The Latest: Facebook Begins Testing Augmented Reality Ads

Here’s the latest in direct and digital marketing, and our take on how it will impact the industry. Snapchat expands their ad platform to include a ton of offline data and Facebook begins testing augmented reality ads.

Snapchat beefs up ad targeting in deal with Nielsen

Published On 07-18-2018  //  Ad Age

Snapchat and Nielsen are taking their partnership to the next level. The social media giant is now offering advertisers the ability to target Snapchat ad campaigns based on Nielsen’s Buyer Insights and Nielsen Catalina Solutions. Combined, both sources account for over 30,000 segments of data made up of loyalty card and credit card transactions.

Our Take

From a marketing standpoint, this is a huge step forward for Snapchat’s advertising platform. Snapchat’s targeting capabilities have long been behind Facebook and Instagram, and the integration of this data puts them on a much more even footing. Marketers, especially those with a more traditional direct background, will now seriously consider testing Snapchat. The only piece they are missing, as of this writing, is name and address matching.

Interesting enough, Facebook is currently scaling back their availability of similar offline data due to a public outcry of privacy concerns. Will Snapchat be held by the same standards?

Augmented reality ads are here. Is your brand ready?

Published On 07-13-2018  //  ClickZ

Facebook is experimenting with Augmented Reality ads in the Mobile News Feed placement. These ads, pictured below, are a virtual dressing room. Using the camera on an individual’s cell phone, the Facebook user can overlay a retailer’s product on their own face in real time. Here’s a great ad from Michael Kors:

Our Take

Augmented reality, while not a new technology, is a very interesting new front for clothing retailers. Since e-commerce exploded, there has always been a gap between how clothing items look on a screen with how items physically look on an individual. Ads like what Facebook is testing can start to bridge that gap.

From a marketing standpoint, these ads can drastically boost ad engagement, brand awareness and non-paid reach. Out of sheer fun, Facebook users will be trying on your product, taking pictures of themselves and sharing them with their friends. This will expand your brand outside of your initial targeted audience. Most importantly, if the individual likes the way the product looks on them, they’ll be more inclined to buy. This will boost ad ROI and ROAS.

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