The Future of Experience at Christmas: Taking Inspiration from the Trailblazers
Over the last few years, marketing campaigns have taken centre stage at Christmas, with brands deploying a growing mix of tactics — across a proliferation of different channels — to reach audiences. In 2016, we’ve seen a raft of new technologies enter the mainstream – from augmented reality in Pokemon Go to a variety of affordable Virtual Reality headsets coming onto the market, and the introduction of AI technologies such as chatbots.
So, in collaboration with Goldsmiths, University of London, we’ve taken an in-depth look at how these emerging technologies are being used by brands to create standout experiences this Christmas.
This follows a research project we conducted with Goldsmiths’ Dr Chris Brauer and his team earlier this year looking at how emerging technologies are impacting customers’ online and offline experiences, and how brands can harness these technologies to deepen engagement with consumers across five criteria: Empathy, serendipity, privacy, adaptability and reciprocity. There can be no better time than Christmas to get an understanding of how, or indeed if, brands are creating new and deeper connections with customers using these technologies.
Amongst a host of fascinating insights, _The Future of Experience at Christmas _reveals that, while some marketers are excited by the opportunities emerging technologies offer, and consumer demand for these is increasing, widespread adoption as part of the marketing mix is still relatively low. There are a handful of brands leading the charge, however, demonstrating the huge potential of these technologies and the impact they can have on consumers when used innovatively.
One of the key trends uncovered by the study is how brands are creating meaning through the personalization of experiences, which over a third of consumers now rate as important. VR and AI are currently at the forefront of this effort, which is being enacted in two different but complementary ways: Either drawing people to the public to engage, experience and share their seasonal moments and experiences; or using AI chatbots to achieve delightful personalization right in the home.
A number of examples stand out here: Perhaps most notably, John Lewis has actively used VR this year as part of its Buster the Boxer campaign, giving consumers the opportunity to immerse themselves in the experience of the famous TV ad through VR experiences in-store or at home. And offerings like eBay’s ShopBot, which provides in-the-moment curation of eBay’s vast product catalogue through machine learning, are showing how AI can enable brands to create personalized, reciprocal experiences with consumers without them even having to step outside.
All in all, empathy and serendipity are showing up as key ingredients in the Christmas marketing mix, with technologies like VR and AI increasingly deployed to bring surprising and touching moments to consumers.
As an industry, we often talk about the need to innovate in order to compete in an increasingly crowded marketplace, and we’re certainly seeing some great examples of how the big brands are using emerging technology to create deeper connections. But we are still at the early stages with many of these technologies, with many marketers still seeing them as risky or simply not knowing enough about them. It’s a fine balancing act, but we know this technology has the potential to disrupt the status quo and now is the time when brands should be looking closely at what they can deliver for them.
The examples explored in the report really bring to life the possibilities of The Future of Experience and showcase the kinds of exceptional experiences emerging technologies can deliver. As you shape your 2017 marketing strategies, we hope that they will provide some inspiration.