Web AR is a way to access Augmented Reality(AR) experiences. It is gaining so much popularity because it’s super easy and readily available on-demand. So, on one hand, users can access AR hassle-free. On the other hand, businesses achieve better reach.
Users can access WebAR through a web browser. They don’t need to buy any special device or download any high-end application. They just need an internet connection and a smartphone or tablet having a web browser, that’s it. That is why Web AR is also known as browser-based AR or Web-based AR.
Users can click on the URL or scan a QR code that leads to the AR experience. Their mobile web browser will unfurl the experience through their camera and show it through the viewfinder. Like any other AR experience, they can see the digital AR elements and interact with them for an immersive experience.
WebAR has wide compatibility. Most of the popular operating systems, mobile devices, and web browsers support it without bumps. The experience may include images, animation, videos, and interactive 3D models. This brings us to an important question.
Why Web AR is one of the best marketing tools for businesses?
Web AR brings multiple benefits to businesses. The principal among them is the bypassing of the app route. Since users don’t need to download any application to access the experience, it results in wider reach, deeper engagement, and lesser bounce-backs.
Further, WebAR is very simple to use for both the consumer as well as for the business. It is highly compatible and works seamlessly on all the popular platforms. Let’s discuss the advantages of WebAR in detail.
Easy to access, easy to share
We have already discussed this in the above section. Web AR experiences are super easy to access. Users just need the URL to the experience and they can immerse themselves in it anytime, anywhere. This ease Web AR offers make it stand out.
Along the same lines, businesses avail the ease of sharing experiences with Web AR. They can share it through digital or print ads, social media platforms, business websites, blogs, or other mediums. This helps them expand their reach, and thereby, expand their businesses.
Optimum resource utilization and Pocket-friendly
While bypassing the app route has evident advantages for Web AR users, benefits for businesses go even further.
One of the eye-widening advantages is its contribution toward optimum business resource utilization. First, businesses don’t need to incur the app development cost, a huge cost in itself. Second, businesses can put their human resource into high-yielding projects. This saves your financial and human resources from a huge burden. After all, lesser hassles mean easy business and better growth prospects
Moreover, Creating Web AR experiences is not only simple but also very pocket friendly. For example, you can subscribe to Queppelin’s Vossle platform and create as many experiences as you want. The cost incurred here is merely a fraction of what it takes for an app development cycle. Any person with good business acumen would choose it for its quality and price.
Higher engagement with a deeper impression
To build a strong brand, it is vital to leave a more profound impression on the audience. This way they better retain the brand’s name adding to the top-of-the-mind brand awareness. Equally important is reaching a wider audience. This helps in faster brand building and enhances revenue.
Web AR brings you both the benefits. It lets users interact with the 3D models placed in their real-world environment. Thus, it is more like they are living the experience. This results in better engagement with the brand and leaves a deeper impression on the user compared to unilateral images and videos.
On the other hand, it can easily reach more and more people. Anyone with a smartphone can access the experience. If we talk in terms of numbers, around 7.26 Billion smartphones are making up over 91% of the world’s population. So more and more people get deeply engaged with your brands with Web AR.
No updates required
Brands do not need to update Web AR experiences time and again. They can just create and share it as many times in different ways as they want.
Similarly, users, too, don’t even need to install and update experiences like in the case of software applications.
Hence it saves the additional recurring cost, time, and other resources for both businesses and consumers.
Faster to create and deploy
Platforms like Vossle, by Queppelin, help you create Web AR experiences faster. First, you need to get your 3D models created. Then, you can just register for free, fill in the details, upload your 3D models and the experience is ready.
The link and the QR code are provided at the end of experience creation. You can share with your audience in any way you want. Anyone with the link or QR code can access the experience.
Moreover, in case you want to create a tryon, Queppelin has taken it further. The Web AR experiences created on Vossle put the digital wearable right away. No need for a detailed scan or image upload like other platforms. You can try it yourself with free registration and free trial available.
Wider Compatibility Spectrum
Web AR experiences are compatible with a range of web browsers as well as devices including operating systems. While it smoothly runs like Google Chrome, Safari, and others. They also easily run on smartphones and tablets with Operating systems like Microsoft’s Windows, iOS, Android, etc.
This is one of the reasons why Web AR reaches more audience than any other marketing strategy. Moreover, if people love the experience they tend to share it with others. Since they can do it easily with Web AR, it results in a higher probability of the experience going viral.
How WebAR works?
As is apparent, Web AR makes the most out of the existing mobile software and hardware to overlay 3D virtual elements in the real world. For the hardware part, it utilizes the orientation, gyroscope, RGB camera, accelerometer, and magnetometer.
Utilizing the above instruments Web AR executes six degrees of freedom, scene understanding, camera stream, and cloud-based CMS. Let’s look at them one by one.
Six Degrees of Freedom (6DoF)
Six degrees of freedom means the freedom of movement of a rigid body in a three-dimensional space. WebAR tracks a model’s three axes of orientation i.e. yaw around the normal axis, pitch around the transverse axis, and roll around the longitudinal axis. The other three axes of position are the body movements like forward/backward (surge), up/down (heave), and left/right (sway).
Camera Stream
Camera Stream is for synchronizing the virtual and real world. So, when the user moves the camera the digital object should carry out the corresponding movement following the predefined movements around axes. Also, the RGB camera is used here to provide perspective and field of view.
Scene Understanding
Scene understanding refers to mapping a surface and assessing the surrounding light to place a 3D object and make it look realistic.
Cloud-Based CMS
Cloud-based Content management system(CMS) gives users access to the AR experience from anywhere, at any time. A QR code or a URL act as a triggering link. These triggers can be placed anywhere online or offline medium.
How Industries can utilize Web AR?
Web AR is capable of delivering all sorts of AR experiences over the internet. Thus, it offers highly customizable AR experiences to brands in different industries.
Fashion
Brands operating in the fashion industry can utilize the AR tryon. Through this feature, they can let users try their apparel, footwear, watches eyewear, jewelry, and even the cosmetics like lipsticks, eye-liner, eye shadows, tattoos, masks, etc. This helps the customer take decisions faster and thus, improves sales.
Queppelin created AR Tyron for India’s biggest jewelry retailers Tanishq. Users can try the true-to-life AR jewelry and have a clear idea about the piece.
Home Decor & Furniture
Home decore and furniture businesses can use the markerless AR experiences. It will place the object right into the users place. They can check if the size is right, they have enough space or if the styling and color goest with the interior. It also helps in reducing returns up to 30% and increase the business income.
Tourism
Tourist industry can use the AR teleportation to give a glimpse of the tourist. Users can check the attractions, activities and places to visit right from their couches. This will add to their experience right at the time of planning and leave them wanting for more. A sure-shot strategy ti attract more footfall.
Entertainment
In the entertainment industry and immersive layer of AR will make multiply fun. The images bring to life, music can me watched, and games can be made more realistic. It will outclasses all other forms of entertainment.
Conclusion
Augmented Reality is the attractive more and more people everyday. It add a new dimension to our reality which viewer can resist. They want to explore it more and brand need to captatlize on their desire. WeB AR is the most easiest version of AR and no doubt it would be the most popular one in the future.
Nothing can match the benefits of Web AR for business. It has a wider reach, engages the audience deeply, easy to create, easy to share and, most importantly, cost effective. Brands can share in what ever way they want and user can access wherever they are.
Queppelin gets you all sorts of AR experiences with high stability and smooth operation. Feel free to reach and explore the potential of AR with us.