Brief:

• Goodr boosted conversion rates by 32% among mobile shoppers with an augmented reality (AR) experience that lets people virtually try on its sunglasses for runners. The AR experience lets shoppers see an accurately sized 3D view of the sunglasses as they turn their heads in different directions, per an announcement shared with Mobile Marketer.
• Goodr worked with AR developer Vertebrae on the web-based AR experience, removing the need to download a separate app for a virtual try-on. The experience works faster than apps that require mobile users to upload a five-second video of themselves turning their heads before adding an AR overlay, Vertebrae claims.
• Vertebrae's technology uses data from a smartphone's selfie camera to map a person's facial features and overlay a digital rendering of the trial product at the right scale and position, per the announcement.

Insight:

Goodr's web-based AR try-on aims to demonstrate its sunglasses to mobile shoppers who are unwilling or unable to visit stores during the coronavirus pandemic. The company has seen a jump in conversions, indicating that AR technology can be effective at giving mobile shoppers a better idea of how Goodr's sunglasses will appear in real life. AR try-ons can help to increase consumer satisfaction and reduce product returns that are costly for retailers to process, Pymnts.com reported.

Product showcasing by retailers had been considered a promising application for AR technology even before the pandemic led to store closures. With the surge in e-commerce during lockdowns, direct-to-consumer brands and retailers may increase their adoption of AR technology to demonstrate products to people who prefer to shop from home. Before the pandemic, retailers had been forecast to spend $1.5 billion on augmented and virtual reality technology to improve the customer experience, per researcher International Data Corp. (IDC). While retailers face financial pressures, they may need to increase their investments in the technologies to reach mobile shoppers.

Goodr is the latest fashion brand to adopt AR technology to demonstrate its products. Bollé last week released an AR experience to let Instagram users virtually try on its Phantom model of sunglasses, and see how its different styles of lenses work. Adidas, Burberry, Gucci, Nike and Puma also have adopted AR technology in their marketing.