Context in augmented reality marketing: Does the place of use matter?

Abstract

Augmented reality (AR) integrates virtual content into a consumer's perception of the real world. While academic interest in AR is growing, most prior research has focused on consumer evaluations of AR content and neglected the physical context in which AR content is consumed. Addressing this research gap, two experimental studies showed that context (e.g., experiencing a virtual sofa at home vs. in a university classroom) impacts consumer judgments and evaluations. The results reveal two primary effects of context. First, contexts in which virtual objects meet users' personal and cultural expectations associated with a specific location (e.g., a sofa in a living room) increase plausibility. However, such functionally appropriate contexts (counterintuitively) decrease local presence (i.e., the perception that the virtual product is “here”). Study 2 extends this model by showing that plausibility (a rational and deliberate assessment of AR content) and local presence both impact utilitarian benefits, whereas local presence has a stronger effect on perceived physical tangibility. The findings extend prior theory on the psychological mechanisms impacting judgment and presence in AR, and they provide managers with important insights regarding the influence of context on downstream variables in their AR and metaverse marketing strategies.

When reality backfires: Product evaluation context and the effectiveness of augmented reality in e‐commerce

“…Therefore, unfavorable product presentation via AR poses a potential threat to retailers, hitherto largely ignored by research (von der Au et al, 2023).…”

“…What prior AR research has in common is that the potential effects stemming from characteristics of the AR context have thus far been ignored (von der Au et al, 2023). Our research differs from existing AR research in that we manipulate the characteristics of the AR context to account for both layers of AR product evaluation: the inspected product as well as its evaluation context.…”

“…In such a situation, the product evaluation context evades control by retailersan unprecedented situation enabled by novel product evaluation technologies such as AR. Generally, we examined how AR is affected by the actual reality, which bears potential risks for retailers hitherto overlooked by AR research(von der Au et al, 2023). By manipulating the AR context (Study 1 and 2) and a design-related aspect of the product (Study 1 and 3), while keeping the product type constant, we contribute to a more holistic understanding of AR's effectiveness in e-commerce.We theorized and empirically tested the relationship between the evaluation context of the AR environment and product-related inferences consumers make based on these environmental stimuli.…”

Exploring the role of augmented reality as a new brand advocate

“…Many leading brands, including IKEA, Zara, Dulux, and Amazon, have already begun implementing AR to engage users with immersive experiences. From a marketing perspective, researchers have argued that AR, far from being merely a gimmick is a potential disruptor (Kumar & Srivastava, 2022;Rauschnabel, 2021;von der Au et al, 2023). Practitioners have identified exciting applications of AR for marketing-related activities-for example, user activation by the product itself (e.g., the Pizza Hut Pacman experience), trialing new products (e.g., Verizon for iPhone 13), and at-venue experience using QR (e.g., Madison Square Garden).…”

Exploring the Darkverse: A Multi-Perspective Analysis of the Negative Societal Impacts of the Metaverse

“…With AR, the potential challenges increase even further. AR devices are based on a detailed understanding of a user and their physical context (von der Au et al, 2023 ). In contrast to VR devices, AR glasses are often superior in terms of tracking capacity (e.g., multiple cameras and depth-scanners, LIDAR, etc.).…”