Augmented reality gives brands some new tricks for Halloween

Dive Brief:

An AR cash scavenger hunt called Hidden Money Halloween is happening Oct. 31 in New York City. The event’s Facebook page claims it has an unnamed “large corporate sponsor” backing it, though the company actually facilitating the hunt is probably GoMeta, as The Gothamist points out. The fledgling San Diego startup shares the same logo as the one that appears on Facebook and has hosted similar events before.
Hidden Money Halloween participants can use their mobile phones to search the city for virtual cash rewards, some worth up to thousands of dollars, with the rewards increasing based on the number of people who RSVP.
Also on the AR Halloween front, Pokemon Go launched its first-ever in-game event Wednesday, as reported by TechCrunch. The Halloween update, which runs through Nov. 1, will increase the number of “spooky” Pokemon that appear, and give players more in-app rewards like candy for successfully catching the monsters.

Dive Insight:

Augmented reality can be a fun way engage consumers on mobile, offering interactive activities that extend beyond the scope of the screen. Given its real world integrations, AR is also a medium particularly well-suited to facilitating real time marketing events that capitalize on holidays like Halloween to run themed campaigns and generate foot traffic.

Assuming GoMeta is behind Hidden Money Halloween — which is highly likely — the stunt could also build East Coast buzz for the mysterious startup, which was founded last month by Dmitry Shapiro, previously of Google, as Variety reports. At the very least, the promise of free money lying (virtually) around is probably enough to pique the interests of some New Yorkers looking to scrape by on their November rent.

As GoMeta possibly looks to build a brand, Pokemon Go may be trying to revitalize its own. After capturing the minds of marketers and the masses alike this summer, the Nintendo/Niantic app has flared out considerably in terms of hype, so running limited campaigns with exclusive in-app rewards could revitalize interest and engagement — at least until the next holiday rolls around.