In the not-so-distant future, babies will be born and they will grow into kids who never knew a world without virtual reality. VR won’t be some new and awe inspiring technology to them, it will be the norm.
The digital experience for these kids will be completely different to that of their parents and their grandparents.
Until such a time, VR is this new(ish) and fascinating technology that is finally becoming financially accessible for us average folk. If you have had the opportunity to step into a virtual reality world you can immediately see how it is going to change the face of the digital world and it is only in the infancy stage right now, VR is only going to get bigger and better.
Some of the virtual reality outlets are obvious, playing a video game is never going to be the same, you will be IN the game. Screw paintball parks, virtual reality parks will be popping up all over the place, taking first person gaming to new heights. They are building one in Utah at this moment that is scheduled to open Fall 2016.
So, what is virtual reality going to mean for websites and digital marketing? How is virtual reality and Calgary going to blend together?
Content Marketing
At a foundation level, content marketing is the art of creating content that people actually want to see/watch/read. VR is going to take content marketing to a whole new level. In their living rooms people are going to be using virtual reality in Calgary to experience YouTube videos, rather than just watch them. Your content is going to be experienced instead of interpreted.
Immersive
On that experiential note, just imagine people experiencing your brand instead of looking at it through a screen. Real Estate virtual tours are going to be completely different when seen through the VR lens. One day, open houses could be a thing of the past because people can walk through a house for sale through the magic of virtual reality in Calgary. One of the most common requests we get from clients is to make their website and brand communicate their culture and the feel of their offices. Once virtual reality becomes as common as personal computers and 360 degree cameras get easier to use businesses will be able to instantly immerse their clients in their offices and culture.
Socializing
Facebook has made it abundantly clear that they plan on making virtual reality headsets a big part of their social platform going forward – their $2 billion dollar purchase of oculus rift proved they are taking VR very seriously. Virtual Reality will be a great way to allow customers to interact with your brand, however, VR will likely give your customers greater control of what they experience, this could potentially go sideways for you, for a myriad of reasons.
E-commerce
E-commerce may be a multi-billion dollar industry right now, but just imagine if you could try on those boots before buying them? Or put that sofa in your living room to see if it fits? This may be a little hyperbolic, but e-commerce virtual reality could make physically going shopping obsolete. There is a large segment of the population (teenage girls aside) that would love never having to go to the mall ever again.
Of course, it’s not just digital marketing that is going to ride the virtual reality wave. Businesses can use this technology for working remotely and HR departments will likely be on the VR train early. Just imagine having an interview with someone using virtual reality in Calgary when your business is in Australia. Instead of asking people questions about how they would react in a situation, HR teams can put people in that situation using virtual reality to see how they actually would react.
Also, did we mention, VR video games! They will be so realistic your face will probably want to melt off.