If you are in the market for a promotional VR experience, you know there is still a lot of confusion around Virtual Reality at the moment. Most content, promoted as VR or Immersive Video, is actually just that. A video, that is played around the user instead of on a 2d screen. Although promoted as VR, those cases are far from proper VR Experiences.
The marketing performance is a lot different as well. While VR video works better than a standard video in most metrics, an Interactive VR Experience blows the VR video out of this world. A VR Experience offers a fun, unforgettable experience for the user, that results in 27% higher emotional engagement from the user in comparison to standard video, keeps the user focused on the product 34% longer and leads to improved customer loyalty.
So how can it do that? What are the differences between shooting a VR Video and developing an Interactive VR Experience?
In the next few paragraphs we will take a closer look at the comparison of the two and what kind of marketing advantages can you expect from the development of an interactive VR Application.
IMMERSIVENESS
The most associated word with Virtual Reality – immersiveness. Virtual Reality has the ability to immerse the user in a different world – a virtual world. And while this is true for both VR Video and an interactive VR application, the levels of immersiveness are much different.
While VR video allows the user to put on a headset and watch a video around him, an interactive VR application does far more than that. It allows the user to move around, interact with the products and change the world around him.
The difference is, for example, like watching someone play a fun game and actually playing that fun game.
Because a VR application is developed to be fully interactive, the marketing metrics are much better in comparison to traditional advertising or VR Video. Studies show a VR Experience results in higher emotional engagement by the user, improved customer loyalty and improved brand recognition.
FREEDOM
The ability to choose what you want. This is where an interactive VR application really shines. While VR Videos are usually pre-defined, an interactive virtual reality experience gives the user the ability to interact with and change the world around him.
Let’s say you are presenting your smart home system with a VR Experience. The user can walk to the central unit, click on the display, select the lighting system and turn off the light. He can also turn the washing machine on, regulate the air conditioning or anything you allow him to do.
That creates a dynamic world, and no user has the same experience as the previous one. The user can choose to look at the objects that he or she is interested in and not what we assumed when we shot a video.
IN-DEPTH-LOOK
And it doesn’t stop at looking, either. By developing an interactive VR Experience, you can allow the user to use a properly functioning product in virtual reality. Let’s say you have a complicated product that is best explained by using it. In an interactive VR Experience, the user can actually use the product as he or she would in reality.
That creates an unprecedented possibility of allowing users to make a connection and fall in love with your product before the sale.
LONGER FOCUS
By developing an interactive VR experience, you give your potential clients not just a fun viewing experience, but also something to do in that experience. And while the user might be bored with traditional video advertisements, a fully interactive VR Experience keeps him or her interested longer.
Much longer.
Interactivity, combined with a distraction-free environment, means that the user is focused on your product 34% longer than with any traditional ad.
SELL MORE
You can use all that focus to deliver your message properly. With an interactive VR experience, you have time to turn an uninterested visitor of a live event into a loyal client in a matter of minutes.
Because users have fun in a VR Experience, they feel more connected with your Brand and are more inclined to buy from you. It works in a B2B as well, as it smoothes the sales process and gives you an interesting topic to talk about at your next dinner with that potential client.
IN CONCLUSION
While Virtual Reality is still developing and still has some things to sort out, it is already able to produce massive results for your business. The marketing advantages of Interactive VR Application Development are massive both in comparison with VR Video and traditional advertisement. It can give your company a chance to improve marketing performance, increase customer loyalty and smooth the sales process. The question is:
Will you take the chance?
To learn more about Virtual Reality, download our VR Guide for Marketing or contact Creative Solutions today!