AR in the Food and Hospitality Industry
It is possible that the Food and Hospitality Industry is not the first thing that comes to mind when you think of using Augmented Reality (AR), but you would be surprised to know it is becoming very popular in this sector. The hospitality industry is very competitive and being in this sector means keeping up with the latest trends.
This industry is all about delivering the best customer experience possible to make sure they keep coming to you and not to the competition. By providing the customers with all the information you can give them, short of letting them taste the food, you can boost brand awareness and customer loyalty and thus potentially increase revenue.
Augmented Reality menus for restaurants
Using AR in menus gives dining out an extra dimension when it comes to enjoying food on a different level. By adding this virtual element, the customers can not only see how the dish looks but even appreciate different colors and textures before they order it. You can even add extra information like health tips or an ingredient list, so you can see what that exotic dish that looks so good is all about.
People tend to order with their eyes, what looks more delicious is more likely to be ordered. If you read from a menu you have to let your imagination do the choosing for you but by ordering food that you can see like it were really in front of you, whether you order in a restaurant or from the comfort of your own home, it is more likely you can choose what appeals best to you.
AR Restaurant Tours and Behind-the-Scenes
Another interesting and useful way of applying AR in the food and hospitality industry is in-home ordering food. Instead of just ordering something you read or see on a picture on the internet, you can transform the ordering of food into a complete experience from seeing the restaurant, visiting the kitchen, to even seeing what ingredients go into the dish you are about to order. It goes without saying that this provides a powerful tool to platforms like Just Eat, Uber Eats, Deliveroo, Globo and Grubhub to name a few.
AR for Food Packaging
Packaging can be made more interesting and interactive by using AR to add an extra layer of information that shows the customer, for example, how the product came to be or the history of the company that made the product. In packaging for kids’ food, it offers plenty of interesting possibilities like adding adventurous stories or games in products like cereals, biscuits or drinks to make it more appealing for kids. It is also a great tool for large chain companies to get more engagement from the customers and generate brand awareness. Using AR in packaging also makes it possible for products to set up marketing collaborations with different sectors. Imagine a brand of cookies in the shape of superheroes that uses AR to show a movie trailer and so connecting the food industry with the movie industry.
AR for Hotels
Hotels using AR can show their rooms to potential clients in a way that pictures cannot. This way a hotel can have a larger impact on the guests’ choice by offering them a more realistic preview of what they can expect by giving them more feel for the room they are choosing. You can even create engagement for a hotel even before their stay by letting customers take a look around in the hotel to be. And last but not least, just think about what AR can do for hotel safety by showing guests what to do in case of fire and even simulate a fire emergency. It is a way of increasing the attention span and understanding of the customers while at the same time increasing safety.
