”17% of our visitors are using this and they are converting two to three times more.”

Now, that’s a great stat, but when you couple it with data we’ve previously noted in this blog…

• Online retailer Banana Flame saw a 50% improvement in conversions on the “add to cart” button after integrating WSS (more Banana Flame data here).
• WSS is proven to help young women make more informed purchase decisions – “Seeing it on helped me decide” (Link)

… it becomes a trend.  It shows that augmented reality can provide real value for people, which subsequently provides real value (i.e. ROI) for businesses.

The average time spent with the Anthem Blue Cross ad is 76.1 seconds, Seventy-seven percent of consumers run through all three tools, and 71.6% of consumers click through to the landing page for more information after completing the interaction with the advertisement. (source)

Not bad numbers for an ad huh?

Below is a little visual walk-through of the experience…

As you can see, the space is starting to heat up.

We’ll try to update this list regularly, so please feel free to add anything I’m missing in the comments.

• Total Immersion gets $5.5M to expand augmented reality (Link)
• Layar Augments Reality With $14M in New Funding (Link)
• Tonchidot Raises $12 Million Round B, Expands Augmented Reality/Social Gaming Platform SoLAR Globally (Link)
• EU backs ST-Ericsson to deliver augmented reality (Link)
• Google, Apple Making Augmented Reality Cool Amid CES (Link)
• Microsoft And TechStars Launch Kinect Accelerator For New Kinect-Based Startups (Link)
• Qualcomm opens submissions for its $200,000 Augmented Reality Developer Challenge (Link)
• Blippar raises seed funding from Qualcomm for mobile augmented reality technology (Link)
• Gamma III structures first round funding of Mobilizy GmbH (Makers of Wikitude) (Link)
• HP Acquires Control of Autonomy Corporation (Makers of Aurasma) (Link)
• Augmented Reality App Maker CrowdOptic Scores $500,000 In New Funding (Link)
• More funding news in Poland: augmented reality game ShootAR is backed by IIF (Link)
• 110 Stories: Augmented Reality Twin Towers iPhone App (Link)
• GoldRun Scores Funding for Mobile Discovery/AR App (Link)
• DARPA’s next-gen wearable display: augmented-reality, holographic sunglasses (Link)
• AR Developers Ogmento Raise $3.5M for Augmented Gaming Apps (Link)

So, without further ado, let me give you a run down of our thinking on 3D Virtual Fitting Rooms:

THE GOOD

1. Depth Sensing Cameras – The cameras these executions are using are cutting edge and offer (developers) some huge opportunities to create compelling motion/gesture based user interfaces, and overall more sophisticated augmented reality user experiences. A depth sensing camera’s functionality is simply leaps and bounds more advanced than the average person’s webcam… it’s not even close. To borrow a Larry Miller quote: “It’s the difference between shooting a bullet and throwing it.”
2. Powerful Hardware Systems – When we’re looking at In-Store 3D Virtual Fitting Rooms, developers are able to control the hardware that’s powering the experience. That means they can create significantly more powerful applications since they don’t need to build software for the hardware the average user has at home (like we do). This is definitely a benefit.
3. Foot Traffic – These types of systems are pretty novel, and initially people will be interested in playing around with them. So if you’re one of the first stores to utilize the tech, you’ll probably generate a bit of extra foot traffic, and a bit of buzz.

THE BAD

1. At Home Hardware & Penetration – All of these 3D Virtual Fitting Rooms claim to work in people’s homes. And technically, that’s possible. They can be made to work in a home, but I’m going to get right to the point: do you have a depth sensing camera at home? Probably not. In short, that means you can’t use the 3D Virtual Fitting Room.  The fact is PCs and connected TVs are a few years away from having depth sensing cameras integrated natively, so realistically your only opportunity to have a depth sensing camera at home is to own a Microsoft Kinect.  So, let’s assume you have a Microsoft Kinect at home — after all, as of March there were already 10 million units sold. First off, as we discuss consumer reach, is should be noted that that number pales in comparison to the PC numbers Intel noted recently: over 1 million computers are sold daily and there are 1.5 billion in use. Second, Microsoft hasn’t announced details around commercial licenses for the Kinect. And that’s important. Will a retailer have to pay 50 grand to create Xbox applications? Will Microsoft take 30% of sales and kill any margins? Will they even allow a third party shopping application on X-Box Live or will they “reject” them when submitted? These are all questions that today we don’t know the answers to. So, if only a minority of people even have potentially compatible hardware, and those that do have no ability to access the software… how can people realistically use a retailer’s 3D Virtual Fitting Room at home?
2. Content Is King, And There Is No Content – This one will be quick: Manufacturers/Retailers don’t have 3D assets of their clothing items, and as of today 3D assets for augmented reality are cost prohibitive to produce. And without clothes, it’s not a very compelling “fitting room” is it?
3. “Fit” Just Can’t Be Done – Even if retailers could create perfect looking 3D assets in a cost effective manner, these alleged “3D Virtual Fitting Rooms” can’t accurately portray fit (i.e. where a garment would actually bunch, hang, or bulge on a person’s very unique body), or provide shopper’s with the tactile feedback that’s such a key component of the “promise of fit”.
4. What’s The Value-Ad For The In-Store Shopper? – Question: What exactly does the spate of 3D Virtual Fitting Rooms add to the current in-store shopping experience? It’s new… and different, sure. But does it truly help the shopper shop? Once they get past some initial “wow factor”, will it continue to add to the shopping experience? I mean, the actual dress is three feet away on a hanger. If they’re at home, I get it.  It can help them to better visualize what the item might look like on them.  But why would a shopper that’s in a store prefer to “hold up” a digital dress, rather than feel and interact with the real deal? They made the effort to leave their homes, and come to a store. Why would they then opt for an experience they could pretty much have at home on their laptop?

As I’m sure you can guess, in my opinion the “bad” outweighs the “good” for today’s crop of 3D Virtual Fitting Rooms. The technology is incredibly powerful but I think that the realities of the current marketplace make this technology an unwise investment for retailers.  To be honest, if a retailer has the luxury of being on a development timeline that lasts a few years and can afford some R&D, then my advice would change. But with budgets being tight, if a retailer wants to make an impact today, I think it’s way more prudent for them to start with a 2D experience online. It’ll cost less; will be easier to produce/execute; will be usable by significantly more of their shoppers; and, already has data to support its effectiveness.

As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts below…  And you can find me on twitter here.

K-BEE LEOTARDS – A U.S. based retailer of girl’s gymnastics leotards. (Link)

LAZY LAZY – Based in Denmark, it’s an online shopping centre, where unique brand shops (such as Diesel) are displayed side by side in their own unique environments. (Link)

We’re thankful to work with retailers that “get” that the future of ecommerce is social, visual and interactive. And as you can see, this isn’t just U.S. based thinking. It’s global. We now have clients in Russia, Italy, Poland, Denmark, the U.K. and of course the U.S. And we have retailers in Turkey, Brazil, Malaysia and the Czech Republic in production…

Speaking of being thankful, it is the season of giving, so we’d like to let you all know that for the next two weeks we’re offering (new) retailers a 90-Day risk free trial of WSS. So if you’re a retailer that’s interested in checking out what WSS can do for your shoppers, now’s the time to pull the trigger. Or, if you know someone that might be interested in this offer, please do us a favor and share this blog post with them.

For anyone that’s interested in licensing WSS, please contact us at info(at)Zugara(dot)com.

It’s always fun to watch people’s reactions in these videos. Part amazement, part wonder and part pure joy.  I like all three executions, but personally, the National Geographic’s one is my favorite.  Admittedly, I’m a bit of a nerd about NatGeo (among other things).  I love that channel.  But I also love that they used some gesture controls to make the AR experience more interactive.

So what do you think?  Which one do you like best?  I’d love to get your thoughts below…

DISNEY

Highlight: According to Mashable “many of the character interactions are done live. That means that the characters can respond directly to how guests are moving and reactions from the crowds.”

NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC

Highlight: Appears to include gesture controls, so people can interact and engage with the experience.

LYNX

Highlight: They did it first, before Disney or National Geographic.

So we teamed up with Saatchi & Saatchi Mexico to create a Breast Cancer Awareness application for Olay that utilizes an animated silhouette (and a motion capture interface) to educate women on the proper technique to use when giving themselves a breast exam. All women need is the right Olay t-shirt and a webcam, and they are good to go.

This is yet another example of how augmented reality can be used to facilitate a particular experience, one that in this case educates in an interactive manner.

Note:  The engagement actually launches as a pop-up off the site, so please make sure you allow pop-ups on the page.