How IKEA is Applying AR Technology to Marketing

Nowadays, companies like Apple and Nintendo spend tons of money and time on augmented reality or AR. This emerging technology will help companies to enhance user experience, build customer engagement and improve work-training efficiency. Last week, I used the IKEA AR application to help me with purchasing decisions, and I found it very interesting. In this blog, I will talk about how IKEA uses augmented reality to achieve the marketing objective.

About IKEA

IKEA is a Swedish retail company that designs and sells affordable self-assembling furniture and home accessories and home services. Its mission is to offer good design and function at a low price to customers.
People would find the pleasure of discovering beautiful home improvement products at an affordable price. In 2018, IKEA launched the AR application IKEA Place to improve its customer engagement.

What is AR?

According to Wikipedia, augmented reality is defined as an interactive experience of a real-world environment where the objects that reside in the real world are enhanced by computer-generated perceptual information. This popular technology allows people to visualize their imagination and desires in the surrounding real-life environment. Now AR technology is widely applied to websites and smartphone applications for products virtual display.

AR Application for IKEA

In 2018, IKEA introduced its augmented reality mobile application IKEA Place to Android and IOS platforms. The application uses smartphone cameras and AR technology to enable customers to see how IKEA products display in their homes. IKEA Place also allows people to take a picture with their phone of any furniture they see and then find similar IKEA products. The application enhances the engagement by visualizing IKEA products in any customized background, and it helps customers to find the desired furniture and make purchasing decisions.

My Thought

In my opinion, the IKEA augmented reality application is a great strategy to improve user experience and increase sales. Last week, I used the IKEA Place app to see how the sectional sofas look like in my living room and which color is the best match for my living space. The AR tools resolved my concerns and helped me to choose the right products for me. It will also help people who are not comfortable with indoor shopping during the pandemic to make online purchases. Due to the direct visualization feature, I believe the AR application would make a huge impact on marketing development. It changes customer shopping behavior and brings convenience eventually.