Top Benefits of Augmented Reality: Why You Should Consider Implementing It
By Ruben Rodrigues Posted
Nowadays, executives get a giant variety of cutting-edge technologies that can leverage to grow their companies. Artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things, robotics — the list may go on and on, revealing new opportunities for businesses in different fields.
As our society invents and adapts to more and more innovations, consumers become more and more tech-savvy and demanding, and the higher their expectations get. At the same time, businesses also don’t stay put in one place and explore new approaches and solutions to get competitive advantages and stand out within a saturated business climate.
In such conditions, augmented reality gains extra value, especially for businesses looking for tools to provide more immersive experiences to their clients than before or for those companies that sell large, hard-to-explain products and need to have strong visualization capacities.
So, what is the value hidden behind the concept of augmented reality, and is it really worth investing money into AR development? Let’s figure the benefits of augmented reality out together in the blog article built on the experience of TechRivo and our AR specialists.
What is Augmented Reality?
Augmented reality is a technology that implies the convergence between virtual content and the real world: it overlays visual, audio, and other types of content in the real environment. The perfect example of augmented reality a PokémonGo, a mobile game that made much noise in 2016, which allowed its users to see and interact with virtual Pokémons in a real-life setting.
To access AR, users need hardware with sensors and input devices. A regular smartphone matches this description and might be enough, but there are some more profound examples of devices (special headsets, eyeglasses, etc.) that were designed to provide an even more diverse and exciting experience for user engagement.
It is also worth mentioning that augmented reality is not the same concept as virtual reality, though they are often mentioned together. Virtual reality allows users to immerse themselves fully into another digital dimension which isn’t connected with the physical world at all, while augmented reality offers additions to the real environment, changing the person’s perception.
How Can Businesses Use Augmented Reality?
As you can guess, an ordinary user will associate an average AR app with the gaming or entertainment sectors. But what are the AR capabilities for business environments and enterprise needs and demands? Do the benefits of augmented reality really have the value we describe?
Truth be told, AR offers a lot to various industries; the question is if your company is technically mature enough to see the benefits of augmented reality and extract real value from them.
For example, retailers get a chance to enrich the customer experience they provide by offering their clients to contemplate and try their products before they make a purchase. Imagine how it will boost user engagement when they would be able to try the jeans they really like without leaving home or waiting for their package to be delivered, or if they would be able to overlay the new wallpaper in their room to plan their renovation.
This feature will not only attract people who want to test your products or services without going to your physical office or shop but also give you an advantage over your competitors who might not offer a similar user engagement experience as you.
Augmented reality can also enhance your operational efficiency. For example, it might be a great tool for collaborative work on prototypes: instead of spending type on making physical objects, you can simply use a virtual model your crew will access through augmented reality.
This way, you will be able to study your prototype in detail and interact with and test it as you want. Basically, you will gain the same benefits you will get from virtual reality but stay present in the physical world, which might be a must when working in teams in the same location.
AR applications are also valuable for training purposes. Whether you are in the manufacturing or the healthcare industry, augmented reality gives you 3D models of physical objects you can access any time you want and interact the way you need without any additional risks or expenses.
The list of AR use cases can go on and on. The technology is universal, and the potential is huge, so you are only limited with your creativity on how to access augmented reality advantages.
Top Benefits of Augmented Reality
Naturally, augmented reality creates a buzz around itself, as it happens with the majority of advanced technologies predicted by sci-fi novels and movies years ago. It might push you to ask a question: well, what if augmented reality is just a hype trend, affordable for tech giants, but it does not make sense for anyone else?
The thing is that it is much more accessible than you would have imagined, and the benefits of augmented reality can make a real difference for your business. So, let’s go through them in detail.
Better Customer Experience
This augmented reality benefit is the biggest and the most obvious: it is thrilling, and while more and more businesses adopt it, an AR app is still much more than the average application you download on your phone.
Augmented reality is also about making a customer’s life much easier, and we have mentioned it in the previous section. Clients appreciate when they are taken care of. Try to think two steps ahead and predict what your customer want and need before they ask, and you will always be the one they come back to. And augmented reality can be a strong tool to achieve that level of customer service.
Reduced Cognitive Overload
If you are selling something complex or something that needs to be carefully maintained (e.g., cars, machinery, household appliance), you might need to provide your buyers with a large volume of info. But let’s be honest: who really reads a manual?
Augmented reality can become a magic wand and help you to illustrate difficult concepts or visualize instructions in a way that would be easy to comprehend and follow. As a result, you got customers who know that you will return for your other products.
Remote Collaboration
One of the biggest benefits of augmented reality is the capacity to power up remote collaboration. It is especially relatable for manufacturers and other businesses using heavy machinery. If there is a breakage of certain equipment, you might not have time to wait until the specialist is going to arrive at your site to perform maintenance. Long downtime means higher losses, and it is something everyone wants to avoid.
In turn, augmented reality can become a great aid: the professional you are seeking can connect through AR, get a 3D model of equipment without travelling anywhere, diagnose it, and power up maintenance actions.
Brand Perception & Awareness
The implementation of augmented reality gives you an image of a tech-savvy, innovative company, open to exploring uprising trends and growing further. Whether you want to tap into new demographics (e.g., gen Z), or you want to reinvent your brand into a future-oriented business, augmented reality can give you that image, and if done right, you can experience other benefits of augmented reality, for example, winning some of the media attention and growing your brand awareness.
Competitive Advantage
Let’s admit it: some industries are slower to adjust to new realities than others. And while for some niches augmented reality might sound like yesterday’s news, for others, it might be a significant breakthrough and a new word in user engagement. So, if you understand that your industry is the one stuck behind, it might be a great idea to be the first to touch on the benefits of augmented reality, gain a competitive advantage or even become a trendsetter.
Cooperate with TechRivo to Build Augmented Reality Applications
So, if you are ready to start your journey to the benefits of augmented reality, we would be glad to give you a hand and guide you through the process. By cooperating with TechRivo, you will get:
- a team of top tech specialists fully dedicated to your development: we are a boutique agency, so we work simultaneously only on a few projects without spreading our attention all over the place;
- personalized approach for a better solution: we won’t try to make you adjust to us; on contrary, we stay flexible and agile to build a collaboration that will be comfortable for both sides and will ensure synchronization between us on every step;
- consistency and reliability: we want to be your partner, so our experts will be able to deliver the maximal value; hence, we don’t just write code, but focus on providing consistent and reliable services for you.
In Conclusion
Augmented reality in business? Definitely yes! The interactive nature of AR is a perfect basis for enterprises to connect with customers, win their attention, and eventually loyalty. The benefits of augmented reality might become pivotal to the future of your business, putting it in a totally another league, and revealing new revenue streams and markets.
Contact our team for an entry consultation regarding AR implementation for your business: we would be glad to help you explore the capacities and the benefits of augmented reality!
Author
Co-founder of TechRivo. The team member that likes to be between the business side of tech and the tech side of business. An AI enthusiast that believes it is the the time to bring those models from the university shelves to businesses.