Possibly; although you've probably never that term before, the phrase 'augmented reality' has been around for a couple of decades.
Why should I care?
'Augmented Content' has the potential to be a many-multiples-billion-dollar sector over the next decade. It will also very likely change the way you read, use & interact with published content over the coming decades.
So what is it?
The best way to describe it would be to use a practical, everyday in-use example - the humble hyperlink. That's the clickable web-link, for the non-techie, or URL (or uniform resource locator) for us more tech-types.*
Since their original form, URLs have been improved, such as by being optimised for search engine ranking, had data (& meta-data) attached to them, & have been shortened for use in character-poor social media platforms. Its hard to imagine using email, browsing the internet or navigating websites without them. Whole business models & industries have evolved around this simple but practical concept.
So how are they similar?
Ok, let me give you a practical example of 'AC' in a simple form. If you hover your mouse over most hyperlinks, you will get additional information about where & what that link points to, such as perhaps an image, description, or an action to be performed.
The concept of 'augmented content' is very similar; to enhance content with outcomes, activities, products or destinations that are important to both the publisher and consumer of the concept, in a way that creates one-to-one interaction & loyalty - you might call it the ultimate 'holy-grail' of marketers world-wide. It holds promise to become one of the 'next big waves' in marketing .
In following installments, I will describe how you can build- and profit from - augmented content in your own space.
PS *Clickable URL's were originally invented (or so I'm told) by British Telecom in the 1970's. in hindsight unfortunately for them, neither the inventor nor BT patented, protected or commercialised the concept.
No comments:
Post a Comment