Immersive Workshops: Create a Powerful Immersive Strategy to Ignite Engagement in 2020

Immersive technology will be a defining trend of the 2020s, and one of the most effective ways brands will communicate with their audience in the coming decade.

Sure, this claim may sound a little biased coming from us, but plenty of research supports this prediction, too.

The augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) markets are estimated to reach $60.55 billion and $34.08 billion by 2023, respectively, according to data from research company MarketsandMarkets. And in 2021, the number of AR users in the US alone is predicted to reach 85 million (more than a third of the population), while the number of VR users will surpass 57 million, according to 2019 data from eMarketer.

Is your organization prepared to make immersive tech a cornerstone of your marketing strategy in the year ahead? If not, participating in an immersive workshop can help bring you up to speed and make sure you don’t fall behind your competitors.

What are immersive workshops?

An immersive workshop is a cost-effective hands-on learning experience, led by Subvrsive creatives and technology experts, where companies can learn how to leverage immersive technology like AR, VR, computer vision, machine learning, and 360 video to meet organizational goals.

In many cases, exploring immersive capabilities for the first time can be overwhelming. It’s challenging enough to wrap your mind around how this emerging and evolving tech works, let alone identify how you’ll apply it to your marketing in a way that drives measurable ROI.

At Subvrsive, some brands come to us with pre-planned projects and a specific vision. But many others aren’t quite sure how they want to leverage immersive technology — or even what’s possible. They simply know they want to solve a specific problem, enhance the shopping experience, or share their brand story in a more unique and compelling way. In these cases, our immersive workshops can help brands flesh out their strategy and ensure they’re creating experiences to keep their audience captivated.

Immersive workshops are composed of four steps:

Pre-planning

Prior to meeting with your team, immersive experts from Subvrsive will dig into your business and industry, taking time to familiarize ourselves with the finer nuances of your vertical.

Business analysis

Then, we'll facilitate group discussions, and conduct stakeholder interviews to learn about your organization’s specific goals and challenges.

Tech petting zoo

You and your team can enjoy hands-on time with emerging tech like Oculus Quest, Magic Leap, Hololens, and more to see what’s possible.

Brainsteering

Together, through a series of guided exercises, we'll ideate, prioritize goals, and begin formulating an immersive strategy to help you reach your objectives.

After the immersive workshop, our team will quickly capture the details of the session in a light document and send it your way. Then, we'll dig into your company's specific needs to propose a variety of immersive solutions based on our brainsteering session. Each solution will include an overview, a development calendar, as well as cost estimates. Once the entire process is complete, you'll be ready to begin implementing immersive solutions and content designed to help your company better meet its specific goals.

How will an immersive strategy benefit your brand?

Many organizations know they need to deploy an immersive strategy to keep up with emerging trends, but aren’t quite sure how VR and AR will create value for their brand.Here are a few benefits you can expect from immersive technology-driven efforts:

Increase buyer confidence

When making a purchase online, consumers can’t be certain the item they’re investing in will meet their expectations. For example, a shade of lipstick might not look as expected, or a piece of furniture may not fit within a room. This leads to abandoned carts and returned merchandise. But immersive tech allows consumers to virtually interact with products before they buy. This way, they’ll know what works — and what doesn’t.

Establish emotional and memorable connections with your audience

While high-quality 2D content can charm and entertain buyers, immersive experiences help consumers feel closer to your brand. Similarly, they’re much more likely to remember your brand when they’ve engaged through AR or VR because it encourages them to participate in an experience rather than merely view a piece of content.

Keep consumers engaged longer

People are more likely to pay attention to content that’s tailored to their specific needs and preferences, and immersive tech allows you to personalize — at scale — like never before. And because experiential marketing is interactive and entertaining, audiences are less likely to become distracted by something else.

It’s also important to note that while immersive tech has, until recently, remained somewhat esoteric, it’s quickly becoming a marketing mainstay. And the more commonplace AR and VR become, the more consumers will expect it as a standard part of the brand experience.

As we look ahead to a new year — and a new decade — it’s becoming abundantly clear that immersive tech will be a critical piece of any brand’s strategy. By participating in immersive workshops, you can ensure you have the knowledge and tools to outpace your competitors well into the future.