The Growth Agenda podcast: Brands behold the rise of immersive content

Brands should not discard their role in the booming world of immersive content without doing the necessary due diligence to assess if it’s right for them. In episode eight of TGA podcast, EA Games, Special and CHEP explore.

Director Asia Marcom strategy EA Games Liam McClure, creative technologist at Special Laurent Marcus, executive creative director at CHEP Network Amy Weston and TGA editor Pippa Chambers.

Brands should not discard their role in the booming world of immersive content without doing the necessary due diligence to assess if it’s right for them.

Whether it’s 3D, augmented reality (AR) or virtual reality (VR) content - either within or outside the metaverse - it’s a growing space where brands can connect and interact with consumers

Described by creative technologist at Special Laurent Marcus as a great space for brands to create “richer and two-way experiences” with the consumer, rather than the brand simply controlling the whole narrative, the role of immersive content has been steadily spilling out of a gaming-only habitat into a more mainstream world.

Whether it‘s the use of AR filters on social media, brands like Nike and Spotify showing up in a virtual universe such as Roblox, beer brand Miller Lite creating the first-ever brand hosted bar in the metaverse during the Super Bowl, or a retailer updating their 2D product offering to a 3D-try on experience, immersive content strategies and creative can vary wildly.

In episode eight of The Growth Agenda (TGA) podcast, director of Asia marcom strategy for EA Games Liam McClure, executive creative director at CHEP Network Amy Weston and Mr Marcus discussed themes around whether tech was driving creativity or vice versa.

Hosted by TGA editor Pippa Chambers, the guests delved into immersive content inside and outside of the metaverse as well as the role of creativity and creative agencies in this space.

“There is this much deeper request and need for more experiential and deeper content experiences from consumers,” Sydney-based Mr McClure said.

At EA Games, Mr McClure said the business is looking at how it goes beyond the game with more immersive experiences for not just consumers, but also its partnerships with advertisers.

Ms Weston said it’s vital brands have the relevance to be showing up in immersive content experiences and cited Samsung and Snapchat’s partnership that tapped into AR as a great example. The tie-up allowed people to see how Samsung’s smartwatch fit their wrist without having to head into a physical Samsung store or buy online without confidence.

“Brand’s are starting to ask us how they can engage and play with consumers in these [immersive content] spaces more,” Ms Weston said.

“That idea of interaction and exploration with a brand is right, it‘s just which platforms and which channels we’re choosing to make it accessible and whether we manufacture that experience, or whether we find it and go to them.”

Whether it’s taking something more traditional like out of home media channel and adding a layer of immersive content to it, or it’s placing content within an already immersive world like the metaverse, Ms Weston stressed it's important to ensure the brand has relevance and has “the right” to be having a conversation with them in that space.

Having recently created an ad campaign involving AR for bubble tea brand Chatime - in which its chief marketing officer Joanna Robinson told The Growth Agenda gave the brand its “highest sales week ever” - Mr Marcus said immersive content is the ideal playing field for creative agencies.

Check out the podcast for more.