Augmented Packaging

AUGMENTED PACKAGING: DIGITAL CONTENT FOR MOBILE-SAVVY AUDIENCES

In recent years, packaging has moved beyond just being an analog proposition. It is an invaluable media channel that sits in users’ homes—it is on their kitchen tables, on their desks at work, and in their bags.

Until recently, that product has sat there silently, almost dormant. It is a static proposition in the mobile world. Through the power of the smartphone and a QR code, brands can now turn that into a media channel that tells a story, engages with the users, collects data, and sells more products.

So, what can brands do to turn their packaging into an engaging and effective social media channel?

The Numbers Speak for Themselves

There is a significant amount of neuroscience research around the power of AR (Augmented Reality) compared to traditional media. AR delivers a 45% increase in attention span and gives the user an increase in emotional intensity.

Because people learn through making emotional connections and interaction like tapping the screen and engaging with the content, we see a significant spike in memory retention as a result, which ultimately engenders a behavioral change in consumers.

There is also a rise in consumer demand for breakthrough experiences with their packaging. For example, 66% of Millennials are prepared to spend more on sustainable products but finding out what is genuinely sustainable these days is difficult. Consumers must embark on their own search via social media or through the brand’s website. The ideal alternative is for the packaging to contain that information as consumers interact with it.

But because the label on products is often small, the best delivery option is for a scannable code, which is supported by consumer desire and action, with research supporting that more than three quarters of consumers would use their mobile to learn about a product and want packaging to display QR codes.

Another trend we are seeing is that Gen Z wants to engage in more experiential ways. They want more from their brand than just the consumption of the product — they want to feel part of a bigger community. Shopify found that 94% of products with AR show a higher conversion rate of users going online, and 56% of shoppers agree that AR gives them greater confidence in the quality of the product.

This is increasing not just in physical retail, but also in the e-commerce environment. Google Analytics and other online data sources show that scans increase dwell times on product sites, thereby improving performance and increasing sales.

94%

of products with AR show a higher conversion rate of users going online

56%

of shoppers agree that AR gives them greater confidence in the quality of the product.

JOHN DALZIEL

Director, Marketing Strategy SGK, EUROPE

and online retail accomplishes two goals: it drives app downloads and online visits, increasing conversion and sales; and it increases a brand’s social media exposure as users share updates about their rewards, wins, and experiences.

For the packaging design community, this is the call to action to not only pursue AR on packaging itself, but to do so in a way that really amplifies that the content is there. While it’s a rapidly growing technology, people still aren't actively looking for it. On every product that has an on-pack code, brands not only need to give the user a strong proposition to scan, but make it an exciting, creative, and important tool.

Beyond Omnichannel

Brands should think about AR as part of an omnichannel campaign, not just restricted to packaging. It needs to be compelling, engaging, and fun content that brings the brand story to life in a creative and captivating way.

It is also worth noting that AR can serve a purpose throughout the entire consumer journey, from as early as the point of consideration where they are reading ads or on social at the point of purchase, whether on e-commerce sites or in-store.

Then there's on-pack usage when consumers are interacting with the product anywhere. We should not consider that the end of the journey, because brands can reach consumers and communicate with them after that scanning moment, either by capturing email addresses or using cookies on a device to serve targeted ads.

So, it is important that brands think of AR as the beginning of a conversation rather than simply bookends of the solution, because doing so will amplify and bring the brand to life in holistic ways, especially as most consumers are not predisposed to seek additional information on their own.

What’s Next for AR?

AR usage is expanding in a variety of exciting ways. From NFTs and the metaverse to "phygital" retail experiences, brands need to be aware of tech developments that make sense for their brand and more importantly, their consumers. Overall, there are innovations to make AR better, shinier, faster, lighter—mixed reality designed to wow the audience. That represents a shift in the industry itself as brands are beginning to examine how they can cross the divide from AR being a gimmick to it being part of a bigger strategy delivering actual commercial value back to their business.

There are also great new examples of brands using AR to onboard consumers from physical retail into loyalty platforms by incentivizing online purchases via prizes and exclusive discounts. This type of integration exemplifies how AR can be used as a tool to drive other metrics or how to integrate it with other parts of the marketing tech stack.

There is a significant correlation between the increase in value of consumers who engaged with AR compared to those who didn't. A gamified integration of in-person

John Dalziel

John began his career in the automotive marketing managing agencies and globally award-winning creative work with VW and DDB. He started joined SGK’s Business Development team in 2008, and several roles later is now in Marketing Strategy distilling his experience to design, drive and effect change across the organisation - creating and supporting strategy, culture, innovation, proposals and campaigns for a digital business in the 2020s.