Augmented reality is real. Sure, it might not look like it does in the movies, but it does exist. What’s more, it’s being tapped by a number of grocery brands including big names such as Cadbury, Heinz and Coca-Cola, who have teamed up with Blippar.

For them, it presents a unique opportunity to add another dimension to marketing campaigns and, importantly, another format for interaction with consumers.

“Embracing augmented reality (AR) technologies allows fmcg companies to maximise the return on what is probably their highest-reach owned media: their product packaging,” says Omaid Hiwaizi, president of global marketing at Blippar.

He adds: “It enables a broad range of digital marketing techniques ranging from content marketing (including inspiration and educational content and even episodic content, making the packaging a media channel), e-commerce (through couponing and shopping basket integration) through to shopper marketing applications across the entire path to purchase – both in-store and at usage occasions.”

Hiwaizi cites General Mills and Pepsi as players that have had enormous success with their campaigns, achieving interaction rates between 1% to 15% of pack distribution. He believes this is due to three main principles:

  • · Clear alignment of campaign content with passion points of the audience:
  • · Visibility of the call to action – prominence and clarity on pack and wide distribution of packs: and,
  • · An attractive value exchange – making it highly compelling to engage and interact.

So, which other brands have been successful?

Here’s our pick of the best Blippar fmcg campaigns:

Heinz Tomato Ketchup

Heinz became the first sauce brand to use Blippar technology in 2011 as part of its Secret Ingredient campaign, which aimed to inspire people to use tomato ketchup as a cooking ingredient. By ‘blipping’ a bottle, consumers unlocked a pop-out recipe booklet that could be downloaded as a PDF or used to click through to video instructions on the brand’s Facebook page.

There was a competition element as well. Each time a consumer ‘blipped’ they had the opportunity to win a Secret Ingredient pack, including a wooden spoon, apron, oven mitt, a bottle of Heinz Ketchup and a tomato-shaped dispenser.

Cadbury Dairy Milk

Cadbury teamed up with Blippar for its official launch in 2011, which allowed the brand to create an augmented reality game called Qwak Smack. Described as quirky and childishly fun, the game allows the player to tap quacking cartoon ducks as they appear out of the chocolate bar to win an array of prizes. Cadbury says it was ”blown away” by the technology and noted the potential market for initiatives like this given how many UK adults now own a smartphone.

Coca-Cola 250ml can

Coca-Cola turned its 250ml cans into portable jukeboxes with the use of Blippar. Drinkers blipped the dotted outline of the can to turn it into an interactive Spotify jukebox allowing them to listen to the top 50 UK songs at that moment on Spotify.

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