In order to compete in today’s marketplace, it’s nearly a given that a brand must offer both digital and physical interactions for consumers. By the very nature of these two realms, the experiences in each are quite distinct. Each has its pros and cons.

Marketers are doing a good job creating interactions that take advantage of the strengths of each space. However, consumers are jumping back and forth across these worlds regularly and rapidly.

How easy or fluid is that transition so that they stay engaged? Let’s look at a few examples where brands and companies are extending the involvement in one dimension into the other dimension, creating tools to bridge the gap, and combining physical and digital elements into one experience—and doing so in ways that seem natural and effortless to consumers.

Lego’s newest product, Lego Fusion, offers an innovative, multi-faceted play experience. Using physical bricks, children can build cars, castles, and buildings on a special plate. Then by using an app that comes with the kit, the item is scanned and uploaded into a digital game. So after kids have put their bricks away, they can continue to interact with their creations in a highly immersive online environment. Children also have the option to connect virtually with their friends and see each other’s designs, providing a social component that makes the experience even more appealing. Lego Fusion works in the other direction as well. In order to advance in the digital game, youngsters must build new pieces in the real world. With the effortless back-and-forth between the physical and digital realms, Lego is facilitating the merging of these two domains and driving intense engagement with their products in both.

The Scribble Stylus is a tool that will make it easier to bridge the gap from the physical realm to the online realm. Equipped with an RGB color scanner and microprocessor, the Scribble Stylus is an innovative product that can capture the hue of any object in the real world. Used together with the Scribble+ app, the information can be used on any mobile device. Simply hold the stylus to an item and the exact shade is analyzed and saved for anytime use. The applications seem limitless. For example, if you want to purchase a new rug to coordinate with your current sofa, use the stylus to scan the couch and text the color to the furniture store. It fluently translates analog to digital, making it a seamless experience for users.

Google’s Project Tango and aisle411 have partnered to create a groundbreaking shopping experience for consumers—one that combines physical in-store shopping with virtual overlays to give them the best of both worlds.

The technology creates a 3D augmented reality, which shoppers can interact with in multiple ways: find where products are shelved, earn loyalty points, and take advantage of customized deals. Shoppers can accumulate points just by strolling through an aisle. In addition, as they walk by a particular product, an offer may virtually jump off the shelf. It’s almost as if shoppers are in a life-size digital game. Nathan Pettyjohn, aisle411 CEO, has this to say: “…it’s critical for retailers that their shoppers have the right tools to keep them engaged in the shopping experience. This new application is a fun way to shop and is sure to engage anyone using it.”

Brands today must satisfy consumer needs in both the digital and physical realms. As consumers will continue to move between domains, tools, products, and brands that can make that crossing seamless and simple will have a greater chance of succeeding.

For example, consider how your brand can enable or guide consumers from one medium to the other and back again. Marketers should explore how the brand experience could be extended into, or enhanced in, the other dimension. As shown in the Lego example, it may open up doors to product innovations. While augmented reality will not work for all brands, the concept behind blending or layering the experiential aspects of each space to increase engagement is sound. Keep in mind that while the technology behind the product or service may be complex, the transition for consumers should be easy. To keep them engaged, prioritize the continuity of the brand experience.

ABOUT THE AUTHORS:

Nanda Sibol brings over 15 years experience in strategy consulting, market research, brand marketing and general management. As Senior Director, Brand Strategy at Anthem, she’s worked on a variety of strategic assignments encompassing portfolio strategy, consumer insights, naming, brand architecture and brand positioning for CPG and retail clients.

Alex Krzyzosiak is Brand Strategist Coordinator at Anthem, a global creative agency that actively connects brands with people by amplifying desirability—creating an insatiable thirst for brands from package design to brand campaign to drive brand performance.

More Info: Anthem Worldwide’s website at Anthemww.com