, making AR easy is what we do. The Wikitude AR SDK is one of the most versatile tools available for developing mobile AR. Want to build your own Pokémon-Go-like app? You can do it with Wikitude in three easy steps.

5. …and most importantly, show a demo

Seeing is believing. So why not show your clients the great things they can do with AR? It’s a lot easier to want something you can see right in front of you. So the best and most important advice when you’re pitching AR? Show them a demo. Here are a few tips for doing that!

  • It’s best done live – find an AR app, either your own or from another company, and show it during an in-person meeting. If this means bringing the tools with you (like a magazine or product) bring them with you!
  • Undersell, overshow – a good AR project speaks for itself. Rather than building up expectations, casually throw it out there – “Oh, have I shown you this cool trick?” *whips out phone*
  • Make sure it’s going to work! Do you need decent cellular data or Wifi? Nothing impresses less than stalled technology. Check your connection before you move forward
  • And speaking of demos – remember, you can always use the Wikitude trial license to win over your client!
Previous Article
Geo AR: Location-based Augmented Reality Use Cases and How-to
Next Article
Geo AR: Location-based Augmented Reality Use Cases and How-to