Facebook has launched two new features to advertisers that are available now. One of them is AR (Augmented Reality Ads).
When most people think of AR (Augmented Reality), they think of expensive fancy goggles (which is actually VR - Virtual Reality) or glasses / contact lenses, etc. But AR is really just the same thing as a Snapchat filter.
So think of Facebook AR Ads as an advertisement in your newsfeed, targeted to you, of course, for a product that you have some level of interest in buying, but now you can "try it on," or at least see what it looks like on your face or body via the ads.
Now, these ads are only available to select advertisers / partners currently, with Michael Kors and Sephora leading the way. From Facebook:
Use of augmented reality (AR) is growing among people and businesses. In fact, The Boston Consulting Group (BCG) estimates that more than 80 million people in the US engage with AR on a monthly basis and BCG expects this number to grow to more than 120 million by 2021.2 From try-on product experiences to immersive filters for games and movies, AR enables people to connect with your business and products in new ways. Now, with the introduction of AR ads in Facebook News Feed, people can experiment with your brand’s AR camera effects in just one click from your ad. And by incorporating calls-to-action within the camera experience, people can seamlessly go from engaging with your product—such as trying on a lipstick shade or exploring a new game—to making a purchase or installing an app.
Michael Kors was the first brand to test AR ads in News Feed, enabling people to try on a pair of sunglasses and make a purchase based on their experience. Later this summer, we will begin testing AR ads with some additional advertisers such as Sephora and others in fashion accessories, cosmetics, furniture, gaming and entertainment, and we plan to roll out AR ads more broadly to other industries over the course of the year.
But the Facebook Tool that is available NOW for all of us is the Facebook Video Creation Kit.
From Facebook:
79% of consumers would rather watch a video to learn about a product than read text on a page,3and ads created specifically for the way people watch on mobile perform better across a range of metrics.4 But we know it can be challenging for advertisers to create mobile-optimized videos quickly. That’s why we’re launching Video Creation Kit to make it easier for all advertisers to create mobile-first video ads. Video Creation Kit helps advertisers create eye-catching, effective mobile video ads using existing images. The tool will enable advertisers to upload images, add overlays and logos to quickly build mobile-first video ads.
While you can't use AR Ads just yet, and your business may not have a blatant, turnkey need for AR Ads, it's clear that large retailers, and Facebook itself sees the value in these types of advertisements.
The video creation kit, which is available now, has data around it from Facebook proving that video ads are far more engaging. The thing I like about the video creation kit, in theory, is that it can turn the every day business owner with no marketing department and very little marketing budget into a creative shop with video resources.
Hit me up with any questions anytime at paul@datadriven.design.
Thanks for reading, watching and listening, and have a great day!
KEEP MARKETING!
Paul Hickey, Founder / CEO / Lead Strategist at Data Driven Design, LLC has created and grown businesses via digital strategy and internet marketing for more than 10 years. His sweet spot is using analytics to design and build websites and grow the audience and revenue of businesses via SEO/Blogging, Google Adwords, Bing Ads, Facebook and Instagram Ads, Social Media Content Marketing and Email Marketing. The part that he’s most passionate about is quantifying next marketing actions based on real data.
