For years, we’ve been told that virtual reality (VR) is about to explode in the mainstream. While VR still isn’t a part of our daily lives, on average, it has grown in both capabilities and reach over the last few years. Is now the right time to capitalize on VR as a marketing tool? Or should you still hold off until this technology achieves more mainstream acceptance?
VR Marketing Is Here
First, understand that VR marketing is here. With a handful of simple tools (or partnerships), you can create an immersive VR video or experience from scratch. And many brands have become creative leaders in the space, using VR and its close cousin, augmented reality (AR), to make unforgettable experiences for their customers.
So far, most of these VR and AR marketing efforts have been either relegated to a specific geographic location or a very specific target audience. For example, brands may have VR and AR experiences to showcase in-store, or they may create experiences specifically for people who already have video game-ready equipment they use on a regular basis.
The real question is, when can VR reach broader audiences reliably?
The Barriers to VR Adoption
These are some of the biggest barriers to VR adoption:
- Headset and equipment prices. While headsets are getting better and, in some ways, more affordable, the cost of an average VR headset is still prohibitively high for many people. Most people don’t want to shell out hundreds of dollars for a technology that’s still relatively untested – and they certainly don’t want to shell out thousands of dollars for a PC powerful enough to create an adequate VR experience.
- Variable experiences. There are many different types of VR experiences, from being totally immersed in state-of-the-art technology to simply holding up your phone in front of your face. People who have the latter “VR experience” are likely to underestimate the capabilities of this technology and ignore claims of transformative experiences that are possible with it.
- Personal discomfort. Even the best headsets on the market tend to be heavy, bulky, and difficult to manage. It doesn’t lay the groundwork for a comfortable experience.
- Motion sickness. In line with this, some people get motion sickness when “moving around” in the context of their new digital environment.
- Lack of content. Some people refuse to buy a VR headset simply because they don’t feel there’s enough content to support or justify this decision. This leads to a negative feedback loop that keeps VR from advancing.
- Association with video games. Early VR adopters were mostly video gamers, so some consumers don’t understand how much is now possible with this technology.
The Value of Being a Leader
The barriers to widespread VR adoption aren’t likely to crumble anytime soon, so we may still be years away from a reality where every family has access to home VR technology. Even so, it pays to be a leader in this space, stepping forward to make VR a more common marketing medium.
Here are a few of the main reasons why:
- The first mover advantage. In business and marketing, the first mover advantage is a clear advantage held by a business that does something for the first time. In a world with no fast food restaurants, you would have carte blanche for expanding your franchise across the country – and people would begin to associate your brand name with fast food, making it difficult for competitors to enter the market. Because VR is still such a new technology, you could become a kind of first-mover – one of the earliest brands to truly perfect the art of marketing in this space.
- Unlimited creative opportunities. More than written content or traditional video, VR has unlimited creative opportunities. If you can dream up an experience, you can replicate it in an immersive digital environment. No matter who your audience is or how you want to appeal to them, there’s fertile ground here.
- Unforgettable user experiences. Anyone who’s had a profound VR experience knows just how powerful and memorable this medium can be. A simple advertisement won’t cut it, but if you can deliver a truly novel experience, you may earn a permanent spot in your target users’ hearts.
- Content that stimulates demand. Remember that one of the barriers to VR adoption is a lack of content. If you’re here to create that content, you could stimulate more demand and play a part in making VR more popular.
VR and AR probably won’t explode in popularity overnight, but they will gradually gain more recognition and attention as more brands begin to use them as marketing tools. If you want to remain ahead of the curve and get an edge over your competition, now could be the perfect time to start investing in more immersive marketing materials.