Part Two
A.R. – Augmented Reality
Let’s look at Augmented Reality and how companies are using it to interact with their customers.
Lowe’s Home Improvement has been doing a great job using Augmented Reality. Many other companies are also doing a great job, but here are some of Lowe’s. Oh yeah, and a company that is creating “live” wine labels!
Above is the Lowe’s app that let’s you use your smartphone camera to place furniture they sell in your actual room. You can click on it, place it in the room, move it around, and see what it will look like if your bought it and brought it home.
Lowe’s also has a “kitchen renovation” augmented reality app. Here you enter the dimensions of your kitchen and window placements and you can see what your new kitchen will look like with a particular style of cabinets. Or, you can change them if you want. Add a fridge, add a new back splash, some floor tile and you can walk around and see your new kitchen!
Here’s the “Living Wine Label” example. You just point your smartphone at the label and it comes alive! Vineyards appear, eagles fly by and its interactive buttons appear mid-air that you can touch and get more information about the product. The augmented reality is totally interactive as well!
One more Lowe’s app. The biggest problem I have with big-box stores is finding something! It drives me crazy. As all of you know, men shop completely different than women. Women look at things, pick them up, place them back on the shelf, find the best products and best prices.
Men storm into a store and grab the first product they see that somewhat matches what they were looking for. And, if they can’t find that product fast… We melt down.
This app allows you to enter the product name and it will create a live floor map and take you to where that product is. Cool… Right?!
By the way, if you go to YouTube, there are videos of all these examples. Go watch a few. They are really cool.
No… Seriously… Go… Now… Go watch some… The next email won’t be there for a few days. Go… It’s O.K…
I will show you some additional examples of how Augmented Reality is being used in cool ways in the next edition!
Hang in there.. There’s more to come!
Lon Safko, Serial Innovator
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