5 ways to spice up the music industry with AR

The number of hours we spend listening to music continues to climb, and yet growth in revenue has hardly budged these past 20 years. Here are 5 ways that Augmented Reality could spice up the music industry and add real value to consumers and fans…

1. Give CDs a second life

• Sales in CDs have been declining, and with streaming gaining ground, there seems to be little chance of them organically creeping back up. AR can breathe new life into the CD, using the product as a new media channel which can add value to the customer, bringing them closer to their favourite artists.
• Aussie heart throbs, 5 Seconds of Summer, have explored opportunities here, partnering with Blippar to hide digital content in their album cover that enhanced and complemented the listening experience. Releasing short and exclusive video clips describing the backstory of each song meant fans could find extra meaning in each track, with something that is personally enriching to them.
• Little Mix also harnessed Augmented Reality to connect with their fans, letting them blipp the Black Magic album and create their own covers to share with the band on social media.


Download Blippar and blipp the image to see it come to life in AR

2. Making video more valuable

• Music videos are the obvious place for artists to connect with fans. By 2021, video will account for 77% of global mobile data traffic. This kind of visual content is creative and compelling, providing the perfect antidote to the ‘information overload’ that people face each day.
• Artists should take note - Snoop Dogg used his blippable album cover to send his fans to his music videos directly from the product itself (as well as unlock other exciting content).
• But AR can do more - imagine creating music videos that aren’t virtual, but are projected into your real world environment through a camera lens. The possibilities are endless - just wait until John Mayer is serenading you while you sip your morning coffee.

3. Building the buzz

• Gone are the days when consumers passively ingested brand messages. Today, consumers look for interactive advertising that engages and includes them.
• Justin Bieber responded to this demand by creating interactive posters with Blippar to promote his upcoming tour in 2013, which let him speak directly to fans, take a digital selfie with them and offer free concert tickets to some lucky winners.
• Artists shouldn’t stop here though. Katy Perry built huge buzz for the release of ‘Chained to the Rhythm’ when she dropped disco balls around the globe that played song snippets 24 hours before the official release. Imagine the scale you could achieve sending fans on a virtual scavenger hunt before the release of your new album…!

4. Music marketing 2.0

• Augmented Reality can bring music to places that it isn’t typically found. With the power to bring everyday objects to life, artists and labels can attach their music to any number of things.
• Coca-Cola, which once adopted the slogan ‘Open Happiness’, actually offered a natural fit for Spotify, which streams the songs loved by so many. Transforming the iconic can into a Spotify jukebox enhanced the moment of consumption, elevating a seemingly ordinary action within a person’s day.

5. AR in action

• Live music - at festivals and concerts - provides a key opportunity to introduce Augmented Reality experiences that will improve what is inevitably already a special occasion (and one where people invariably already have their phones out to record and document the event).
• Coachella, arguably the most popular music festival in the world, has made some efforts to incorporate this tech, building excitement for ticket-holders this year with an AR-activated ‘Welcome Box’ and an AR easter egg hunt for hidden virtual surprises at the festival itself. But there is so much more that could be done…!

If you are interested in using Augmented Reality to bring your music to life, get in touch or sign up for our self-service tools and get started for free today!