Snapchat to Feature an AR Shopping Showcase at the Holidays

On November 26, Snapchat launched a new AR-powered project named Snap Holiday Market. It partnered with six brands, namely Amazon, Coca-Cola, Hollister, Under Armour, Verizon, and Walmart. Each of them has its own way of implementing AR features into its campaigns among the audience of Snapchat.

For each of these brands, a special AR space has been created. Within this space, users can see the products, try them digitally, enjoy the holiday feel they bring. These spaces are available through the Lens Carousel, and if you like, you can bookmark these spaces as regular lenses.

Anyone who has ever tried AR lenses by Snapchat realizes their entertaining potential. It couldn’t remain purely entertaining, though, so here comes the commerce. Not only are these spaces made with a lot of imagination. Say, Coca-Cola features a virtual Santa visiting the office, and Amazon creates a virtual cinema where you can see trailers to movies and shows available on Prime Video.

Snapchat says this is not a one-and-done act made exclusively for Black Friday. The e-commerce branch offers diverse marketing tools that utilize the preferences of the audience. Snapchatters, the service admits, loves browsing, shopping, and sharing. So, AR-powered advertising tools are made to advertise the products as well as to go viral as they are. It’s especially efficient with clothing, so Snapchat already partners with Dior, Tory Burch, American Eagle, Hollister, and other brands to offer virtual try-on and shopping experiences. Another initiative by Snapchat is “Snap to Shop”: it only takes a scannable code to try an item on with a dedicated lens.

Do you like online shopping? Do you feel that AR technologies by Snapchat will enhance your online experience? And do you use Snapchat at all? Share your thoughts and expectations in the comments!