For anyone creating or thinking about creating an experience with any sort of enabling technology, look no further than Macy’s. With their new Believe-o-Magic Augmented Reality experience, they show us that when you use new technologies like this:
1. Don’t let the entire experience hinge on this technology
2. Do what you can to extend something that already exists
3. Anything that creates an emotional tie between people and/or people and a brand has a pretty good chance of use and success.
Macy’s hits at the heart of a deep cornerstone of Christmas – every little boy and girl’s belief in Santa Claus and the magic wrapped up in the whole wonder. And this year, they’re doing it through emerging technology. Beautiful.
I have written about Macy’s a few times before, primarily because of their Behind the Scenes QR Code campaign. I really liked what they did with that campaign in terms of using all their channels to raise awareness and promote the actual program. Their broadcast spots supported it, their social media efforts supported it, even their in-store supported it. It was a seemingly well-thought out campaign as opposed to so many that we see that seem like afterthoughts.
So, it made me smile when I saw their foray into another enabling technology – this time, augmented reality.
Fundamentally, I really like what they’re doing with this letters-to-Santa program. They’ve had a mailbox to Santa for the past few years, at least. It is a ritual for our family to go to Macy’s and let the kids write their letters to Santa. Our kids love it. (And oh by the way, they do make a donation to Make-a-Wish for every letter received up to $1 million. Say what you will about that, I think it’s a nice tie-in.)
At this time of the year, this is the thing that separates Macy’s from the other department stores at this time of the year. This is the reason that we go to Macy’s before any others. So, this is just a solid program without any of the fancy technology.
But it’s here, in this fancy technology that makes ME want to go and be a part of the experience myself. This year, they’ve created a Believe-o-Magic (great name, btw) mobile application that allows you to pose with characters from a Christmas narrative that they created, take a picture, make a virtual Christmas card, and send out to whoever you want, including those in your social network.
Now, I’ll be very interested to see if Macy’s audience (parents, more middle-class than not, who knows what their familiarity with emerging technologies like this is??) is the right audience for augmented reality, but what I love about it is this – they are now deepening the experience. Without ruining it. The experience is already special, just in the fact that kids can write letters to Santa and put them in a big, red mailbox. Add an enabling technology on top of it and you have an (a) richer experience and (b) one that creates a more interesting piece of social content.
This experience does not require this app or technology to exist. That’s a great thing. Take note, and as much as you can help, when you create an experience that uses any sort of emerging technology, don’t let the experience live and die with that technology. It should just be an extension, one that deepens and extends the experience.
Last month, I sat in on a session with Michael Tobin (VP, eCommerce Integration) of Macy’s and I walked away knowing that they are very in tune with connecting with consumers, on their terms, through whatever technology is best for them. They’re not afraid to experiment with these new technologies, but they’re measured and thoughtful about how they use them, too. In my opinion (based on their QR code campaign and now this), they’re very good at thinking strategically about implementing them.
This is another thing we can learn from them – how can you tie this new technology to programs that already exist? It’s (relatively) easy to create an Augmented Reality something-or-other. It’s an entirely different thing to use the technology to make something that already exists better.
It doesn’t seem like Macy’s does something just to do it. I think that’s a hard temptation to fight in today’s world, with all of this new technology around. It just screams for people to play with it and often times, spend big money doing it. But with a measured approach, you might just create believers in all sense of the word.
Last month, I attended one of the major conferences in the digital signage circuit, Customer Engagement Technology World (CETW). I have been to the conference over the span of three years and have seen its evolution into what I would deem, "the best conference that no one knows about."
I think one of the problems with any conference centered around technology (like digital signage) is that it can easily become a conference about the technology vs. what the technology can do. That’s what I’ve seen over and over with these particular conferences and unless it’s CES, I don’t think many people care all that much about the technology. Even then, it’s very easy to get overwhelmed. People want to see all the cool things the technology can do, but that’s a much different proposition that setting technologies out on display.
So, this particular conference has really put a lot of time and attention into shifting the focus to the actual engagement that all these technologies can enable. And they’re finally starting to gain some traction, in terms of attracting the right speakers, exhibitors and attendees. It’s really great to see and it was equally great to be a part of. So, I thought I'd pay homage to the show and the insight/perspective that I gained there. Here’s what I brought back:
1. Lots of good thinking, but in reality, no one has figured this out – what I mean by this is that regardless what business you’re in – be it selling digital signage, selling ad space, creating content, or even putting together large campaigns that span across all sorts of technology – this is a complicated space, communicating to consumers. And despite your particular vertical or area of expertise, people are having to think about how to connect with consumers and what that means in ways that they have never had to before. There’s no one-stop-shop who can do all of this like ad agencies of old, and even more, there’s certainly not a one-size-fits-all approach that we can take when addressing this challenge of connecting with consumers. It’s just hard. There are many things to think about, not the least of which is the power that consumers have today. More than ever, consumers expect to be a part of the entire thing, they want a say in everything, from the creation to the activation and beyond. And that’s just challenging. One part of that proposition is challenging, much less all of it.
So, beyond the fact that non one has this figured out, my takeaway is to put solid thinking around what it means to connect and engage with consumers in this technology-rich, two-way expected world that we live in. Think of yourself as a consumer and not as an advertiser. Think about what motivates you to engage with something when you’re living your life. And that’s only a start because that’s only you. We, as consumers, are fickle and particular and you are not exactly like me. And I want everyone to know that.
2. There’s a technology out there that can do whatever you want – whatever you want to dream up, there’s a technology out there that can do that. Gesture and touch, holograms, bendable displays. Technology is not the barrier and we’re getting to the point to where cost of technology is not the barrier, either.
3. Social should be a given, yet mobile was a key focus – I heard so many discussions that centered around mobile over the few days. There were numerous sessions built strictly around mobile. But nothing on social. That said, everyone talked about "engagement" as being an inherently social activity that it seemed to be inferred that social was just a baseline. I think for those outside the digital signage industry it is a baseline. For those within the industry, I feel like social is hardly thought about. Just from what I saw from the exhibitors alone, all playing some part in the digital signage ecosystem (hardware, software, networks, content), they aren’t focusing on social content or connections. I could be wrong, but I didn’t hear much talk about social in the customer’s journey, certainly not from the exhibitors. I would be interested to know what sort of social learning this group needs.
4. Everyone needs a life-long mentor – I love when I get a chance to go to New York because that means I get to see my very first boss in the business who is also my mentor. It is incredibly refreshing to catch up and get advice and a different perspective. He has made an indelible impact on me, in both my personal and professional life, and I’m blessed to have a mentor like that. We don’t keep in touch as much as I’d like to, but I hear his voice often, especially in situations where I need a little guidance. If you don’t have a mentor, seek one out. If you do have one, don’t ever lose them.
"Uh-huh" – I sat in one session where the makeup of the panel was so un-digital-signage. Chaired by Paul Price, the CEO of Creative Realties, the panel consisted Jeremy Lockhorn, VP of emerging media at Razorfish, Carrie Chitsey, CEO of 3Seventy (a mobile shop), and Michael Tobin of Macy’s. All on the forefront of creating engaging experiences with emerging technologies. It was a standing room only session. It was really great to see because what it showed me was that there was interest in hearing from this type of speaker, which is a direct reflection of the different type of audience that this show is attracting. More people from digital shops and ad agencies (not media agencies). This was huge.
"Duh" – There are still too many digital signage providers. And by providers, I mean companies who have some hand in everything that digital signage encompasses. I had the privilege of leading a couple of tours for attendees on the showroom floor. The tours were intended to expose the attendees to individual providers of services in that ecosystem (hardware, software, network, and content). Every single one of the attendees that I gave tours to said the same thing to me, "does everyone do everything?" Ha. Because that sure is what it seems like, if you listen to most of the exhibitors on the showroom floor. This is something that makes my head want to explode. The fact that there are so many different providers makes it confusing. Confusion for something like digital signage tends to cause paralysis. Paralysis causes no implementation. We don’t want that.
"I joined the Digital Screenmedia Association because everything is changing so rapidly with this medium that you need to have as much access to information as you can get. I have met many vendors and users, and enjoy the opportunity to share our 'war stories' and use our experiences to help each other with ideas that support successful networks."
Margot Myers
Director, Gobal Marketing & Communications
Platt Retail Institute
