Virtual reality, alongside its little brother – augmented virtual reality, has quickly become a worthwhile topic across the majority of industries. The global VR (Virtual Reality) market anticipates an overall valuation of more than $26 Billion by the end of 2022 according to a report published by Zion Market Research.
Going further, leading virtual development companies such as Singapore’s Swag Soft are positive that its application span across a multitude of spectrums, encompassing a range of different industries.
According to the latter, “virtual reality development can be applied towards many disciplines – such as gaming, marketing, entertainment, education, engineering, fashion, training, art, simulation and much more.” – to put it in their words exactly.
VR is an exciting new technology which is being improved by the minute and we’ve already seen some massive hard hitters in the face of the Pokémon GO – the game which managed to take the entire world by a storm.
It’s obvious that this is a technology which is only going to get better, and with 2017 being almost gone, we’ve decided to take a peek behind the curtain and pinpoint a few of the top trends in VR development to look forward to in 2018.
Going Well Beyond Sound and Vision
Up until this moment, the emphasis is placed towards those two senses – vision and sound. However, serious progress is being made in involving our other senses in the immersive virtual reality. At the 2017 Tokyo Game Show we saw the VAQSO VR – a scent enabling device with the size of a Snickers bar. It’s claimed to be the “world’s smallest virtual reality scent device” and it can be attached to any VR Headset, regardless of its kind.
It was rolled out in the form of a demo and it was paired with VR applications across a range of industries such as travel, gaming, fashion, and whatnot.
In any case, this is just an example of the total sensory immersion which is to follow in 2018. We expect to see massive improvements in this regard, greatly attribution to the overall real-time feel brought to you by the VR technology.
V-Commerce
It’s no secret that both VR and AR have a substantial potential of disrupting the entire e-commerce field. V-Commerce does sound like a name that would be used to describe it. Consumers will be able to test out clothes, gear as well as a range of different products before they place their purchase.
What is more, when the technology is developed enough through the implementation of different sensory devices, we could potentially be able to test out smells and flavors as well.
VR is undoubtedly a part of the future of retail. A lot more 3D experiences would be employed to engage customers and retain their attention.
Advertising Integration
Advertising taps its way throughout everything with exposure and VR is undoubtedly not going to be an exception. What is more, it could easily be the most effective way to reach out to your perfect customer and plant your brand in their mind.
VR advertising could easily take advantage of the social profile of the user and display relevant advertisements through a simulated or augmented reality. This is likely to have a huge impact on the overall customer journey.
What is more, since VR is so broad and it could be applied to almost any industry, the possibilities for advertising are virtually unlimited.