Virtual reality (VR), and its partner augmented reality (AR), came onto the scene expensive and out of reach for many consumers. Over time, the popularity of the technology has grown, and the price has decreased, making it is more accessible to the mainstream. This opens up a tremendous opportunity for companies to market their product or service in a new way. However, VR advertising can be expensive to create and not all companies have the necessary funds at their disposal. This doesn’t mean the end if you are priced out. Instead, view this as an opportunity to enhance your content strategy.
Taking a closer look at VR marketing
So, what does VR do for content marketing anyway? In a few words, VR creates a fully immersed, interactive experience. Instead of just “showing” or “telling” your audience the benefits of your product or service, they can actually experience it.
Mercedes, for example, created this video to position themselves as more than just an automaker but an actual driving experience:
You don’t need a VR headset to get the impact of this video, just use the 360-degree view option. The video puts consumers in the driver’s seat, taking them out of the living room and onto the open road.
You don’t have to use VR to have effective visual marketing
The cost to creating a VR video can be up to three times that of a regular video. For many companies, that pushes VR marketing out of reach. But this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t do anything to address this future trend. Forbes contributor, John Hall gave some good advice in his recent article, 7 Tech Trends That Will Shake Up Content Marketing in 2018:
“So if you’re not ready to bring your content into virtual reality, just view this trend as a reminder to improve your visual content. Creating interactive graphics, videos, and apps not only makes for a more engaging content marketing strategy, but it also lays the groundwork for future experiments in VR/AR.”
What does this mean exactly? Visual content goes beyond just adding images to blog posts. It includes everything from creating infographics and videos. You can also use memes, presentations, stats and charts. Next time you are getting ready to promote something, ask yourself how you can visualize it.
And if you are curious as to why visual content is so important, here is some food for thought:
Now is the time to step-up your content game. A featured image in your blog post will no longer cut-it. As the new year approaches and you are building out your content strategies, ensure that more visuals are included.
Where to go from here
Feeling a little overwhelmed? Start by giving your website, social media channels and marketing materials a thorough review. This is a good practice to get into quarterly anyway, to ensure your materials have the most up-to-date information. Find appropriate places to add visual content. Make sure it is in areas that make sense and are useful to your audience.
Often times, it helps to have a professional marketing partner review your content and make recommendations. At Content Matterz, we regularly review client marketing materials and their online presence, making recommendations for updates and ways for improving SEO and visibility.
By taking steps now to add more visual content into your content, you will be ready to take the step into VR advertising when the time is right for you.